LeBar Creek
| Rating: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| | Raps:4-6, max ↨30ft
Red Tape:No permit required Shuttle:Required 10 min Vehicle:Passenger | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Start: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Parking: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Condition Reports: | 16 Jul 2023
"Fun canyon. Water flow was forgiving and easy Little slide/shoot below deck project was fun |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Best season: | Summer-Fall
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Regions: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
47.4359, -123.3129
47.4188, -123.3292
Search nearby locations
Weather forecast
Waterflow
Nearby photos
Introduction
LeBar Creek is a very scenic canyon in the Olympic National Forest on the southeast corner of the Olympic Peninsula. Just out of sight of the typical camper or hiker, LeBar provides beautiful scenery, enjoyable swims, and perhaps one of the largest logjams in any canyon in the Pacific Northwest. Featuring several short, straightforward rappels, it is a great canyon for those that like to play around in the water. It is recommended to bring a dive mask or swim goggles to look into the beautiful pools as you swim through them. The lack of technicality should not scare away more experienced canyoneers, as the scenery is well worth the trip. This is a great one for a hot summer's day.
Approach
A short shuttle is required for the full canyon route. Park your lower shuttle car at the Skokomish Lower South Fork Trail (47.418833, -123.329241). Arrive early for parking. The area right around the bridge seems to be super popular with locals who camp down by the creek.
Shuttle to the upper parking area (~2mi). The road gets brushy just before the end. If you have a vehicle you care about, there are a couple of pullouts (room for 2-3 vehicles) just before it gets brushy. From the pullouts, it's a 2min walk to a mediocre campsite at the end of the road.
From the campsite, climb over the berm at the north end and follow an easy walk through an old brushy logging grade (aka decommissoned road) northwards about 0.6mi. It's a little thrashy, but there is an old trail that comes and goes. Some clearing/maintenance may be beneficial at some point. The trail will cross two tributary creeks. Scramble down the second tributary creek until you reach LeBar Creek. There's a good suit-up spot on the far side of the creek. To add another 30 minutes of floating & pretty creek walking, stay on trail and cross the second tributary, then drop in to the creek when you reach a large obvious washout.
- It is likely possible to drop in to the lower section of the creek via LeBar Horse Camp, but has not been confirmed.
Descent
DCR = Down Canyon Right
DCL = Down Canyon Left
This canyon features several jumps. Check all jumps for depth/obstacles before jumping!
Upper Section
The upper section has long stretches of swims and pleasant bedrock pools. It is non-technical but very scenic and easy creek walking/swimming.
Middle section
R1: 30’ multi-stage from a single bolt DCL into a grotto. More rope is required per the horizontal distance. The canyon enters a short narrows after the grotto but soon opens up again. Both stages have tricky edge transitions and it is difficult to give a fireman's belay for the first stage from the bottom of the second.
R2: Rappel off of a small logjam. This logjam can be downclimbed DCR but is unstable not very pleasant to navigate.
The Deck Project: After some more creek walking and swims, you'll reach a massive log jam of old (and new) growth logs. The logjam is easy to navigate and generally stable (with some exceptions). Take caution with some exposed scrambling towards the far end of the logjam.
R3: The Diving Board After the "Deck Project" portion of the log jam, there is a jumpable pool below. It can be downclimbed half-way on very slippery logs canyon left to access an old root system (aka: The Diving Board). Alternatively, it can be rappelled from a stable log at the top of the log jam. It can also be jumped from the top of the log jam off a large, stable flat log canyon right, but depth must be checked first.
A short section of creekwalking brings you to R3.
R4: DCR - 25’ from a log into the lower narrows. An intimidating looking narrow chute below is shallow and can easily be walked.
Lower section
After a longer section of swims and creekwalking, you will arrive at R4.
R5: DCL - 25’ from a single bolt. This pool is very deep and can also be jumped, although as of 2023, a log has fallen from DCR and is blocking the ideal jumping spot. From the bottom, scramble up canyon right for more jumping laps!
R6: Rappel on single bolt DCL or Jump DCL 10’ into the lower left corner of the pool. There is a deep pothole here and a hidden ledge that needs to be checked/identified by a teammate. Send someone down first to check the jump for the group. In moderate flow or higher, there is a reasonably strong trap pool DCL at the bottom of the rappel. Escapable with some brute force (or solid technique) by experienced folks, but could easily trap beginners. Consider sending a strong teammate down first with a throw rope.
Slide or downclimb the final section.
Exit
Continue down the creek until LeBar Creek intersects Nfdr 2340 and walk back to car (likely parked at Lower South Fork Skokomish Trailhead). This should take around 30 minutes.
Note: It is possible to exit the canyon earlier by taking the alternative exit leading up to LeBar Horse Camp (as indicated on the map). Taking this exit will take about 25 minutes and does not save time or energy as it is an uphill brushy exit following an overgrown "trail." Don't do it! It is easier and faster to follow the creek down to the bridge. Just before the bridge, a short trail exits up DCR right to the parking area by the restroom.
Red tape
A NW Forest Pass is required for parking at the Lower South Fork Skokomish Trailhead. This may be avoided by parking a little further up or down the road, but is not as convenient.
Beta sites
Trip reports and media
Background
The middle section of LeBar Creek was initially documented on CanyoneeringNorthwest.com (now defunct). The upper and lower sections were explored and documented on July 4th, 2020 by Jake Huddleston, Michelle Nilles, Becca Polglase, Kevin Steffa, Haruka-James Clay Lipscomb, and Tiffanie Lin.
