2) Quake Lake to 1.5 miles downstreamClass IV-V
1.5 Miles
Avg Gradient 155 fpm
Mark at S-Turn
Mark at S-Turn Photo of Mark by David Schroeder taken 9/2002 @ 1000 Gauge Information
Madison
River DescriptionOn August 17th, 1959 at 11:37 PM a major earthquake rocked the Greater Yellowstone Area. Rating a 7.5 on the Richter Scale, this quake was the largest in the documented history of Montana and took the greatest toll on human life. An entire mountainside came tumbling down on a crowded forest service campground before charging a full 400 feet up the opposite mountainside. This slide completely dammed the Madison River, eventually forming Earthquake Lake. The Army Corp of Engineers cut a new path for the river through the debris and this is now a SW Montana padling classic.The run starts across from the Quake Lake visitors center on Montana Hwy 287. A dirt path leads down to where the lake once again becomes a river. From the moment you drift through the skeletal reamins of the forest poking up from the lake bottom, you are faced with continuous class IV boogie water requiring good read and run paddling skills. Though not overly difficult, the upper section is shallow and extremely sharp. A swim would be painful at best. As you fly down the run, keep your eyes peeled for a big eddy on river left, just before the river bends hard to the right. You will be directly below the main part of the slide. Catch this eddy and scout the next 120 yards. This rapid, known as the S-Turn, is known for carnage and has drawn its fair share of blood. It is a definite class V at all levels but can easily be portaged on the left. Below this drop, the river mellows quickly and you can take out wherever you like as Hwy. 287 follows this run in its' entirety. Most folks run it two or three times in a day. Enjoy! StreamTeam Status: verified
Last Updated: 2007-03-27 19:57:44
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Madison bl Hebgen Lake [ MT ] |
Current Conditions
Station Graphs |
| Level Legend: | Running | Below Minimum Recommended Flow | Above Maximum Recommended Flow | Unknown |
| State | River Name/Section | Class | Level | Rel. Level | Updated | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MT | Madison— 1) Hebgen Res to Quake Lake | II-III | 1.88 ft | 7/24 20:00 | ||
| MT | Madison— 2) Quake Lake to 1.5 miles downstream | IV-V | 1.88 ft | low | 7/24 20:00 |
| AW Gauge ID: | 2579 |
| USGS Station: | 06038500 |
| HUC: | 10020007 |
| Latitude: | 44.8667 |
| Longitude: | -111.3375 |
| Class: | 4 |
User Comments |
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2008-05-08 03:13:02 (77 days ago)
Matt Larson
Quake attack! I was lucky enough to catch this stretch at 2700 a couple years ago. Sick!! If it happens again, go get it. The S-turn is the class-V ish section, more so because of consequence. The only time i have gone upside down, my helmet was destroyed after the same rock broke the shaft of my paddle. The run is Incredibly a fun continuous drop. worth many laps. I've often traveled through lines that i wasn't planning on and they were cleaner than expected. keep it upright. Edit
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2002-06-21 15:47:33 (2225 days ago)
David Garrity
I did this run at about 1100cfs and it was fun without being scary. The lines are fairly standard western runs - inside the bends and down the middle of the straightaways. You could probably run this as low as 800 cfs, but be careful the rocks are really sharp. No clue as to a maximum level. A couple of the bends are run in small chutes on the inside to avoid large holes running the width of the main channel.
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No rapids entered. If you know names, and locations of the rapids please contact and advise the StreamTeam member for this run. 
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