Clear Creek
Ore 211 to Redland Road
| Difficulty | II-III |
| Length | 8 mi |
| Avg Gradient | n/a |
| Gauge | Clackamas River Above Three Lynx Creek, or |
| Flow Rate as of 56 minutes | 1080 cfs |
| Reach Info Last Updated | June 18, 2025 |
River Description
Clear Creek is a seldom run tributary of the lower Clackamas River, entering the Clackamas at Carver Park. The run contains a few fun Class 3-3+ rapids and some very nice scenery. Due to the small nature of the creek and the tendancy to collect wood, recognizing and stopping above the harder rapids can be a challenge. Boaters really should have Class 4 skills and be comfortable boat scouting and dealing with wood or other hazards. The run passes through Metzler Park which can be used as an alternate put-in.
River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportA bridge has collapsed, creating a unique hazard. It might be runnable in the center of the river but is creating unique obstacles. 45.316539, -122.423287
April 2019 update. While this run in recent years has typically required at most 2 wood portages, it is currently in bad shape. We did nearly a dozen portages, some quite difficult up/down steep terrain and through thick blackberry. We judged another dozen logs or so to be safe enough to boof/slide over, but these likely would have been additional portages at more typical (lower) flows. The creek was extra high. We normally run this when the 3 Lynx gauge on the Clackamas is at least 4 or 5K cfs and other runs like nearby Eagle Creek are looking too high. The gauge peaked well over 10K this particular day. Nearly all of our logjams were in slower water, but beware the steeper mid-run section at these higher flows. The fast water here is not forgiving as you come around the right hand bend into the class 3+ ledge drops.
We put in at the public park. It was a bit rocky at the beginning but after the first hundred yards things were much better. The first mile is beyond beautiful. It is also after a mile the first river wide tree is down. Another is a half mile down from there. There are two good class IIIs about two miles or so in and two more a few miles after. The rest is just portages and beautiful scenery. I took the gps, and the last mile and a half is pure flat through back yards, with a total of about 8.2 river miles. Redland road is the best way out, but be warned there are a lot of other bridges along the way, so it is good to take a look at the bridge from the creek before you run for the first time.