Barbours Creek
Route 611 to Route 609
| Difficulty | II-III+(IV) |
| Length | 7.2 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 36 fpm |
| Reach Info Last Updated | July 21, 2024 |
River Description
7-7-09
ACCESS PROBLEMS:
(see comments) The landowner that owns the entire upper section including 'The Falls' has made it absolutely clear that boaters are not allowed on 'his creek'.
So consider this wonderful little stretch of water CLOSED.
Old beta...5-2009....
Otherwise.....
Barbours Creek is a pristine mountain stream.
This run is a great intro to creeking. The most serious hazards are usually strainers. Undercuts are infrequent.
So when you drive shuttle (see directions tab) be safe and when you park get well out of the road and leave room for others. Take a trashbag and pick up around the put in especially. Wave and smile at local landowners if you pass them while paddling. Talk to them if engaged. Be friendly. Pick up trash.
Don't Even Think About Fishing Without Written Permission. To fish take your licenses and go way upstream to Nat'l Forest. 'The Pines Campground' is on Nat'l Forest up between the North and South Prongs and has plenty of free camping and good trout fishing when the prongs are stocked.
There seem to always be several natural strainers on this run so keep a close look out for wood everywhere and take it extra slow. As with most small mtn. streams, avoid large groups much over 4 people at a time; this allows everyone to spread out enough, but still stay within eyesight and earshot.
This run is about 3 miles and can be done fairly easily in about 2 hours at '0'. This will be a bumpy level but you should have no trouble avoiding strainers and if you're lucky you can tunnel though most of it. After learning the run it is a blast to run laps on at a (+) level.
See Also:
Virginia Whitewater, Roger Corbett (2000 ed.), p. 227.
Exploring Virginia's Waterways, Ed Gertler (2022 ed.), p. 219.
River Features
Take Out
Put In
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportPaddled at about 14 inches today (2/23/2019). There are 3 trees across the river but you can get under/around all of them if you try hard enough. Go far far left at the first one, 5ft off the bank. Go far far right at the second one, you eddy out in in some saplings and pull/crawl through them until you can get to the gap under the tree. At the third one you go left of center, duck under the tree right at the point where a second tree is coming out of the water.
Paddled 5-10-09 @ noon. Craig Creek @ Parr= 2000 cfs and falling; Potts Creek @ 900 cfs and falling. Water 3-4' above low water bridge, and 1' above concrete shelf under bridge at Forestry road. Put-in at forestry road, took out at Rt. 609 Bridge. As all have said, riverwide strainers are in there and several in spots in which wyou are commited and have few eddies to catch. Large groups would have a hard time getting everyone into an eddie. To be safe, we portaged at least 3-4, no limboing here. the worst strainer that comes to mind is across from the trailer with the big rock and satellite dish in the front yard. You cannot see it from the road unless you pull off and walk over to the bank. The lead in is blind, class 3, and few eddies. The river lieft portage up the bank to the road is a tough climb. Talked to several locals and all were friendly.
...somehow avoiding the long dong slap to tha face!
it'll keep
im calling it +1.....it soon dropped to -2 by late afternoon....
we got under it at -2 but took no chances at +1
taken after lap #1 at +1 and falling... dropped below '0' for second lap. We got over the bridge w/o scraping to a halt at this level.
Barbours was already primed and around -2 on Thursday. The rain hit Friday night and dropped an inch in Newcastle and by Saturday morning at 10:30 it was beautiful. We opted to wait till Sunday AM to hit it up and caught it still at +1....
The Barbours 'gauge' was at -2 on 5-7 and +1 on 5-10 (+2 on 5-9)
Jeff kickin it over the top ledge of Barbours Creek Falls ( aka Double Ledge).
This rapid is preceeded by an unusually large flat section of the creek that the top ledge backs up, so it shouldnt surprise you.
this is the gorilla walk / seesaw off when its around minimum.
jeff takin his time in salty pepper
aka double ledge
this would be the top larger ledge
shalllow... even +1 was boney here...the top was a little better. . .
i painted the picture so we can share some flow feedback. when your there you can see the lines in the concrete from where it was poured.
as of 3-16-09 the strainer in the foreground goes out & barely past the center eddy from river right to left.
note strainer. this will be your biggest single ledge drop IF you put in
at CC(rt.) 617 East.
low angle slide. wide. very shallow.
Gauge update: Looking back I see the gauges changed some as I was headed to the river. For my earlier post figure Craig at Parr to be 1,200 cfs and rising slightly, John's Creek to be 475 cfs and cresting, nearby but different watershed Pott's Creek to be 650 cfs and cresting.