Patapsco,

Woodstock to Elkridge

Usual Difficulty	I-III (may vary with level)
Length	17.5 Miles
Avg. Gradient	14 fpm
Max Gradient	30 fpm

Gauge Information

Name	Range	Difficulty	Updated	Level
NORTH BRANCH PATAPSCO RIVER AT CEDARHURST, MD
usgs-01586000	120 - 5000 cfs	I-III	00h39m	113 cfs (rc= -0.0 )

River Description

Time: varies wildly with water level. As little as 1.5 hrs to Ellicott City, and another 1.7 hrs to Glen Artney after very heavy rain with no play, or around 3 hours to Ellicott City and another 3 hours to Glen Artney at a mild pace under average conditions.

Difficulty: I-III at up to about 3’ on the Hollofield gauge, with some areas drifting into the IV’s above 4-5’+ range.

Fun Factor 6.5 out of 10. (High water can add 2 or more to this total)

Water Quality: Mostly good, with some suspicious looking hues of brown during a heavy runoff.

History: Amazingly, this river was once a route for barrels of tobacco to get from Catonsville to the even more amazingly once navigable tidal waters at the Route 1 bridge in Elkridge. Visit this portion some time and try to imagine a sailboat coming upstream at you. It ain’t easy.

The Patapsco river is a convenient local conundrum to the paddlers of Baltimore in that it features too much whitewater for recreational boaters, and way too much flatwater for whitewater boaters. If you have the gumption in the first case, the patience in the second, or you like to experience a multitude of conditions from straight-forward rapids, to narrow chutes, to big, lake-like, half mile paddles to dangerous hazards (that are optional) thrown in for spice, then this is the place for you.

You can start with a steep carry down at Woodstock Road, (just off Rte 99) but to avoid nearly 5 miles of mostly flat water, put in below Daniel’s Dam (at the end of Daniel’s Rd., just off Old Frederick). To trim another couple of mostly flat miles out, begin even further down at the Hollofield bridge, which old Frederick Road goes over. You’ll still have a good four miles down to Ellicott City, and six beyond that should you choose to continue to Elkridge.

If you have difficulty getting over the sandbar just a few yards downstream, it may still be runnable for the rest of the way: this is probably the shallowest spot on the entire river. The next mile is a mostly pretty run through the deepening gorge of the state park, that features a few class 2- rapids here and there. At high water this is a nice pushy, mostly rapidless run with trees (living, not fallen) being the biggest hazards.

When you reach the second bridge (Route 40) it’s time to think about getting out on river right to scout. As you pass under, you’ll see the spooky looking wall of the Union Dam dead ahead, sticking out of the water about seven feet at normal/low water, and only about a foot (or not at all) at high water. Here, the river takes a 90 degree right turn and heads toward a river right breach that’s sure to be cluttered with wide variety of strainers. Take out at or before the right turn to scout - a small trail leads around the right.

This interesting, twisty little breach is a class 2+ on its face, but a class 4 when factoring in its level of forgiveness and potential to ruin your whole day, and maybe your whole life. At 2.5’ or less, you go through a breach that’s barely big enough for your kayak, make an immediate 90 degree left turn in strange, tippy water, and go over a 2.5’ ledge that forms a deceptively powerful hole, even at lower levels. If you have any doubts, throw your boat in and watch it surf there for the rest of the afternoon.

If you run it, and make it, you can eddy out in a gigantic pool on river left that features enough floating debris and scrap wood to build a log cabin. If you don’t make it, you probably a) got stuck in the strainers at the top of the breach b) flipped in the turn and got pinned upsidedown on the ledge c) got snared by the decayed chain link fence that coats the entire river right bank (which the current feeds into) d) got stewed in the hole e) got stewed in the hole and then run through by prevalent re-bar that litters the entire bottom under the breach. I’m sure there are even more creative ways to perish, so a short carry around the right is recommended. If you do insist on running it, it is possible to partially boof the drop on the far left and miss most of the hole. At levels above 4’, this chute goes well in into class V. While it loses most of the keeper qualities of its hole (only because its violence), the bizarre, overlapping currents, horrendously powerful water, and lack of room to navigate make it unrunnable for anybody not currently being paid to endorse paddling equipment.

Below here, the river picks up some juice. A fun rapid begins right below the pool after the breach, which turns in a big wave train at higher levels. The next mile or so features a variety of easy class 2 rapids, and a labyrinth of a rock gardens that will test all of your boat control skills at lower levels. For incentive to prove your narrow turning ability, pretend the rocks are mines which will explode on contact. Of course you would be a puff of smoke in the first fifty feet below 2.0’ or so if this were the case, though it is possible to get through here (but not without some scraping and scooting) at levels as low as 1.8’. There are a few interesting ledges with very scrapy chutes, and some long pools that continue until the rocks begin turning into boulders. Soon after you can make out the old Dickey mill on river left, marking the beginning of the drops through Oella.

Make your way down on river right until you see the first decent rapid, easily identified because of the huge tree strainer running all the way out to the center of the current. Keep your boat under control and stay to the right of center and its easy to miss. It’s a fairly long, bumpy (class 3- at lower water and 3+ or above at 3.5+’). Paddle down to the next rapid that’s a steep class 3 and ends in a nice recovery pool. There are a short combination of these coming up next called Oella Falls that culminate in Suicide, the last rapid that begins below a house sticking out of the cliff on river left, and twists left down into the backwater pool before Ellicott City. There are many lines here, and a decent surfing wave at the bottom of this at some levels. All these rapids are easy to eddy scout at up to about 2.8 or so. Much beyond 3’, and the eddies all wash out, making one wild III+/-IV run all the way from the river split (marked by a giant rock plastered with strainers in the center) to the bottom. At those levels, there are some sneaky holes with stopping potential through here, so keep a sharp eye out at the top of every big wave. A long pool takes you to the Ellicott City bridge where you can take out on river left, just before the 144 bridge.

If you decide to continue, the fun begins again. River left is the only passable route at lower levels, and is the funnest route at flood stage, with a big, long, bouncy wave train taking you down around the left turning bend. There are a couple of rocks to avoid under the next train bridge around the corner, but the ride mostly settles after this with class 2 rapids and some riffles that quickly turn into the backwater of Thistle Dam. This thoroughly unrunnable 12 footer features an river wide alligator rock at the bottom, and a wicked hole on both sides of the falls at higher levels. Carry on river right around the metal walkway.

The rapids below here pick up for a short bit and turn to riffles before they die for good in the backwater of the next dam, a 25 footer that’s carried on river right up a steep slope, and then down around a trail to the bottom. Rumor has it that this dam has been run, maybe due to a safer design, but big rocks at the bottom, very powerful water, and well, hell, a 25 foot drop make the walk mandatory. There is a little gravel island at the bottom that makes a good place to get back in your boat at lower levels. Below here, there are some fun class 2+ rapids (turning into wild wave trains at higher levels).

The rest of this run is a pleasant drift through Patapsco State Park, featuring lots of easy riffles, some precariously shallow gravel bars at low water, and interesting scenery, including a swinging bridge, plenty of heron, and the occasional marauding beaver in colder weather. Take out is at the Glen Artney area of the Park, marked by a brick bridge running over the water just past some ball fields and no-swimming sign on river left. If you continue on to Elkridge, you’ll get to see the Viaduct, and ancient rotting train bridge (still used) that’s a bit unnerving if you happen to be under it when a train comes by. The next takeout is at the Route 1 bridge on river left in Elkridge. If your shuttle happens to be a motorcycle, enjoy a beer at Daniel's, one of the last drive-up motorcycle bars on the continent. And don't ask for a draft...