Klamath River (Big Bend), OR @ 2200 cfs

Описание: The Klamath River recently saw the removal of four hydroelectric dams—Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, J.C. Boyle, and Iron Gate. While the Big Bend (or "Bypass") section was paddled before, it was heavily dewatered and experienced runnable flows only during winter storms. Now, it offers reliable flows for some of the best local whitewater around, only an hour drive from Ashland. This was my PFD on May 17th, 2025. Flows were 2100 cfs @ Below JC Boyle (high runnable). Mike Goglin showed us down, having ran a number of laps over the winter with levels ranging from 1600-3500 cfs. The moves slow down a lot at 1600 cfs. 3500 cfs is full on with serious consequence.

Darin McQuoid has a write-up about Big Bend and many of the rapids are named already. I honored those while adding some of my own suggestions. I would rate this run class IV-V. Most lines have a class IV or V line depending on your adventure. It's not a run you want to come out of your boat on. There are many sticky holes you don't want to be in. The rocks are sharp. I'm not a rafter but I imagine that the flow range for most rafters will be narrow. At low water, wrap potential will be high and at high water, this run will turn into full-on, continuous class V with deadly swim potential. With all of that said, this is a high-quality section of whitewater that will bring bliss to class IV boaters that occasionally run class V. I clocked the run at about 6 miles on my Garmin. I couldn't help but be reminded of the Lower 5 of the NF Payette. Feel free to reach out if you have any suggestions for this write-up or names for the standout rapids!


Put-in @ Pioneer Park West (Spencer Bridge)
00:00 Read-and-run. The section begins with about a half a mile of class II, slowly building up to the first standout rapid, Moonshine
00:08 Moonshine: Run the left channel of the first island. Playful wave train that will get you warmed up for the choppy, big water feel of the Klamath. Rapid ends under a bridge. Moonshine Falls River Access will become the traditional put in for the run once access is completed, which will put you below Moonshine. This rapid was named previously.
00:32 Read-and-run. Many available lines with some holes that are best avoided scattered throughout. The banks of the river begin to change here to large basalt boulders.
00:55 Piglet: Start left and work right. This rapid was not previously named.
01:38 Market Sow: We hugged the left bank for the first half of the rapid. Then, we made a long and progressive ferry to the right. The center looked very chaotic. This rapid had not been named yet.
02:13 Hogwash: The second hardest rapid of the run. We entered center right and drove left immediately. We then hugged the left bank for some time before gradually working our way to center right at the bottom. This rapid was named previously.
03:32 The Hog: A shorter rapid between Hogwash and Boss Hog. We ran it left and finished center. This rapid was named previously.
04:07 Boss Hog: The hardest rapid of the run. It's long. We snuck down the right side. There are places in the rapid where being in the center would be manageable but easy to get overwhelmed quickly. I got lazy at the bottom and fell into a surprisingly sticky hole. I was able to starfish out after a few seconds of getting worked. This rapid was named previously.
05:13 Swine Flume: Maybe the most fun rapid of the run. Immediately downstream of Boss Hog. The entrance has a great launch wave that leads into a chaotic but fairly simple series of crashing laterals. You'll see restoration work where the canal overflow dumps into the river on the right. It carries on through some class II followed by another series of drops that we ran down the center left. Goglin named this rapid.
06:08 Squeal: We hugged and bopped down the right bank as the river bended to the right. The center looked chaotic and nasty. This rapid was not previously named.
06:40 Read-and-run. Relatively mellow.
07:34 Full Boar: A long, S-turn rapid. The entrance has a fun hydraulic coming off of a pillow rock. After, we stayed right in the slack water around the right bend. Then, we ferried to the slack water on the left bank before it bends left. We hugged this side for a while with our bows pointed right before getting back out into the center where things get exciting. This rapid was not previously named.
08:53 Pork Soda: The third hardest rapid. We started on the left and worked our way center right. I didn't see a hydraulic on the right and got flipped. There are some clean "thread-the-needle" lines between plenty of hydraulics. Goglin named this one.
09:54 That'll Do: This is another long, fragmented rapid that passes by power lines and restoration work about halfway down the rapid on river right. It feels relatively read-and-run but there are significant hydraulics to avoid. That said, I don't remember anything feeling very blind, surprising, or hard to avoid. This rapid was not previously named.
Take-out @ Spring Island