Potomac, Maryland, US/Virginia, US |
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| Usual Difficulty | V+ (varies with level) |
|---|---|
| Length | 1 Miles |
| Avg. Gradient | 100 fpm |
| Max Gradient | 500 fpm |
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| POTOMAC RIVER NEAR WASH, DC LITTLE FALLS PUMP STA | ||||
| usgs-01646500 | 2.80 - 3.70 ft | V+ | 00h24m | 3.96 ft (rc= 1.2 ) |
U-hole is stout. the spout has been run at some high levels on the right, and the crack line (over the photo rock) has been done up to about 4 feet |
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This reach description was borrowed/adapted from the WorldKayak.com river wiki.
Maryland Side - Paddlers may put in anywhere on the Maryland shore, but may not leave the boardwalk across Olmstead Island. To run the Falls from the Maryland side, most people put in above and run the aqueduct dam, or put in below the dam at higher levels.
Virginia Side - Paddlers may not put in upstream of the Falls. To run the Falls from the Virginia side you must put in at Fisherman's Eddy and then ferry and carry above both O-Deck rapid and the Falls themselves.
The gage is located at Little Falls (aka Brookmont) Dam, where the river is very wide. Consequently, an inch on the gage can translate to a foot at Great Falls. The gage is also 8-9 miles downstream, so if the river is rising or falling rapidly there could be a discrepancy between the gage reading and the actual level. Scout the rapids visually if there is any doubt. (You were going to do that anyway, right?)
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POTOMAC RIVER NEAR WASH, DC LITTLE FALLS PUMP STA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| usgs-01646500 | 2.80 - 3.70 ft | V+ | 00h24m | 3.96 ft (rc= 1.2 ) | ||||||||||||||||||||
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U-hole is stout. the spout has been run at some high levels on the right, and the crack line (over the photo rock) has been done up to about 4 feet |
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| When | River/Gauge | Subject | Level | Reporter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Potomac [MD] |
Spout
|
n/a | Potomac Pathways | |
| Potomac River [MD] |
Mike on Crack
|
n/a | Scott Anderson | |
| 65d12h23m | /Potomac River-Great Falls (VA Lines) [VA] |
Surfin 'O' Deck
|
0 cfs | Frank Perruccio |
| 65d12h23m | /Potomac River-Great Falls (VA Lines) [VA] |
Carvin It UP!!!
|
0 cfs | Frank Perruccio |
| 362d21h15m | /Potomac River-Great Falls (VA Lines) [MD] |
U Hole
|
n/a | Will Oliver |
| 1y135d12h38m | /Potomac River-Great Falls (VA Lines) [MD] |
Brett Mayer-Aschhoff, the Crack
|
0 cfs | Brett Mayer-Aschhoff |
| 4y224d08h08m | Potomac River [MD] |
U-Hole
|
2.9 | Scott Anderson |
| Mile | Rapid Name | Class | Features (Legend) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.5 | U-Hole | 5.0 |  |
| 0.5 | S-Turn | 5.0 | |
| 0.6 | The Spout | 5.1 |  |
U-Hole
Negotiate the small ledges and rocks at the top, then either slide down the left or boof off the center. There's also a high-water sneak on the right called Norman's Leap (sometimes erroneously called Leonard's Leap) . The rock shelf protruding from the left bank below the drop is undercut.
S-Turn
Peel out from the river left cove, boof right off an angled ledge, and ride the roller coaster down. A short pool separates S-Turn from the Spout, with a convenient staging eddy on the right.
The Spout
The Spout is the tallest individual drop in
The Crack (Class 5.2) is a high-water (3.3 < LF < 3.55) alternate line to the Spout. It requires you to ferry across powerful current and hit a boat-width slot at full speed. If you miss the slot, or get rejected by the boils guarding it, you will wash over the Spout backwards and get annihilated. Read the Local Paddler description for more details.
There's also a right line (Class 5.2) which involves skipping down the rock shelf jutting out from shore.
reach
state
state
reachlink
3. Great Falls (VA Lines), Potomac Maryland, US/Virginia, US (mobile)
User Comments
and promised to send them to me, but I never heard from her. This is probably a long shot, but if
anyone happens to run into her, or if she sees this, please send pictures to rjsfarmer@yahoo.com,
call me at 410-624-6421, or mail me at P.O. Box 41115 Baltimore, MD 21203. I was in an orange boat
with red or purple paddles, black lifejacket, and red helmet. Thanks---RF Edit
The solutions aren't always ideal, but I will try to explain my rationale with regard to gradient.
"Please explain how a 1 mile stretch of river can have average gradient of 100 fpm and maximum
gradient of 500 fpm." The river drops 100 feet between the put-in and the take-out, which are 1
mile apart. So the average gradient is 100 fpm. However, the heart of the run drops 50 feet in 0.1
miles, for a maximum gradient of 500 fpm. "Maximum gradient figures cited 'up top' should always be
computed across a full mile, otherwise they are meaningless." Says who? There is no standard way to
calculate gradient. Leland Davis calculates gradient mile by mile in NC Rivers & Creeks, but
Stafford and McCutcheon use terms like "200 fpm," "200 fpm action," and "200 fpm crux" in The New
Testament. Which is right? Great Falls is a park and huck, so calculating gradient mile by mile
would be meaningless. Nobody puts in above Great Falls unless they plan on running it. They're not
there for the paddle in and the paddle out. The only section that counts is Great Falls itself,
which is 500 fpm. I would put "500 fpm crux" if I could, but the AW page builder doesn't give me
that option. Furthermore, removing the 500 fpm maximum gradient from 'up top' could mislead people
into thinking Great Falls is no steeper than the Upper Yough. "If you wish to convey that some
shorter portion has steeper gradient, you may express that within the text of the description..."
The description includes the following statement: "The main Falls lines drop fifty feet in
one-tenth of a mile." The reason I include the maximum gradient up top is that nobody reads the
description.
gradient of 500 FPM. Maximum gradient figures cited 'up top' should always be computed across a
full mile, otherwise they are meaningless. If you wish to convey that some shorter portion has
steeper gradient, you may express that within the text of the description (as "the river drops 50
feet in a quarter mile, for an effective gradient of 200 FPM") but that should NOT be in the
'Maximum Gradient' area. Edit
but, even though I arrived on Flake Island after sunset, the heat was very, very oppressive.
Sitting down to rest did not help, as the rocks were super-heated by the sun to around 120 degrees.
I was rapidly becoming seriously dehydrated and probably lost about 30 percent of my strength
before putting in to run the rapid. This rapid should probably not be scouted during daylight in
the summer. So watch out for the summer heat; I came close to having a heat stroke!!! Also, the
water temperature is close to 100 degrees, too, so it provides close to zero cooling. Edit