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North Fork American
River, Chamberlain Falls Run, CA By Jonathan Blum |
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Class: IV-IV+ Trip date: 3/17/2006 River flow: 2200cfs Length: 4.5 miles People: Jonathan Blum, Paul Gamache, Daniel Brasuell Boat: Dagger Kingpin 6.3 |
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The put in is on Iowa-Hill Road as it crosses the river. There is parking at the campsite, but it is day use only. There is a USFS campsite here for $15/night. The river is beautiful and has a nice emerald green color. The canyon looms ahead and the first action is right around the corner, just out of sight.
The first rapid is Slaughter Sluice, named after Mr. Slaughter, one of the area pioneers. You start this one on the right and go below the large entry boulder and off the pillow on the rock below, dodging back left. There are more drops and boulders below, all run right. There are a few holes and ledges but they are all punchable. The next horizon line is Chamberlain Falls, scout left. The best line is on the right, but it has been run at higher flows to the left. Pillowing off the right wall as you come down the drop is ideal. Below Chamberlain is a small rapid before Tounge in Groove. This rapid has a good boof on the left side, and isn’t much of a drop. The next rapid is Achile’s Heel (Auto Slalom) which can be run left or right. The left has some fun moves that slalom you around the edges of two large holes. The right has some good stuff too. At lower flows this rapid becomes rocky and would be an unpleasant place to flip. Below here is The Staircase, which has a series of 4 smallish drops in a row. The move is from center to right and then back left at the bottom. I really liked this rapid, but couldn’t tell you why. The last rapid before the end is Auto-Ender, and awesome pourover that creates a great playspot. There is eddy service, and the wave is good for wheels and loops. It gets its name from back in the day when an ender in a 14 foot Dancer was awesome. After the Auto-Ender, the end of the run is near. About a mile later, the high suspension bridge signals the takeout. It is amazing this thing doesn’t collapse every time a car drives over it. This is the takeout for this run. The run can easily be continued into the Ponderosa Run below.
All content © Jonathan Blum, 2004-2008 •
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