Whitewater options in the Adirondacks?

[Jmharrick]

I did a cursory search of the whitewater forum and came up empty for threads involving whitewater paddling in the Adirondacks. I have Dave Cilley's "Adirondack Paddler's Guide", but he doesn't spend a lot of time discussing moving water options.

I know sections of the St. Regis River have rapids up to Class II. The Saranac River near my house has the Permanent Rapids section which I understand is Class I to Class III, and I've driven past sections of the Oswegatchie that look like they can get pretty exciting. I've also heard that sections of the Ausable River can be really nice, but you have to dodge fly fisherman the whole way.

For myself, I'm really just looking for some rivers with features up to Class II so I can continue practicing with my wife and keep our skills sharp for when we pull the trigger on a northern river trip.

For the purposes of this thread, I would like to hear from your combined wealth of knowledge and compile a list of as many whitewater options in the Adirondack Park as we can.

 

[Erica]

When I was paddling tandem many decades ago, we were learning on the Hudson River up in the North River - Riparius area. There were river gages on some of the concrete bridges. It was rollicking II - low III stuff.

The Upper Hudson Gorge has dam releases which are much more exciting in the III-IV range. We did it once in an inflatable kayak, paddled with canoe paddles.

I have no current information as I have been in Florida for more than 30 years.

 

[Patrick Corry]

I don't know if it is still a viable event, but there used to be a whitewater derby/race held in North Creek, NY on the Hudson River.

 

[eckilson]

Go to the map at American Whitewater. You can zoom in on the ADK and link to the rivers.

Here is the link:

American Whitewater - River Index

National Whitewater Inventory

www.americanwhitewater.org

Scene shot when you zoom in:

 

[stripperguy]

I've done the section of the Boreas from Blue Ridge Rd to Rt 28N, need decent water levels, quite remote.
Sections of the Rock are fun, as are parts of the Cedar River, from town of Indian Lake to the confluence with the Hudson.
None of these are easy shuttle wise...
There's parts of the Bog River, from the dam at Lows to Tupper, some big drops you'll probably have to carry around.
Also Round lake Stream, from Round lake (near LTL) to the Bog, again, a couple big drops.
The last 2 are more easily shuttled, maybe even a self shuttle with bikes,
There's some of the Hudson near Upper works, kinda tame, but easily shuttled.
And lastly, there's that section of the Hudson from Lake Harris down to the confluence with the Cedar, or maybe just to the Polaris bridge.

The issue with ADK whitewater is there are few easy routes, in the sense that both entry and exit points can be readily accessed.
Some of the routes are really fun, but either require an extra day to get in or out, or you get stuck in the Hudson Gorge, no place for some open canoes

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

The Hudson River from Riparius to The Glen is where I took whitewater instruction from John Berry in 1983. It's a 2-2+ run when the Hudson in running at about 3.5 feet. The open boat level on the Hudson is between 3.0 and 4.0 feet. The hardest rapid on this section, having an almost-invisible ledge, is called "The Hook" on page 150 of the 1978 hardcover edition of The Complete Wilderness Paddler by Davidson & Rugge.

The nearby Schroon River has three long, wavy, 2 to 2+ rapids with one short class 3 drop at Horicon Falls. You can park on the road shoulder near Horicon Falls and walk down the hill to pre-scout it close up. In short, you can just run it straight through or eddy out below the drop on the right (easier) or left.

I've paddled and led trips on both many, many times.

Paddle both with at least two other whitewater boaters for safety and rescue.