Homestake Creek
01. 1/4 mi above confluence with Eagle River
| Difficulty | V |
| Length | 0.51 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 480 fpm |
| Gauge | Homestake Creek at Gold Park, Co. |
| Flow Rate as of 1 hour | 48 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | November 20, 2020 |
River Description
Many trips to Gilman Gorge start with a scouting trip to Homestake Creek since
Highway 24 provides easy roadside access along the entire run. Homestake Creek's
series of half a dozen drops serves as a great little run for steep creekers--CRC2 calls it
the 'whitewater espresso start' to a run on Gilman Gorge. Just make sure you bring your
elbow pads. This creek has has also been the site of an annual extreme creek race.
Logistics: Take exit 171 off I-70 just west of Vail onto Highway 24. Head
about 10 miles south up the hill and over the high arch bridge. After crossing this bridge
the road drops down to parallel Homsestake Creek. A dirt road leads down to the
confluence of Homestake Creek with the Eagle River. You can check out the run by
heading upstream along Highway 24. Many trips continue on downstream through the
Eagle River's Gilman Gorge.
River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportComing Home; finishing up a lap on Homestake Creek.
The following pictures are in sequentail order of the entire creek, except for the last and most challenging rapid. The beginning of homestake creek is pretty steep and the water jumbles over rock continuously for the first third of the run
After the final drop of the upper, the creek bends right around a boulder into another continuous steep section. Stay center, then go left for the drop (not shown)
The first significant boof comes after the end of the 'lower upper' section and provides a nice eddy to relax in after the continuous water above. From here on is a gnarly stair case of boofs with rocks in every landing zone
This view of the boof shows the size of the drop. Hug the rock on the right to aviod hitting the rock directly below the drop. This boater has a good angle on the approach. The run in before the drop is virtually flat water at this flow.
This drop lands directly onto two submerged rocks that will hold you and your boat if you don't sneak just to the right of them
This shot provides a good idea of the entire middle section. Three of four drops of comparable size and a few jumbly short steep slides
This is drop (background) leads into a pushy, but short, slide (foreground). Line up center for the slide but head left afterwards
This slide is over some jumbly rocks that throw many boaters off balance. The river wants to push you right, but work left as you come out of the slide. This will set you up for the next big boof
This picture doesn't due justice to the steepness of this drop. It is near vert, but this drop can be run from any angle. The creek gets really tight here and you want to land flat to paddle out of the wash. This tight squeeze is the final drop before the last section which we don't have a picture of. The last section is directly below a large eddy that this drop preceeds. It is considerably steeper then the rest of the run, even the upper section, and many regard it to be the granliest strip of the creek. Locals have named it 'Piece of Shit'.