Tuolumne

Cherry Creek may be the most popular class 5 whitewater in California because it receives dependable flows from Holm Powerhouse most of the summer and sometimes in the fall and winter. Many people boat this reach week after week through the summer, learning every facet of every rapid.

The run typically begins at Holm Powerhouse on Cherry Creek proper, where cold snowmelt carries paddlers a short ways down to the confluence with the main Tuolumne. From here, the fun begins. Rapid after quality rapid come one after another, with short interspersed pools that provide much needed rest for the out of breath paddlers. As the California sun warms the canyon, paddlers enjoy the consistent and challenging rapids tucked into a remote river canyon. There are too many rapids to count - for the best experience, find a local to show you down.

Near the end of the summer there is an annual but informal Cherry Creek downriver race and party. Spectators and safety volunteers spread out along the race section and racers paddle as fast as they can down a section containing some of the major rapids. Dates for the race are usually announced on social media (facebook/instagram).

A note on flows: a typical summer release sees the water turning on around 7am and off at 11am. This means that the best time to put on is 8-9:30am, which gives the water enough time to advance downstream, but also ensures adequate time to move downriver. Water typically drops out at the takeout (Meral's Pool) around 1:15pm. Losing water on this run is more common than one would think, and results in an uncomfortably bony time moving downriver. As a general rule of thumb, aim to be at the bottom of Toadstool by at latest 10:30am.

Typical summer flows are around 1,100 to 1,200 cfs. Early in summer (June), flows can be slightly elevated. As flows rise to 2,000 cfs, the difficulty generally increases, but only slightly.

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