Heater Creek
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| | Raps:4-5, max ↨120ft
Red Tape:No permit required Shuttle:Optional Vehicle:High Clearance | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Condition Reports: | 16 Jul 2022
"Long route in sounded awful, so we pioneered a shortcut route in from the road on the north side of the canyon. Climbed down a ways, then did a dirty |
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| Best season: | May-July
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44.6917, -122.2354
44.6945, -122.2355
44.6883, -122.2582
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Weather forecast
Waterflow
Introduction
A beautiful short canyon that empties into Detroit Lake. It has several nice drops, some interesting geological features, and the entertaining novelty (if no boat) of swimming out through the lake. The canyon usually sees lower flow and may be "open for business" earlier in the season than others in the area. Plan your exit strategy before committing, however. You'll need a boat, pack-raft, or prepare for a long swim. Best done on a calm day.
- The checkpoint for flow is where the paved road crosses Heater Creek.
- Watershed: 2.42mi^2.
Directions
Cross the Detroit Dam at the west end of the lake and continue on the paved road as it circles around the lake. At about 5mi, the road enters an old clearcut and the canyon can be seen on the left. At 5.5mi the canyon crosses the creek. There's a campsite here and this is a good place to check the flow. Immediately past the bridge, turn left on an old logging road (high clearance may be a good idea, although it could be driven carefully with a 2WD passenger vehicle) and drive down about 0.5mi to the first junction. Turn right here into a campsite; this is a good place to park. If occupied, there are a couple of other pullouts further down the road (including one wacky hunter's shelter in 2022).
Approach
The original beta described a descent of the creek from the aforementioned bridge. Other parties have gone this way and describe several hours of bushwhacking through thick vegetation. Just say "no." A better approach is to backtrack up the logging road from the parking area to the edge of the clear cut (5min walk) and make your way down steep slopes into the canyon below. Pick your descent with care and beware knocking rocks down on one another. It may be better/safer to do a quick dirty rappel to get down into the creek. Head downstream about five minutes to the top of R1.
Descent
All rappels can be done out of the water in high flow.
- R1: 60ft from tree DCL. Beware foot entrapment hazard near the bottom. (Future parties might consider moving the anchor. The DCR side of the falls may be a safer line.) High water: rappel from a tree DCR - and chain with R2 below.
- R2: 35ft from log creek center. Drop down behind a rootball and climb out underneath.
- Downclimb 20ft DCR.
- R3: 20ft from tree DCR.
- R4: 120ft from tree DCL. You will be in the flow; upper section could be dangerous in high water.
Walk down the bedrock to the lakeshore. In summer, watch for amphibians in the lake and around the final falls.
Exit
A short distance downstream from the final rappel, Heater Creek empties into Detroit Lake. There are three options to exit the canyon from here. For options (1) and (2), beware summer boat traffic. Boats sometimes come hurtling down the inlet at high speeds and may not be expecting swimmers or pack-rafters. Best to stick close to shore on one side or the other. Also check the weather: exiting the canyon may be much more difficult on windy or stormy days.
1. Swim down the inlet along the DCR (north) shore until you find a place where you feel comfortable climbing out and bushwhacking back up to the logging road atop the ridge. Once on the road, turn right and hike back up the road to find your car. If you choose this option, be sure you have your flotation dialed. (A PFD might be appropriate for weaker swimmers.) You may have to swim as much as 0.25mi. The further out toward the main lake you go, the easier it gets to climb out. You may have to bushwhack/scramble up 200-400ft. Addendum: there are plenty of rock ledges along the lakeshore with some great places to practice jumping into the lake.
2. The second option is to bring a pack raft and paddle out the inlet until you find a place to climb out as described above. Alternatively, paddle west and south about 1.5mi to the bridge on the southwest arm of the lake where you can exit. Obviously, this would require a car shuttle.
3. The third option is to arrange for someone to pick you up by boat.
Red tape
None.
Beta sites
CanyoneeringNorthwest.com (archive.org) : Heater Creek
Trip reports and media
Background
It's likely that the first descent of Heater Creek was Matt Moore of Desert Highlights & Cascade Canyoneering. The exact date is unknown.