Redwood Creek
Bair Road Bridge to Orick(Tall Trees Run)
| Difficulty | III |
| Length | 36 mi |
| Avg Gradient | n/a |
| Gauge | Redwood C a Orick Ca |
| Flow Rate as of 34 minutes | 49 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | May 20, 2023 |
Redwood Creek offers a long river trip that includes a section through some of the tallest trees on Earth in Redwood National Park. Most of the whitewater on this run is upstream of the park where the creek flows through ranch and industrial timberlands, and all of the big trees are within the park. In other words, you get the whitewater excitement first, then you get the amazing experience of paddling beneath 350-foot-tall trees next. This is usually boated as an overnighter or multi-day trip with excellent camping along the creek in the national park (camping permit required).
Historically, boaters have put in for this run in Redwood Valley or Lacks Creek, but the increasing challenge of gaining permission to access these private land put-ins have led most boaters to now put in about seven miles upstream at the Bair Road bridge. Unless you have a connection to a willing landowner in Redwood Valley, using Bair Road bridge is your best bet.
There are a number of rapids in the class III range, but one rapid of note is class V+ Rocky Gap, which nearly all boaters choose to portage. There is a small eddy at the top from which the strenuous portage begins so, if you're boating in a group, it's important to stage boats upstream so each one can individually access this eddy. Don't be fooled by False Rocky Gap which is a short distance upstream.
Redwood Creek downstream of Redwood Valley is proposed for additional to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System and the adjacent land within the national park is a proposed Wilderness Area. Should this legislation become law, the creek will have three of the nation's most significant protections: national park, wild and scenic, and wilderness. Very, very few rivers have this status.
Intrepid boaters with ocean paddling skills and thr right craft type can complete the trip by paddling into the Pacific Ocean, turning south, and taking out on the beach by the Redwood National Park visitor center or picni
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The Bair Road bridge provides an alternate access point ot Redwood Creek. As a county road, the right-of-way at the bridge allows for public access to the creek. Just stay close to the bridge to avoid trespass on adjacent private property.
The bridge is also the take-out for the upstream run that begins at Highway 299.
The easiest access for taking out is on Bald Hills Road, about 1/4 mile east of Highway 101. Take the unpaved road off Bald Hills Road that goes to the river bar.
Rocky Gap, also known as Redwood Falls, is a Class V rapid at ideal flows and seldom run. It is a 3-tiered drop, with undercut rocks and seives. Most choose to portage it on river left. Fatailities have occured in this rapid, do not underestimate the hazards. Portaging it on river left involves catching a small eddy immediately upstream of the first drop. This eddy barely has room for 2 kayaks. At lower flows, making the ferry from the beach on river right to the small eddy on river left is not difficult, but becomes a trickier manuever as flows increase.
Feb 12, 2023
Day 1 (2/10/2023): A group of 7 (2 packrafts, 2 IK’s, 3 kayaks) put-in at Bair Rd Bridge, flows were 240 cfs on the upper Redwood Creek gage. We started around noon, and went about 12.5 miles with the goal of making it past the ranch land that could pose trespassing problems for camping. Past Stover Ranch, it is industrial timberland, and camping on the river banks is fine. No portages for wood, but did float over one log and had to duck under another. The first one would be a problem at lower flows and second would be a problem at higher flows. Not a lot of camping options this day, and would be even fewer at higher flows. We camped on a small sand bar.
Day 2 (2/11/2023): More fun Class II rapids, some had wood that had to be avoided. And a few Class III. False Rocky Gap was the first rapid I felt like I’d want to scout, there was a clean line starting on the right moving left. We immediately eddied out on river right on a large sandy beach to scout Rocky Gap; the two rapids are very close together. At river-level, False Rocky Gap looked similar to some of the rapids we had paddled, except the line was less apparent. The REAL Rocky Gap was a massive horizon line. Rocky Gap is a 3-tier drop, with undercuts and sieves. On our trip, one kayaker ran Rocky Gap after fully evaluating the hazards, with another professional river runner setting safety at river-level on the second drop. IK’s lined their boats on river left. The other kayakers portaged the first drop at river level on river left, seal launched into the second tier, and ran the final (and smallest drop) of the rapid. Packrafts portaged on river left, which was kind of a pain due to the steepness and constriction on one side, and mucky landslide on the downhill side. Throw ropes proved useful for lowering packrafts on the downhill side of the portage. As noted in the write-up for this run, the eddy on the left for the portage is small, barely big enough for 2 boats. So it is important for a group that only one person at a time ferry from the beach on the right to the “portage eddy” on the left. Missing this eddy has Class V consequences. No one in our group checked out a potential portage route on river right as it was covered in poison oak. A couple more Class III rapids (one with wood partially blocking the channel) were downstream, then there are no more real rapids. We camped on a large moss-covered river terrace on river left.
Day 3 (2/12/2023): The final day was a leisurely scenic float through old growth. The river widens and slows down. We did a side hike through the Tall Trees Grove. Flows were 650 cfs at Orick when we took out. During the off-season, the Orick Rodeo Grounds provides secure parking for $5 per car, per night. Call to confirm, not sure if this is an option in the spring but it was for us in February. We floated to Orick and took out at the Rodeo Grounds. At low flows, the extra 3.5 miles to get to the ocean would add a lot of time.
A little more flow would have been nice, there were a couple gravel bars that were boney but I felt like we had plenty of water to have a good time. And these flows prevented False Rocky Gap/Rocky Gap portage from feeling stressful.
A highlight reel of our trip can be found here: Packrafting Redwood Creek
