Pack, Idaho, US

1) Upper: Grottos

Usual Difficulty	V+ (for normal flows)
Length	1 Miles
Avg. Gradient	400 fpm
Max Gradient	400 fpm

River Description

The Grottos section of the Pack contains serious, high gradient, Class V-V+ steep creeking. If you’re up for it, this one of the most exciting and challenging sections of navigable water in the region. Its three main rapids are long complex combinations of waterfalls, rock slides and boulder drops. Each series of rapids is demanding and committing, containing multiple hazards and requiring extensive scouting. The canyon walls are only 10-30 feet high, but there is no easy way out from the river.

The first grotto begins with a very straightforward 20-foot waterfall. Immediately after the first waterfall is a 10-foot drop requiring a precise boof in order to avoid a huge old growth log lodged at the base. Just beyond this log hazard lies a 3-foot, 10-foot ledge combo. The final drop of the first grotto is a 17-foot right to left slanted chute that looks like it plummets under the river left wall. Although this drop has been run forwards and backwards with out incident, this would be a bad place to swim because the entrance to the gnarly second grotto lies just below.

The second grotto is full of places you don’t want to be. The entire section is essentially one long, steep undercut filled boulder drop leading into a 30-foot slide. Most people portage this section because of the multiple hazards.

The third and final grotto is called super slide. The super slide is about 45 feet high and about 200 feet long, with a 90-degree turn at the bottom. Starting out wide with lots of lines to choose from, it increases in intensity as one picks up speed and negotiates the sharp corner while attempting to avoid piton rocks. The super slide is the last hairy drop on the grottos section, and the whitewater becomes less hazardous and committing and one approaches the Slides.

Directions:
The Upper Pack is easy to find. Drive North from Sandpoint towards Canada and turn left on the Pack River road just after you see the meandering and well marked Lower Pack pass under the highway. Drive up the dirt road until you come to a small wood bridge spanning the Pack River. This is where the gauge is - just upstream from the bridge on river left. Keep following the main road to get to the put in. For the Gorgette run keep your eyes peeled for an access point before the road begins to climb away from the river. There are many potential take outs, as the river runs close to the road for several miles. When you come to a second vehicle bridge you have come to the put-in for the Gorgette and the take-out for the Slides . The road gets rowdier past the second bridge and 4WD and relatively high clearance is recommended. If you plan on running the Slides but not the Grottos keep climbing for 1.5 miles and start looking for a narrow dirt road that splits off the left and back toward the river. Don’t actually drive down this road though, just park next to it (it washes out before it gets to the river). Walk down this side road to put in.

To get to the Grottos put-in keep driving until you come to a “Y” in the road and go left down to the river, and park at the small wood bridge that is the trailhead to Chimney Rock. To run the Grottos hike about a ¼ mile to the beginning of the rapids that end at the bridge.

Time: 2 - 4 hours
Page created by Todd Hoffman. Description by local expert Natty Role, copied from September / October '05 AW Journal.