Potomac, Maryland, US
|
|
4. Mather Gorge to Lock 10 (Mather Gorge)
| Usual Difficulty |
I-IV (for normal flows) |
| Length |
6.5 Miles |
| Avg. Gradient |
8 fpm |
2004: The Year Of Rocky
2004: The Year Of RockyPhoto of Peter Bross by Lauren Rarick @ 4 ft.
Gauge Information
River Description
The Potomac River below Great Falls is literally in the back yard of Washington, D.C. This fact
contributes to the strong boating community in the metropolitan region. Mather Gorge, where this
section begins, is a stunning cliff-lined gorge. Further down, the river maintains it's wild and
remote feeling, except for at choice spots where Virginia has allowed sloppy development to mar the
shore.
The river offers play and practice for beginners to experts and numerous sections can be run. This
description will deal with the rapids and access points and doesn't provide details on the numerous
play spots.
It should be noted that the stretch of river from O-Deck just below Great Falls thru Wet Bottom
offers some of the best big water paddling in Maryland. 10,000 cfs thru a 100 foot wide gorge makes
for some large waves, surging eddies and boiling eddylines. Below Mather gorge the rapids get
considerably easier. Here is one playspot guide:
Potomac Playspot Project. And another:
Potomac Paddlers. Another popular
playspot guide developed by David Mackintosh is currently offline. It will be linked here if it is
revived.
Access Points:
Great Falls is located to the west of Washington DC. Best access is off of I-495 to Clara Barton
parkway/Carderock exit on the Maryland side. Take the parkway west about two miles to McArthur
Blvd. Continue west on McArthur about another mile to the Anglers Inn parking area. To access the
Virginia side, exit I-495 to Old Georgetown Pike/Hwy 193. Go west about 4 miles to Old Dominion
Drive and take a right into the park.
Maryland:
- Sandy Beach. Park at Great Falls National Park (fee area), reached via
MacAuthur Blvd. in Montgomery County, MD. Carry 1/4 mile south along the C & O Canal towpath; take
trail on the right that leads to Sandy Beach putin.
- Angler's Inn. Reach via MacAuthur Blvd. Park in one of three gravel or dirt lots across from the
Angler's Inn, a fine restaurant. Carry across the canal, then 100 feet south on the towpath, then
right down to the shore. From the river, the beach is easily seen on river left.
- Carderock. Reach via Clara Barton Parkway. Park at Carderock picnic area. Path across grassy area
leads to small access. From the river, the access is a muddy bank.
- Lock 10. Reach via Clara Barton Parkway. Park at Lock 10 lot. Trail leads down to shore. From the
river, you need to take a river left side channel to find the path.
Virginia:
- Fisherman's Eddy. Park at Great Falls National Park (Virginia - fee area).
From lower lot, carry across picnic area to steep trail that leads to Fisherman's Eddy.
- Rocky Island. From Great Falls, Virginia, walk south on trail from picnic area to a small
footbridge and walk left down the rocky gully access Rocky Island surfing waves.
Rapids (in order from the base of Great Falls to Lock 10).
-- O-Deck (Class III).
Primarily a playspot with large surfing waves. Adjacent to Fisherman's Eddy. Using this for a
downriver trip is inconvenient because shuttle must be set on Virginia side of river.
-- Fishladder (Class II+-III). Formed by current from fishladder around Great Falls. Fast current,
big waves and a messy pourover at some levels.
-- S-Turn (Class II-IV). Converging currents and constricted river form dynamic waves, current and
whirlpools. Rocks form pourover holes at lower levels.
-- Rocky Island (Class II-III). At 4-5 feet on LF gauge a fine series of surfing waves exist. Lower
levels present Class II waves.
-- Wet Bottom Chute (Class II). At normal levels is a 3 foot sloping ledge drop that can be run
most anywhere.
-- Difficult Run Rapids, Maryland, Center and Virginia Chutes (Class II). Washington's practice
spot and home to the Maryland chute playspot. Each chute offers a different type of practice. All
lines are straightforward.
-- Offut Island (Class II). Series of tight breaking waves on river left below Angler's Inn putin.
Best at more than 4 feet.
-- Yellow Falls (Class II+). Two step drop through breaks in river wide ledge. Can be scouted from
river right ledge. At low levels a tricky rock is exposed near the bottom of the traditional
line.
-- Stubblefield Falls (Class III). Large and long series of standing waves just above I-495. The
last whitewater before Lock 10.
Playspot List & Levels:
2.5' - 4.2' Wet Bottom (Class 3)
2.6' - 2.8' Horseshoe (Snodgrass) Wave (Class 3+)
2.7' - 2.9' Fishladder Wave
2.7' - 2.9' Portage Waves (Class 2)
2.7' - 3.0' Annie's
2.7' - 3.0' O-Deck 3 (Class 3)
2.7' - 4.0' Maryland Chute (Class 2+)
2.7' - 4.2' Virginia Chute Wave (Class 2)
2.8' - 3.3' Bloody Good
3.3' - 3.6' O-Deck 2 (Class 3)
3.6' - 3.8' O-Deck 1 (Class 3)
3.6' - 3.7' S-Turn (Class 3)
3.7' - 3.9' S-Turn
3.7' - 4.1' Showcase (Class 3)
3.9' - 4.1' Simon Says
3.9' - 4.8' Rocky Island Waves (Class 3)
4.1' - 5.4' Center Chute Ledge (Main Hole) (Class 3+)
4.2' - 4.7' Upper Center Chute Ledge (Class 3)
4.2' - 4.4' Fish Counter
4.2' - 5.4' Offut Waves (Class 2)
4.5' - 6.0' Tight Quarters
4.8' - 5.2' Gil's Hole (Lower) (Class 3)
4.9' - 5.4' Gil's Hole (Upper) (Class 4)
5.3' - 6.4' Rodeo Zone
5.4' - 6.5' Center Chute Wave (Class 3)
6.0' - 6.7' Rocha Motel
6.0' - 7.6' Skull Island Wave (Class 2+)
6.2' - 6.6' Dave's Wave (Class 3+)
6.4' - 8.0' Showcase
6.7' - 6.9' Super Dave
6.7' - 7.0' Shoulder Snapper (Sweetie-pie) Wave
6.8' - 7.5' Corner Hole (Fudgepacker) (Class 4)
7.0' - ?.?' Sweetie-pie Wave
7.2' - 8.2' Last Supper
7.3' - 8.0' Elbow Wave
7.3' - 8.8' Dead Cow Hole (Class 3+)
7.9' - 8.8' Bud (also called Butt) Hole
8.0' - 9.5' Pencil Sharpener
8.0' - ?.?' Zambezi Wave
8.5' - 9.5' Eraser
9.0' - 9.5' Round the Corner
From Potomac Paddlers website, added May 2004
National Park Service Great Falls Page
NPS Great Falls Map
These guide books provide good references for this section: Sehlinger, Bob, et. al.; Appalachian
Whitewater, the Southern States. Gertler, Ed; Maryland and Delaware Canoe Trails.
StreamTeam Status: Verified
Last Updated: 2004-06-07 23:28:34
Lone Surfer at O-Deck In Mather Gorge
reach
User Comments
check out what slimy greenery is growing on the rocks in the vicinity of the wave... Edit
through the passenger side lock! Lock is now busted and my debit card is a goner... the thieves ran
up $700 in charges before BofA automatically cancelled the card. Anyway, don't learn the hard way
this is a problem that doesn't seem to be getting any better. Leave nothing of value in your
vehicle at this put-in! Edit
This is the only article in this thread<br>
View: Original Format<br>
Newsgroups: rec.boats.paddle<br>
Date: 1996/01/22<br>
<br>
<br>
TRIP REPORT: date - 1/21/96; level - 19.31' at Little Falls gauge; put-in:<br>
Bear Island 200 yards above jumping cliffs in Mather Gorge; take-out -<br>
Lock 10 on C&O Canal; difficulty - if you believe in runnable class 6,<br>
this was it, baby!!<br>
<br>
Sunday saw the highest known run ever down the Potomac Gorge, surpassing<br>
the 1985 run at 18.3' by Davey (the resistor) Hearn et al. We put in at<br>
about 1:15 pm, just as the river crested. The Little Falls gauge was<br>
confirmed at 19.31' at 1:00 pm. We estimate the cfs at 375,000, which is<br>
extrapolated from data supplied by the Army Corps of Engineers for 1985<br>
flood. I tried to get confirmation from the Corps for yesterday's cfs, but<br>
without success so far.<br>
<br>
The water was indescribably monstrous and chaotic. I led out of the put-in<br>
eddy, and as I was crossing the boil zone towards the shear line, I was<br>
attacked by a massive moving hydraulic about 8' high. It pulled me<br>
completely underwater for 3 or 4 seconds before dissipating and letting me<br>
go. We all realized very quickly that a blown skirt might be fatal.<br>
<br>
The main action was at the rapid named Jumps, which started about 200<br>
yards down from the put-in and continued for 1/2 mile. This rapid occurs<br>
in a spot which is normally placid flatwater. I believe it was named by<br>
the 1985 crew, who were the first to discover it. It is named after an<br>
area popular for it's 50' cliff jumps down into the river. The tops of<br>
these cliffs were probably 15-20 feet underwater yesterday.<br>
<br>
Jumps is formed from an interesting hydrological phenomenon wherein Mather<br>
Gorge fills in to the brim (about 60' above the height of the average flow<br>
of 7,000 cfs) and virtually dams up Great Falls, which is about 1.5 miles<br>
upstream of this point at the top of Mather Gorge. As a result, Great<br>
Falls flattens out to some extent, and the drop which normally occurs at<br>
Great Falls (about 60 vertical feet) is delayed as the incredible<br>
funneling pressure of the relatively narrow, sheer-walled Mather Gorge<br>
keeps the river elevated. Only when the vertical walls give way to a<br>
less-steep, rocky valley does the river get to madly eject itself from<br>
this bottleneck.<br>
<br>
This sight, the Jumps, is one of the most awesome spectacles of nature<br>
I've ever beheld. Hundred of thousands of cfs tumble wildly out of the<br>
gorge through giant boils and folds in a state of mad chaos. Riding<br>
through this involved going from one envelopment to another. The wave tops<br>
periodically broke into temporary, truck-sized hydraulics. But each of us<br>
only got nailed by two or three of these during the worst part of their<br>
cycles. There was some debris and a few trees, but it was not an<br>
overriding concern, and no one was hit by any debris.<br>
<br>
At low water there is a 45' high mound of rocks on the center left here,<br>
sort of a high-water island. Yesterday this rock was well under water and<br>
formed a massive 25' high continuous hydraulic (it was here that Kirk's<br>
boat was smashed back in '85). This hole was maybe 50 yards wide, and<br>
extended 50 more yards into a wave on either side. It was easy to miss<br>
this beast, but it was somewhat unsettling to go by it on the shoulder of<br>
the wave extension.<br>
<br>
Below Jumps, the river normally makes a 90 degree left turn below Madeira<br>
School towards Angler's Inn put-in, then turns back to the right.<br>
Yesterday the river cut this corner, with less than 40% of the water going<br>
down the existing river channel. There were two major channels, one to the<br>
right of Skull Island, and another of similar size to the right of it<br>
(into the area of Black Pond). The rapids in here, which we were not<br>
expecting, were nearly as intense as Jumps, but much shorter. I hit just<br>
two massive waves, one of which broke on me.<br>
<br>
Of the four in our group, two emerged from all of this unscathed (myself<br>
included), one swam and was pulled out by us, and the fourth disappeared.<br>
Later, after a lot of worrying and some soul searching, we found him safe<br>
at home. He had apparently engaged some trees at the bottom of the Black<br>
Pond channel, lost his gear, and swam to shore. He hiked up the Difficult<br>
Run Creek drainage to the nearest house, and the homeowner drove him back<br>
across the river to his home in Cabin John, MD.<br>
<br>
This trip was of course the experience of a lifetime. While we all agreed<br>
that we would probably not do this again, it was exhilirating beyond<br>
belief. Perhaps one or two in our party should not have gone or perhaps we<br>
all made sound decisions. We certainly knew the risks and we knew some<br>
elements were not in our control (a branch poking through your spray<br>
skirt, or a tree in the hole with you). We had some 50 years of paddling<br>
experience between the 4 of us, mostly in these waters. Our weakest member<br>
had 5 years experience. No one was pressured to put in.<br>
<br>
We planned the trip carefully to avoid contact with authorities using<br>
alternate parking and access points and other measures. We luckily did not<br>
see authorities (other than helicopters) en route to the put-in, nor did<br>
we see any signs indicating that the river was closed. It was, apparently,<br>
but we did not know this. We understood that Park Police or Rangers would<br>
have no choice but to turn us back (what are they going to say, "oh, yeah<br>
anything under 400,000 cfs is perfectly safe, go right ahead"), so we<br>
avoided contact.<br>
<br>
The whole question of river "closure" has already provoked some debate on<br>
this newsgroup in connection with Davey (the resistor) Hearn's arrest and<br>
TV interview on Channel 9 last night. And it will probably continue to get<br>
a lot of attention. We are grateful that we did not get tripped up by this<br>
problem and were able to make the decision to go or not go purely based on<br>
our scouting. We did talk to several fireman, county police, park police,<br>
and rangers at the Lock 10 take-out, but they were quite civil with us and<br>
did not accuse us of being insane. They just said get out and we did, as<br>
our run was over - thankfully!<br>
<br>
Paul Schelp<br>
1/22/96<br>
Park at Anglers Inn. 3 major options.<br>
1. walk down the trail, across the bridge, and veer to the left to the wide trail down to the
river. From there you can attain up to the maryland and center chute. Easy attainment even in a 6
foot long boat. Best to just follow the crowd. Someone is always there. Float back down to anglers
when done. Center is best around 6 feet. Huge wave, nice eddy. Turns into a hole in the 5 foot
range.<br>
<br>
2. using the same put-in, float downstream and go to the left of the big island. These are the
offut waves. Lots of fun in the 4 foot range, and much more user friendly for novices than the
upstream chutes. To get back to your car, get out on river left. Follow the trail DOWNSTREAM, it
will eventually take you back up the hill to the C&O towpath. From there either paddle back up
the canal or carry your boat a half mile back to anglers.<br>
<br>
3. From anglers, walk down to the canal, hop in your boat and slide into the canal. Paddle upstream
about a mile. Get out when you get to the lock and carry your boat up the trail past the overlook.
From the overlook you will look down on the sandy beach put-in. Keep going up the trail until you
see the main wide trail on the left going down to sandy beach. From there, pick one of the many
options and eventually float back down to anglers. It seems that most people access the Rocky
Island waves this way. Good surfing up by sandy beach above 6 feet. Major boiling eddies and swirly
water. Rocky Island is a great surf in a fast long boat around 4.5 feet.<br>
<br>
Enjoy.<br>
Brad.