Seneca Creek
1. (Upper) Judy Springs to Forest Service Campground(Upper Seneca)
| Difficulty | IV-V+ |
| Length | 10 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 170 fpm |
| Gauge | N F South Branch Potomac River at Cabins, Wv |
| Flow Rate as of 1 hour | 1260 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | April 13, 2011 |
River Description
For a video documenting most of the drops on the run, mostly from a Go Pro helmet-cam perspective, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWPpWalp6hA
Upper Seneca Creek is an extremely long and demanding run. The stream is very remote and its length along with the hike in make this a creek for only those in top shape. There are several tall ledges and falls, which make for an exciting time. The rapids, in general, are not as close together as most steep creeks. The big drops are broken up by long stretches of continuous, steep Class 3-4 rapids. Although not the toughest creek around, the drops are pretty big and there are numerous undercuts to watch for. Luckily, the trail parallels the creek most of the way, making scouting and portaging a lot easier.
Begin hiking down the Judy Springs Trail until the creek becomes big enough to paddle (usually after about a mile of hiking). Above Judy Springs, the creek flows swiftly over Class 1-2 rapids with strainers and beaver dams complicating the float. At Judy Springs, the gradient picks up and the creek starts dropping over ledges and slides. Soon, you will come to the first falls, a junky 10 foot double ledge runable in the middle. A half mile of small slides and ledges take you to another 10 foot falls called Coach's Corner runable on the right off a nice boof ramp. Soon, you will come to the big one, Upper Seneca Falls.
Upper Seneca Falls- This is one of the cleanest 30 foot waterfalls that you'll ever run. A series of small ledges carries one to the lip. Run left of center, down a 10 foot slope leading to a 20 foot free fall into a very deep pool. Oh yeah!
Standing Rock Falls- After a mile of smaller rapids and broken up by a 12 foot falls, you'll come to this monster. Standing Rock is a 20 foot double falls with some serious piton potential. It slopes down 12 feet before clapping on an ugly shelf and falling another 8 feet into a pool. I
...River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportFrom a Boatertalk post today. http://boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk/1052157074/
still tons of wood on seneca. it was pretty clear through the big falls, then beginning maybe a quarter mile below, there was a lot of sketchy wood all the way to the end.
Robert Farmer---The last time that I did this, Knife Edge had changed dramatically, which was a huge surprise, because it had looked immutable. Plus, there were a lot of trees in it, so I portaged. I just wanted to let you know, that, yes, sometimes this little bedrock creek does move around a bit, so watch out!
As of this date the rapid is full of wood and would likely be unrunnable at most levels.
When the upper is running, the lower is usually scary-high, even if you've just come down the upper.
Also, below Knife Edge, the creek gets easier, lulling one into a false sense of confidence before some sometimes-sticky ledge holes above Lower Seneca Falls. Below here, the water splits around islands, usually necessitating some portages.
There is a bad tree pinned in the bottom of Knife's Edge, making the rapid a wise idea to portage. Other than that, there are the usual strainers to watch for, with most being ones you can maneuver around.
Judy Springs Trail is now signed as 'Seneca Creek' A 'duh' factor there but we drove past it figuring that Judy Springs intercepts the creek.
As for water - we had Hurricane Isabel the night before and at the Seneca Rocks bridge the lower was CRANKING. Take out looked high but not quite out of the banks, we had what I would call perfect water and were able to put-in waaaay above Judy Springs although the added wood was a pain. It could have been run substantially higher than we did it- I'd probably put on if the water at the take-out were a bit above the banks (but not much)
As of 9/19/03 it had wood in one only drop right after knife's edge- it was a big log so it could stay there for some time and it
What a beautiful creek!
Can someone say broken seat?
Plugging it.