Salmon Creek
Ludlowville Falls to Cayuga Lake
| Difficulty | I-II |
| Length | 1.3 mi |
| Avg Gradient | n/a |
| Gauge | Salmon Creek Near Ludlowville Ny |
| Flow Rate as of 23 minutes | 37 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | June 7, 2016 |
River Description
Salmon Creek is a Class I-II river with Class III surfing opportunities.
Salmon Creek is usually dry, but about an inch of precipitation within days can bring it up from 20 cfs to 300 cfs, which adds on average about a foot of water to the creek.
Salmon Creek is all about small wave surfing. When it comes to low-key surfing & playing, nothing beat Salmon Creek within an hour of driving from Ithaca. The whitewater features on Salmon Creek come in the form of small waves and holes. Small though they are, they are extremely great for surfing and playing. Plus, all the good features have eddy service.
The first half mile of the river forms a nice loop and is highly continuously with most of the fun features. One can take out after the Ludlowville Road bridge and walk just a quarter mile back to the put in
If you just run down the river with little play, this is an easy 15-30 minutes run. If you take your time and surf, this 1.6 miles run can easily take up to 2-3 hours.
Finger Lakes Area Runs
Bowman CreekCascadilla Creek Canandaigua Outlet
...River Features
Put In
Ludlowville Falls
The waterfall has an extremely shallow (not even waist-deep) landing.
Entrance
It is not exactly a rapid, but there is some whitewater. You have to dodge rocks and avoid shallow water here.
Spin Holes
Two tiny ledges create two shallow retentive holes. They are great for practicing sidesurfing and flat spins.
Conversation
A small ripple/wave that is almost river wide. It is so wide and holds you nicely that you can have a nice conversation with your all your buddies while everyone is surfing the wave at the same time.
Park and Play
Two to three small waves with eddy service and easy access. This is one of the alternate putins/takeouts. From here to Ludlowville Road bridge are several small waves that need to be surfed on the fly.
Ludlowville Road Bridge
It is the second bridge you see if you put in at the foot of the waterfall. At certain levels there can be some fun waves and holes. On river left right after the bridge is another alternate putin/takeout.
Gas Saver
This is the biggest feature on the river and probably the reason to run the whole river instead of doing the loop. The hole is big enough to be powerful, but small enough to not overpower you at the same time. The water is too shallow for vertical moves, but you can backsurf and flat spin in the hole nicely! It is called gas saver because if it's running, I ain't gonna drive hours away just to surf on other rivers! Unfortunately, it is located deep in the gorge with no easy hike-in access.
Take Out
Trip Reports
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Peter Lo
Jul 2, 2013
I got on the wave, took off my hand paddles, reached for my camera, took several pictures, put away the camera, put on the hand paddles, and kept surfing for a while. That's how smooth & easy it is!
Peter Lo
Jul 2, 2013
An amazing river-wide riffle that turns into a breaking wave when there are boats in it!
Todd Haner
Jun 29, 2013
Hey, looks great for local ithaca area, please include me! toddosworld@gmail.com
