Four Mile Run
Ohio Street to Arlington Ridge Rd
| Difficulty | III |
| Length | 6 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 36 fpm |
| Gauge | Fourmile Run at Alexandria, Va |
| Flow Rate as of 8 minutes | 37 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | July 27, 2024 |
River Description
Ed Evangelidi testifies:
This creek is rarely run for a long distance due to the pain of numerous dangerous low water bridges, many of which are found around blind turns. Most paddlers concentrate on sections that contain 'interesting' rapids. The upper reach has a sloping rapid of at least 6' that funnels into a mean looking hydraulic. The middle section has long stretches of nice rapids and above Columbia Pike is an interesting set of rocky slalom routes that are fortunately well between two low water bridges. Below Columbia Pike the creek is fairly channelized between flood walls but still throws up occasional rapids. The creek is extremely flashy and rarely stays up for as long as an hour. The stream has a junkyard quality to it with every type of debris lying about but it once had a fancy swim club in the 1800s that used a dammed up pool (remnants still visible) in Glen Carlyn Park.
See Also:
Virginia Whitewater, Roger Corbett (2000 ed.), p. 70.
Exploring Virginia's Waterways, Ed Gertler (2022 ed.), p. 91.
River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportJeez, this might be my only first descent--1971?? In a Grumman, if anyone here remembers what that is!
Alf Cooley and I ran this in July 2002 from Ohio St. to below Geo. Mason Drive (3.5 miles), after a one-inch rainfall. (We checked out but didn't run the class IV chute just above Ohio St.) There is easy whitewater (class I-II) almost the entire way, with one tougher section that reaches 100 ft/mile for 1/3 mile from Glencarlyn Park (2.2 miles) to Columbia Pike (2.9 miles). The only place we needed to scout was a class III+, 5-ft. ledge, that could be run in the middle. We had to portage 6 low-water bridges from the bicycle path. The first two, above Glencarlyn Park, come upon you around turns with little warning, while the latter four can be seen well in advance (fortunately, as they have no eddies nearby). Lots of overhanging branches in the first mile, but not much after that, and no streamwide tree strainers at all. Overall, it is an enjoyable trip, but you should only do it at low water so as not to get swept into the bicycle bridges. And if you get to the put in and find the creek high, just wait awhile, as it falls very fast; it went from 600 cfs (too high) at the gauge to 230 cfs (too low) in 2 hours.