Oh Be Joyful Creek, |
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| Name | Range | Updated | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLATE RIVER NEAR CRESTED BUTTE, CO | 400 - 2000 cfs | n/a | n/a |
The upper and lower ½?s of the creek are very different, even though the gradient is about the same. The upper 1/2 has the big waterfalls, a 25' fall and two 18' falls. Most boaters put in below the first one, Ankle Breaker, it has rocks in the landing zone. Don't bother boofing either of the 2 big waterfalls below, a hole thrashing at the bottom is a lot less painful than a 2 story drop landed flat. This section is generally a little less frantic than the lower half, as it is much easier to eddy hop your way down. There is very little wood in the upper half, so some boaters take out just above the huge avalanche path that crosses over the creek, the start of the lower half.
The lower half is characterized by a big string of amazing long and steep slides interspersed with river-wide logjams climaxing in a shotgun blast over a 12' sliding-waterfall at the very end. The eddies are there, but you get going so fast itÂs like a gravity beam pulling you into the big drops. It is generally possible to "wheel-chair" your way over and off the backside of the worst logjams, although some do chose to portage. Don't boat down to the confluence with the Slate, take out river left at the end of the large pool just below the last slide/waterfall.
Check out the pics at Mountainbuzz.com, and Ed Hansen's Web Gallery. There are some awesome pics of the US Steep Creek Championships taken in June(Brrr!) at Julie Keller's website.,
To get there: From the OBJ camprground you will have to cross the Slate River. High clearance vehicles can ford the river, but there are many casualties each year. If you're going to drive across make sure you know that the air intake is high enough that it won't suck up water, and use granny gear to crawl acrss the river very slowly. The put-in is one mile up the road at a flat rocky meadow to your left, it should be obvious that lots of vehicles have been there and the vegetation is getting smooshed badly. If you have strong legs please hike your boats up:-)
The Quadruple Crown: Because of the short length and proximity of the Crested Butte creeks all 4 of them can be run in the same day. The East River is the best to start out with; it has the largest flow and the least gradient of the four. Next in line is Daisy Creek. Just continue downstream after Daisy to the confluence with the Slate River; there will be about 1 mile of slack water until the first rapid. The takeout for the Slate River is the same as Oh Be Joyful Creek so just walk or drive up to the OBJ put-in from there.
This creek is fed entirely by the days snowmelt so the later you put on the higher the flow will be. Peak flows are at sunset or shortly after.
Before June look for minimum flows of 700 cfs or higher. Early in the season the gauges, located far downstream of the actual reach, are mostly reading snow melt from lower elevations.
| Name | Range | Updated | Level | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SLATE RIVER NEAR CRESTED BUTTE, CO | |||||||||
| usgs-09111500 | 400 - 2000 cfs | cfs | |||||||
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| Mile | Rapid Name | Class | Features (Legend) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | Ankle Breaker | 5.2 |     |
| 0.1 | Heart Attack | 5.0 | |
| 0.3 | 1st big slide on upper OBJ (name?) | 5.0 | |
| 0.4 | Dead Zone | 5.1 | |
| 0.5 | Last big slide on upper OBJ (name?) | 5.0 |  |
| 0.6 | Avalanche (name?) | 5.1 | |
| 0.7 | Pick-Up Sticks (name?) | 5.0 |  |
| 0.9 | Ode to Joy (name?) | 5.0 | |
| 1.0 | Oh Be Grateful (name?) | 5.0 |  |
River Alert
State News
River Links
NWRI - Oh Be Joyful Creek 01. Ankle Breaker to Beaver Ponds (mobile)
User Comments
when people go too far right. If you run this falls you want to be left of center. A big ledge lays
just beneath the surface on the right side. Be careful and have fun!
asked the crowds at rec.boats.paddle and at Boater Talk to "Name that Rapid!" Everyone's got an
opinion. Read on! From RBP: Last Shot Flush lever Thundering Tower Amen Last Dance Oh Be Grateful
Had to Go Chiropractor Falls from BT (http://boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk/147717): Hallelujah
Praise God Rise up Gonna Fly Now Nirvana Hey you get off of my cloud Come Down Last Drop ER Don't
Worry, Be Happy Ode to Joy Hands to Heaven White Angel Angel Falls Smirk Angel Hair Angel Hair
Pasta White Chocolate Crunch Orgasm--especially since it's the *last* rapid and the *climax* of Oh,
Be Joyful Creek Cosmic Debris or Zero The Hero and if I'd been on the run with them maybe: I Walk
Alone Got Cajones? or BYOB (Bring Your Own Balls) Men or Mice Gummy Bear or Cupcake or Pansy or
Mary Poppins....or Scared as Hell Maybe Next Time Mangled Human Remains Drift and Die Poseidon's
Revenge Kraken's Spatula welcome climax Steve Reap the Rocket Cleanin' House Homo-destructus. But
"BigHelmet" sez: 'It has a name many already know, "The last rapid on Oh-Be."' Me, I kinda like the
ones like Ode to Joy and Amen. And I like "Cosmic Debris" for the wood-choked rapid (# 1506); Jesse
Kodadek suggests "dumber 'n shit" or "big stiff woody" for that one. The decision on the rapids'
names will doubtless be up to those who run the crick.