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Low-Head Dam

OtherClass III30.26990, -97.82850

Description

This drop used to be straightforward at all levels, but the Halloween 2013 flood apparently re-arranged it a bit, and at lower flows (500-1000 cfs, for instance), it now forms a couple of nasty-looking offset holes, left and right of center.  There is a one-boat-wide diagonal that threads the needle left to right between the holes, but that line also sets you up for another recirculation downstream.  The left hole in particular is in a tight notch created by broken pieces of the dam.  Don't go there.  The other holes might not hold a long boat, particularly if it has sufficient speed, but they definitely appear as if they might cause problems for a playboat.

At higher levels (2000 cfs, for instance), these features wash out, and the rapid is straightforward again, more of a II or II+.


Photos