Mill Brook
Belle Ayr to Arena
| Difficulty | IV-V |
| Length | 7.7 mi |
| Avg Gradient | n/a |
| Gauge | Mill Brook Near Dunraven Ny |
| Flow Rate as of 41 minutes | 21 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | December 18, 2024 |
River Description
The run starts slow with some Class 2, but after the first drop is a series of Class 3/4 ledges. The gem of the run is a gorged in Class 4/5 section. Be sure to get out and scout when you see the walls starting to rise up, especially if it is icy.
You may need to put a marker at the takeout. Be careful to avoid the game club.
Use the Map, Flows, and Directions tabs for more info
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Locals have ran this from 350cfs to 1400cfs. The beta here is a product of our conversations. We thought that 300 would be a scrapy reasonable minimum flow and 2000 cfs would be high but runnable, if you know the lines. I believe that the old flow range of 150-500 cfs was imputed from Dennis Squires book, and it is likey that things have shifted over the years. The Mill Brook is quite flashy and with these updated numbers only runs at proper flows a handful of days a year, althought the gauge is reliable.
Please be aware: there are significant issues with law enforcement on this run due to the zealousness of the Tuscarora Club. They have been described as the Adirondak League Club of the Catskills. One group got seen boating by a patron and they arrived at their legally parked car to find a ticket for trespassing. The car's owner had to go to court in Margaretville to successfully fight it. Moreover, the local police called their personal phone and told them to stay away from the clubs property. Even though there are legal putins and take outs and you can park exclusively on public land while running it, it is likely wise to attempt boat on weekdays out of trout/deer season.
In addition to access issues, the Mill Brook has significant hazards. The Tuscarora Club has built over a dozen low head dams, ostensibly for trout habitat. Although they are fun and spice things up, you need a sharp boof to get over them, as the boil extends at least a boat length's out. In the main gorge there are two ~25ft waterfalls adjacent to must ma
...River Features
Put In
Park at the Kelly Hollow trailhead. Legal access is up the road half a mile at the covered bridge. There are easy river access sites along the way, but those are technically trespassing.
Slot Machine
Get out and scout at the first horizon line in the gorge. Look at this rapid carefully. There's a slot in the middle where a lot of water goes. Good boaters have lost their paddle by accidentally dropping into it with their shaft perpendicular to the crack. Worse boaters have gotten flipped backwards in it and swam. Such things are not recommended as a 100 yards downstream is a waterfall where if you deviate from an exceptionally thin line you will fall 25ft onto bedrock.
The line is to boof from the far left onto the bedrock sloping into the crack, ferry across this slope and then boof again below where the crack opens up. It's a really fun and unique drop. Portage right. Scout left.
Rightwing Death Cult
This is a 25 ft waterfall with a self explanatory name: 80% of the water swerves far right and drops 25ft onto bedrock. Scout on river left. At lower water you have to 'portage' with a 25 ft autoboofed seal launch off the center of the ledge. The only other option is a long heinous hike out and back into the gorge. At higher water the seal launch becomes the line.
Ledgesaurus Rex
Scout right at the next big horizon line. You have the choice between a wide line on the right where you have a 10 ft slide into a 15ft autoboof ledge vs narrow line on the left with a big sloping drop culminating in a 5 ft autoboof ledge. The center appears to have a ledge that drops 15 ft onto bedrock. Easy portage trail on the right.
Magro Agression
Magro didn't expire here but he learned there is a big undercut with its own undercut eddy that can hold a boat. Scout river left at the first horizon line after the first real, paved bridge you see after the gorge. You will find a long twisting powerful slot ringed with multiple undercuts. If you don't paddle with enough aggression you, your boat, and your paddle could well end all swirling around under one of those undercuts. There's a particularly hungry one on the river right midway down that laxy paddlers get pushed into. Don't be too intimidated, this is a fun rapid with few hazards in the runout.
Take Out
Park at the intersection of the dirt road (Jim Alton road) and the main rd. At the end of the run just paddle under the bridge and a river access trail will be on your right. Often a little surf wave forms under the bridge.
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportJust ran this at 1500 cfs. A level that is often the yearly peak.
At flood stage the Mill Brook is truly world class. In my mind it compared favorably to such classics as Canyon Creek in WA, Rio Fui in Chile, and other famous class 5 runs.
I ran everything. The big drops were powerful and fluffy. The rapids in between turned into incredible class 5 boogie as you punched through big laterals and launched off boofs.
All the low head dams went, the gorge was free of wood, and there were no river-wide holes from natural features.
This run is extremely flashy, but this experience was so incredible that I am likely to start diving this way anytime the gauge starts spiking.