Cuyahoga

2018 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race

2018 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race

2018 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race

Approximately 1,000 spectators (and 49 racers) attended the second annual Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race on April 22nd, 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrJJoeVRzDQ

2016 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race ~600cfs

Nick entering Staircase. 2017 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race ~800cfs

Ross running the Staircase line of the Second Drop ~800cfs

Raft guided by Mike Williams, Don, Anika, and Matt lands the left line of the second drop. 2016 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race

Matt Sloan on the second drop. 2016 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak Race

Cain on Staircase during the 2016 Cuyahoga Falls Kayak race

Wintertime Cuyahoga River, 300cfs

Approaching rookie drop @ 420cfs

Here is the current view where the former Mill Dam existed for 100 years.

A nice shot from atop the restaurant looking downstream at both drops. If you look closely, there is a river wide log against the rocks in the run out of the last drop! Always scout the last drop.

I'm liking what I'm seeing from this angle. The flow is only 160 cfs in this picture.

The majority of the dam has been removed and they are completing the saw cut between the powerhouse and dam. It looks like debris removal should begin on Aug 7th.

The rocks below the last drop have shifted downstream and constrict the runout from the falls into 3 channels. The large log is no longer blocking the right channel behind the two paddlers, but this channel is always collecting new wood. The center channel is in the front of the log.

Looking upstream at the far right line where wood tends to accumulate

Shawn hand paddling the left channel below the last drop. The large flat rock in the upper right hand corner divides the runout and until the wood is removed paddlers need to stay left and away from the strainers.
Shawn handpaddling the Boof Line on the Last Drop.
View of the last drop showing both lines. 'Staircase' is on far river left and the 'Boof Line' is on river right. The runout pushes paddlers toward river right into the undercut and wood areas. Paddlers should stay river left of the rocks in the bottom left of the photo.
Shawn is showing the Boof Line on the Last Drop and runs the left channel.

A happy camper downstream of the runout from the last drop. The right channel is at the paddlers bow and very undercut below the pourover. The other 2 channels are combined and near the paddlers stern.

This sneak route has been laid out as an alternative by Native Americans and is still used today. It has overwhelmingly been supported by the public for decades, it is fairly well maintained and well marked. Portage trail from take-out to put-in is just over 4 miles. Currently there are plenty of amenities along the way for those who choose this route. Turbulence created by passing trucks and busses can present a hazard (artistic license defined travel direction in this photo, downstream route is the opposite direction).

That's the Sheraton Suites in the background. Running waterfalls is even more fun when you know you have a bunch of middle-aged, middle-class spectators.
The standard line is to hug the left bank and hang on as the bottom drops out underneath you. The higher the level, the spankier the hole at the bottom of the staircase slide. Depending on the level, you can also run this drop in the middle, as a simple 15-foot waterfall, or on the right, catching an eddy to the right of a scary rock at the base.
Try to stay upright, because after you land, the river will immediately neck down to a narrow slot-pourover combination. Fun fun FUN!
This is not the same 'Stu' who embarrassed himself by swimming affront of all the middle-agers at the restaurant back in 1996.

This lovely rapid, which the city of Cuyahoga Falls was named for, no longer exists. It was obliterated by the Ohio Edison Dam ca. 1913. It hasn't been used for electrical generation since the early 1970's; unfortunately, the dam is licensed until 2041. Dam removal would likely be complicated by heavy metals and/or PCB's in the sludge upstream of the dam.