Trip Report: Lower Siletz River
January 21, 2009 • Submitted by Bruce Ripley
On Saturday January 21 Tom Riggs led a group of 20 OWA members and 9 boats down the Class V section of the lower Siletz. Ok, it’s not really class V, more like class .5, but it was still fun. The trip was originally scheduled to be on Drift Creek in the Alsea drainage, and then rescheduled for the Silache section of the Siletz but ultimately Mother Nature had different plans.
Drift Creek as it turns out would have been more aptly named “Rock Creek” due to low water. Knowing the water was too low Tom canceled the Drift Creek trip and went to plan B the Buck Creek to Moonshine Park section of the Siletz. Soggy Sneakers lists this as a Class III/IV run at lower water (1000 cfs+), unfortunately it does not have a classification for “No” water.
The group met at Moonshine County Park and headed out to the upper reaches of the Siletz. The main road parallels the river along most of the run and the river is clearly visible throughout most of the drive. As the group headed upriver comments such as “Wow, that’s a bit boney” and “is that Silache? Nope, we’re not there yet” were often heard. The groups stopped several times along the way and tried to scout many of the tighter spots, the biggest problem in many instances was that the clear line into many of the rock gardens would take you right to where you didn’t want to go, and the clear runs were often blocked at the top by exposed rocks. As we progressed upstream more and more concern was expressed about the run being a bit more difficult than was anticipated. We finally hit the wall when we got to the center of Silache rapid. At this water level, around 950 cfs you really only have two choices in larger boat, you could run the only available line on river left and wind up on a boulder, or you could line your boat down on river right. The group decided that the best alternative was to “just say No” since a run down this section would almost inevitably involve a long day of getting boats off rocks and possibly throw rope training at Silache. Instead of a white-knuckle run the group opted for a more relaxed run further downstream.
After rigging the boats the group ran from Moonshine Park to Sam Creek Bridge which is a low key Class II run that meanders through a mix of small farms and forestland. This section of river is known mostly for fishing, but it makes a great alternative to dragging over rocks all day. At the takeout the group relaxed and discussed the decision process that was used to scrap the original trip and proper etiquette for floating by fisherman. Anyone needing advice on how to float by a fisherman can contact Sandy, she was “trained” by a “local expert”. Thanks to Tom for volunteering to lead this trip, and for having a viable backup plan that worked out great.
An interesting thing to think about would have been how would the group have responded if the main rapids that we scouted from the road had not been visible, and instead had been in a remote canyon? The most important thing to remember had that been the case is that lining boats is a LOT easier than unpinning them from rocks.
