2016 Tieton River, Class II/III+

This is a joint trip with OWA and WRRR, with a potluck Sunday morning. It is a continuous Class II/III+ day run.

2016 Tieton River, Class II/III+

Sep 17th - All Day
Tieton River, Class Ii/III+ - Rimrock, WA

Date: September 17-18, 2016

River:  Tieton River, Class III+

Contact:  David Elliott, dce(at)dcell.com

Trip information:  This is a joint trip with OWA and WRRR, with a potluck Saturday night.  Continuous Class II/III+ day run.

Description: The Tieton River is dam controlled, the Bureau of Reclamation opens the spillgates at Rimrock Dam and turns up the water volume to a September blast. At this time of the year this is the only rafting in Washington, so everybody's here - private boaters and commercial outfitters alike - which results in lots of river traffic and congestion at the put-in and take-out.

Running the Tieton will be fast and steep (45' per mile) without much chance to stop. 11 miles of continuous II+ - III whitewater (and paddling) all in less than 2 hours. There are very few eddies and there is a lo-head dam at the mid-point of the run that is generally runnable left-of-center. Below the dam is High Noon (or Pinball), a tough class III right maneuver, followed by Waffle Wall, a narrow chute above a concrete wall grid, that has 2 holes at the bottom that must be avoided!

Camping: BLM camping along the river. Primitive camping, first come first served. Hordes of people will be there. Port-a-potties available. 
Other possible Accommodations: Hause Creek campground, approx. 3 miles east of Rimrock, is the largest. There are numerous other campgrounds along this stretch of US-12.
 
Potluck with WRRR Sunday morning.  
 
Directions: A half hour East of White Pass turn off highway 12 onto Tieton Road (if coming from the east the turnoff is 1/2 mile west of Hause Creek Campground). Tieton Road immediately crosses the river. Turn right on the graded gravel road about 1/4 mile past the bridge. In less than 1/2 mile after leaving the pavement turn on the 3rd dirt path to the right and curve straight back to the river. Turn left at the boat launch dustbowl and go 50 yards. Look for the WRRR banner and "WRRR Camp" signs. You are there.
 
Here is a link to where the "3rd dirt path to the right is":
 
Here is a tentative option for running. 
 
 
Saturday WRRR camp to TIM's Pond (This is another 1-2 hours of running and recommended on Saturday's.  Much better parking and less congestion.) http://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/detail/id/2250/
       Shuttle from the Main Camp area to Tim's pond @ 9:45  (Cars will line up on the 2nd access road starting at 9:40 and leave at 9:45)
       Launch River Craft from Main Camp area at 11:05am
       Lunch at Waffle Wall Eddy (Also good spot to set safety on Saturday)
       Back to camp.
    Sunday WRRRcamp to WINDY point
       Shuttle from the Main Camp at 10:15am (Cars will line up on the 2nd access road in dustbowlat 10:10 and leave at 10:15)
       Launch from Main Camp area at 11:05am
       Takeout at Windy point.
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