On June 4th a group of three expert kayakers launched on Pine Creek Canyon of Colorado’s Arkansas River. This short, but intense Class V run was quite high at 2000 cfs. Halfway down the rapid Dylan Wallace, 27, missed a right to left move above the main Pine Creek Hole, dropped into it, tail standed, and flipped. He tried 2 rolls, and was upright for a second, without his paddle, before going over again. He made no further attempts to roll or pull his spray skirt to swim and washed downstream. His friends got him ashore in about 500 yards, an outstanding job in the fast-moving Class IV runout with few available eddies. They started CPR and called 911. Remembering that an AED was stashed on the other side of the river, at the "Stealth" Numbers put-in, one paddler ferried over and brought the device back while the other continued resuscitation. CPR and the AED were used for over an hour before first responders took over. Despite these heroic efforts he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Dylan’s parents, David Wallace and Betsy Frick, told AW that their son was a strong and capable big water paddler who had recently returned from a one-day, top-to-bottom run of the Class V North Fork of the Payette in Idaho, followed by a 1 day run of the South Fork of the Salmon at 6 feet. He had run Pine Creek at least 100 times over the last 8 years. A big man, weighing about 210 pounds, he was paddling a 75-gallon half-slice design which can be tough to manage in big water. There is a powerful seam in the current just above the hole and Mr. Wallace thinks that this could have pulled the low-volume stern under and caused a brief loss of control. Even though the autopsy showed no head injury, Mr. Wallace suspects that he might have hit his head or face hard enough to stun him, and this would explain why he didn’t bail out. He was wearing a Sweet Protection Rocker helmet which was not damaged. This accident testifies to the relentless nature of Class V runs which can turn small mistakes into something a lot more serious.
AHRA responds after fatality on Pine Creek Rapid
by Hannah Harn, Mountain Mail
June 5, 2023
Colorado Parks and Wildlife rangers from the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area are investigating after a man died on June 4 during a private kayak trip down the Arkansas River north of Buena Vista. Rangers responded to a call for help Tuesday evening after a three-boat private kayaking group reported an accident in the highly technical Class V section of the river below the Pine Creek access point.
The call came into the Chaffee County dispatch center at 5:30 p.m., prompting immediate response from multiple agencies including Chaffee County Fire, Chaffee County Emergency Medical Services, Chaffee County Sheriff's Office and AHRA rangers.
Witnesses told rangers that one kayaker was navigating a rapid when his boat became trapped in a powerful churning feature at the bottom of the Pine Creek Rapid. Eventually, the boat was flushed from the rapid, and other members of his group pulled the man to shore where they attempted CPR. Resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful, and the man was pronounced deceased on the scene by the Chaffee County Coroner Jeff Graf. The victim was identified as Dylan Wallace, 27, a resident of Steamboat Springs and Salida. “Our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of the victim,” said Tom Waters, AHRA park manager, in a Wednesday morning release.
