Little Susitna

Put-In

The put-in for the Little Su is across the road from the Motherlode Lodge at the Gold Mint trailhead parking. To reach the trailhead, turn off the Glenn Highway north of Palmer at milepost 49.5 onto the Palmer - Fishhook Road. Follow the Palmer Fishhook Road to Hatcher Pass Road, and head north toward the Pass.

Take-Out

Because most of the run is roadside, take out where you stop feeling comfortable. Most people either take out 6.4 miles downstream of the Motherlode at the Willow-Fishhook Road Bridge, or at a few drops below.

Description

The Little Su is a beauty - at most water levels, azure water and white granite boulders make for a spectacular scene. Add the crags of the Talkeetna Mountains looming above, and you've got a setting to rival any whitewater stream in the world. And the river doesn't disappoint either - a nice class III warmup section leads into progressively harder drops, all of them fun and technical. At low to medium flows, most drops can be easily boat scouted, so eddy hop your way down. High flows are much more continuous, so be ready to run-n-gun. Not a stretch to spend much time upside down in, the Little Su will reward the technical advanced paddler.

From the put-in, there is around 3 miles of class III to IV- boulder gardens and gradient drops, warming you up for what comes below. One anomalous drop in this section occurs 2/3 of the way through at a horizon line / slight constriction between overhanging brush from the sides, and seems to be about 1/2 grade more difficult than the rest of the drops. Line up and run the meat on the left side (the Snake Pit) or grovel down the sneak on the left side (the Worm Pit).

The rapids increase in difficulty, and seem to kick off in force as the river again comes right up against the road. This makes a convenient put-in for anyone short on time who wants to

...