Sugar Creek Pictures

[iYak]

We did Sugar Creek today at a good first timers level. It was the kids (Max and Aaron) first creeking experience and they had a blast. Good weather, good level, and no swims!

Highlight reel:













Video below, click to play:

Video above, click to play<

The rest of the pictures and video are here: http://iyak.smugmug.com/Other/2012-Suga ... 304_Kb9KG7" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[iYak]

Thanks Dennis for talking us into going, I had doubts that it would be a good level but you were spot on.

[MaxTexan]

thanks for the pictures.. I miss Sugar Creek. From 1998 to 2008 I worked in Boonevile and would take lunch breaks or leave work early to run Sugar.
I was fortuante in 2008 to get in runs in June and August due to wet warm weather.

When the "boof" rock / finger rock at Sugar Falls is totally covered, the creek is quite a lot pushier than today.

[waterhog]

Great pics little rippers like to see this how was the wood situation and what sections did you guys do

[iYak]

Waterhog - we did the whole run and there was only one tree that we had to scoot around. It looked like there had been some really high water recently that flushed everything out. It was so high that it scoured some big holes in the parking area near the pavilion at the takeout by Jacks Creek.

MaxTexan - That must of been nice to have that right in your backyard. It was the perfect level for the little rippers yesterday, glad it wasn't too high.
When you are headed to the putin and get to the last low water bridge you have to cross - and you need a big truck just to get across it, that
is a great level. Yesterday it was about 1.5 feet of airspace below the bridge. Did you ever hit it at a good high level?

[MaxTexan]

Unfortunately or fortunately I have been on Sugar at real high levels.

I was with Fish that day that a friend of his got his boat stuck under the first low water bridge from the putin. Probably the scary thing I have seen. It got flushed out through the bridge just seconds before a log jammed in crosswise blocking the passage. We were only able to get mout becuae some more locals kknew away over the mountain.

I paddled the area around Knob Ford camping area several times when the creek was so high that you could attain the upstream ledges to the campground. One of these times a local cop asked me if I could go over and see if any the campers needed help because they figured they were caught for the night where they were. The last part of the rapid just before the camp ground had a 5 foot surfing wave that was really fast.

Most times though I have paddled it at the level you were at or a bit lower.

Jack creek is a hoot also. Dennis can sound you a putin that avoids the worst of the trees but gets the rapids. Some of scenery on Jack is just amazing.

During the winter even if it was dry I would go to Sugar creek at Knopper's or the takeout to roll, etc. once a week to keep my cold water shock at bay.

Most of the pics on the AW site for sugar are mine.

[iYak]

I was with you on that trip. We slogged over that mountain in my F-250 for what seemed like a very long ways, thankfully that guy showed us the back way out or we would have been sleeping in the truck.

[MaxTexan]

Cool...... I knew we had paddled Lee creek at about the same time....

that sugar creek adventure was a trip. The next day I found that boat downstream about 100 yards stuck in a tree about 8 feet above the existing water line. The whole bottom had been almost ripped through from being on the bridge.

[Fish]

Hence the nickname "bridge of death". Jason went under the bridge that day. I thought we lost him. Class V paddler, just didn't see the hazard in time. Sugar doesn't play around when it's in flood.

[MaxTexan]

i was glad I was following right behind you Fish.. it was kinda foggy, rainy, low visibility. You were running way river right as we approached the bridge and I can recall not knowing we were crossing the bridge until we were on top of it.

I think my next Sugar creek trip was the day that I met Fish with a big group at the bridge of death. Fish has broken a paddle. Someone lent Fish theirs. That paddler took my car and ended up picking me up when I decided to walk out because of having a bad day, two swims close together.

[Don Harwood]

Nice, way to go Max and Aaron!