Jenny Creek
Jayville Road to Pitcairn
| Difficulty | II-V+ |
| Length | 5.5 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 80 fpm |
| Gauge | West Branch Oswegatchie River Near Harrisville Ny |
| Flow Rate as of 37 minutes | 252 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | April 3, 2016 |
River Description
See the New York Exposed book for the description. You can buy the book through AW by clicking here.
According to the book and the AW website this creek was Unrun until 4/13/2008 when we ran it. If you ran it before that and you want credit let me know I will change description.
We had high expectations for this river as we drove up Jayville rd. As you leave RT 3 the road climbs and besides a few flat spots seems to climb most the way to the put-in. Unfortunately the river did not live up to our expectations.
As you drive up the road you will see a huge drop down in a gorge next to the road. Take careful note of where this drop is. If you float into this and run the drop it will be most certainly the last drop you will ever run. It is one of the ugliest drops I have seen. It does however have flatwater above it. As you continue up the road you will see a really cool looking and very steep slide right next to the road. Take note of where this drop is because there are not a lot of eddys near the top of this drop and once you get around the corner above it you are probably running it whether you want to or not. Back in the woods where the river winds away from the road is another huge unrunnable drop. It also has flatwater above it but make sure you are scouting the horizon lines.
Besides the 3 large drops (2 of which will probably lead to serious injury or probably worse) the river has several junky drops many of which have wood in them. There are also several beaver ponds and dams that you have to get around. There are also a couple of low foot bridges that you have to duck to get under with one immediately followed by a riverwide strainer. In case you haven't picked up on it my opinion of this river isn't very good. Considering the other runs in this area, Jenny creek is not on par with the rest of the rivers in the area.
If you are
...River Features
Mike's Boof
If you walk about 50ft upstream of the road there will be a small boof followed by a rapid that goes under the bridge.
Railroad Slide
There will be a few easy rapids and the river turns left. The next rapid is the Railroad Slide (it is close to the old railroad). It is fun but watch for wood.
Beaver Pond/Dam
Now you paddle into a swamp/beaver pond. You will wind through this for what seems like forever. Just keep following the slight current. You will have to go over a few beaver dams.
Footbridge rapid
After you finally get out of the pond you will be roadside. There is a footbridge you will have to duck under. Immediately following the bridge is a class III+ rapid that ends in a pool behind someone's camp.
Another Beaver Pond/Dam
We had trouble finding our way through this one but eventually we did.
Ugly
There will be some flatwater and a horizon line. The portage is on river right. The right side of the drop drops onto some horrible mank. The left side is a steep slide that turns about 90 degrees to the right and then goes directly in to a large rock and slot.
Middle Section
After Ugly there are a few drops that aren't very clean and have some wood in them. Make sure you scout horizon lines looking for wood.
Jayville Rapid
This is a pretty burley rapid. The river turns right and then a quick left. There is a hole where the river turns left. Use the backwash of the hole to get your self into position to run the steep cascading slide. The pool you land in is turbulent and surging with a recirculating eddy on river left. After the pool is a smaller drop where most water goes toward the wall on the left. It is roadside and much more impressive in person.
Horrific
After Jayville rapid there will be a class III rapid and then a pool. At the end of the pool is Horrific. Portage on the right. Horrific is a cascading drop and it drops 30 or 35 feet onto huge boulders. It is very ugly. If you hike down the side creek on river right you could run the mini gorge after Horrific but it is difficult to scout and has some wood in it. Sorry no picture of this.
The Rest
The rest of the river is full of wood and class III. There is a low footbridge in this section that has a riverwide strainer after it. There is at least one more dangerous riverwide strainer after the footbridge.
Take-out
The takeout is at the bridge at RT 3. This is one of the few rivers I have paddled that I was happy to see the takeout.
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