Owens Creek
1) Lantz to Roddy Covered Bridge
| Difficulty | II-IV |
| Length | 5.2 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 95 fpm |
| Gauge | Catoctin Creek Near Middletown, Md |
| Flow Rate as of 1 hour | 39 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | June 15, 2021 |
River Description
Put in 300 yards west of Lantz, by the church.
There's one class IV- in about a half mile, but otherwise it's class III- until the railroad bridge alongside Md 81, at 2.4 miles.
The next 0.4 miles, down to the roadside parking area used by many fishermen, is class IV.
From there to the Roddy covered bridge, below US 15, is class III+, with few strainers.
You can scout almost the entire run from the road.
Ed Evangelidi testifies:
The upper part of this run has a few wire strands across the creek that are not too noticeable but easy to negotiate. This is followed by a new private low water bridge that may cause problems. In the Class 4 section, consider that any strainer in this very fast water may cause grave bodily harm.
Robert Miller further testifies:
'The creek starts as Class 2 and builds from there. When you come upon a railroad bridge, the action is going to pick up fast. The creek steepens and goes down continuous rocky rapids, some of which come at you very fast and are pretty steep. Be on the lookout for trees! The good action continues for over a mile and has some really neat sections. At one point, the creek bumps into a rock cliff on the right with a small waterfall pouring off the cliff. It is a beautiful sight! As you approach the Rt. 550 bridge, the action starts to let up but remains continuous. This is a great run to combine with the other creeks in the area.'
River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportThere are two tough drops with large boulders blocking the creek, at least one of which I saw from the road. Definitely go right at the second one; I think I went right at the first one, too. They appear suddenly. This upper section (Sabillasville to Baugh Rd.) is not for Class 2 paddlers! It's more like steady and fast 3-4 with mandatory fast decisions required. I'm not sure if this section overlaps the official section or whether it's upstream, but it's fun and worth doing, if you don't have to drive too far.
I paddled Owens Creek in March of 1992 with members of the Carolina Canoe Club, though I can't recall who specifically was on the trip. The water was high following 1.75 inches of ran. My notes say it was flooding and had to be so to be runnable. I remain thankful to the CCC folks that took me under their wing and took me on trips like this while I was in high school. Hunting Creek had been run at this point, but we did not know at the time if Owens had been paddled. In the couple years following this run on Owens we ran Hunting, Owens, and Friends a couple times each, with Hunting being the our favorite for its steepness and memorable rapids.