Rutherford Creek

This is the gauge- an aluminum yard stick located on the downstream side of the bridge on a support from an old bridge. The thumb nail is small enough that is hardly visible- look at the full size pic. The pic also shows the dirt/ water marks of where the stream spends most if it's time. It's taken looking back toward HWY 31. Notice the bicycle too- lot's of trash in this stream.
Look for this standing bridge pillar and make a note of where the submerged pillar is- there are two pieces of rebar that stick upstream. At any runable level this is hard if not impossible to see.
The best play spot on the creek. Funky eddy lines and mini whirlpools make it challenging. It's deep and the pool or swimming hole that it empties into is usually a big whirlpool.
This is about half way down the Canyon. This feature is part of the 'cool' factor for this run- but as I've said in the text- visibility is limited when entering the Canyon and I hope this shows that nature of commitment involved. Once you're in- you're in. On a day like the one this pic was taken on there was not enough current to cause any worries. On a high water day a strainer could be worst case scenario. When in doubt- scout. Same with the Exit rapid- it can't be seen from the entrance and I have seen a mature tree, roots and all stuck, in the very end of the Canyon.