Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

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chameleon
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Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by chameleon » February 16th, 2009, 7:58 pm

Today, I descended the entirity of Ruckel Creek, and had a blast - at some points in over 2 feet of snow. I anticipated that there were no more undiscovered waterfalls on Ruckel, but have been intrigued by Bryan's (Swan) suggestion on his waterfall site that there might be. It wasn't a long trip, but I am exhausted. About a mile was spent wading through 2 foot soft snow, over thick downed timber, and in and out of pools in the stream. I tried to stick to the actual water as much as posible, as it was easier to negotiate than the deep snow, though the cold water took a real toll on my energy level, and a good amount of snow/timber slogging was inevitable.

Somewhere around 2,400 ft I had an extremely pleasant surprise. The stream developed the usual smooth volcanic bed structure that proceeds many waterfalls in the Gorge, and soon I found myself staring down a bonifide 50 ft watefall!! I could hardly contain my excitement! Once at the bottom I discovered that though not the largest on Ruckel, it is the most unique waterfall on the stream! The formation is beautiful, and I can't wait to get up there in high flow, with no snow!
new waterfall 1.jpg
IMG_0591.jpg
Directly below this exquisite falls is a 30 foot slide.
IMG_0598.jpg
At this point I really debated turning around today - if I were to hit a few more like this, accompanied by the extreme slow going given the heavy snow, the stream might eat up all my daylight! I sucked it up though and decided to press on. The next 3/4 mile or so was tortuous, deep snow, cold water, and thick downed timber. There were some absolutely incredible stream formations, that will be beautiful with no snow! I can't wait to get there once it all melts. Though the stream is small, there are lots of small, deep (3-4 ft deep) pools, more than one of which I found myself waist deep in. After that difficult section though, the stream became completely different - fairly open, easy to walk, and extremely scenic! About 1/3 mile further I found myself at the top of another waterfall, and could see another waterfall 150 feet or so beyond that I thought seemed familiar... I took a photo of this fall only from the top, as I wanted to see if the next fall was what I expected, the "large" known fall on Ruckel. I suspected it was, but without confirmation, I was reluctant to rappel to the base of this 30 ft. fall, as the snow and angle of climbing back out if necessary looked difficult. Here is a photo of this waterfall.
IMG_0599.jpg
A quick hike to the rim, and I confirmed that I had reached known territory!! Once down this, the large fall, I knew my way quite well. I was a bit disappointed that there were no other mystery falls...but given the workout the snow had provided, my body was quite glad! Here is a map of these new unknown falls on Ruckel.
New Ruckel Creek Falls Topo.JPG
For anyone else contemplating this awesome little canyon - USE CARE - it requires competent scrambling skills, and getting down the "big" waterfall should not be taken lightly. You can do it without technical rappelling (via a chute to the east, or a bit more treacherously to the west), but neither of those ways is "easy" - both are 4th class. It is NOT a good route for beginners! Let people know where you are going, and going with others would be highly advisable. It is a tremendously fun canyoneering day though - one of the most interesting short trips you can make in the gorge (that I've encountered so far).

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DerWanderer
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by DerWanderer » February 16th, 2009, 8:06 pm

Awesome photos and TR!! That is way cool to discover waterfalls like that. Those are beautiful.

Alas, I have neither the skills nor the grit to attempt such feats as yet... but reports like these make me want to learn.

Thanks for the great report.

Caleb

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Don Nelsen
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by Don Nelsen » February 16th, 2009, 8:13 pm

Wow! Great work and thanks for your extraordinary effort to find and document this. I gotta get back up there and check out your finds.

Thanks,

Don
"Everything works in the planning stage" - Kelly

"If you don't do it this year, you will be one year older when you do" - Warren Miller

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anna in boots
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by anna in boots » February 16th, 2009, 8:15 pm

I feel it is my duty to inform you, chameleon, that you have a severe Ruckel Creek addiction and should brace yourself for an intervention from fellow hikers. Have you heard of central Oregon? (snigger)

anna in boots

PS: Lovely shots, as always.
Current trip reports at All Thoughts Work™ Outdoors
http://allthoughtsworkoutdoors.wordpress.com/

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AlexanderSupertramp
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by AlexanderSupertramp » February 16th, 2009, 10:19 pm

Fantastic Zach! That is one attractive waterfall. It looks kind of like a shorter, stouter, pup creek falls. Thanks again.

Adam

raven
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by raven » February 16th, 2009, 11:50 pm

Wonderful bit of exploration. You are doing a bunch of things quite well, and seem to have nimble fingers and toes while doing the doings. Waist deep ice water! What sorts of shoes and other clothing are you wearing on wet-cold trips, and what other stuff do you carry for warmth when the moving slows down?

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chameleon
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by chameleon » February 17th, 2009, 6:39 pm

Raven - I usually wear a pair of tights under a pair of rainpants and three pairs of socks (two poly and one wool). For my top layers I wear two thin poly layers, a polartec vest, and a wind jacket, but also carry a rain jacket and a warm jacket to put on if necessary as well. Then I bring a hat and a pair of gloves (I'm just using a pair of thinsulate walmart gloves I found for $3 right now - but if you can find a pair of neoprene gloves where the seams don't bust out in two trips, neoprene is ideal for these wet bushwhacks). I also pack an extra pair of wool socks as well. I've found that wool socks seem warmer in water than neoprene socks.
-Zach

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anna in boots
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by anna in boots » February 17th, 2009, 6:44 pm

Neoprene gloves don't like brambles. Word to the wise.

anna in boots
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raven
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by raven » February 17th, 2009, 8:21 pm

Much less clothing worn than I would have thought. I'll have to experiment. Anything below the tights? And what weight and material are they?

I would carry more backup stuff -- against possible injury or bivouac.

Very thought provoking.

Steve

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chameleon
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Re: Two More Waterfalls on Ruckel!

Post by chameleon » February 17th, 2009, 8:58 pm

Raven - just a pair of running tights. The beauty of it is, you dry out much more quickly once you get out of the water than if you wore something heavier. My other gear would also allow for a bivuac, including space blanket, climbing rope (with which you can make a makeshift tent) along with pieces of fire-starter - and occasionally a small stove. The idea is to take things that can serve many purposes.

On occasion I also take 2 or 3 small handwarmers - they can help warm up feet when they get extremely cold. In the Gorge, your best bet to survive a bivuack (if injured) would be to create a small shelter against a rock outcrop or tree, and build a fire. With a couple fire starters, you can create a fire even in the rain - just a matter of adding small wet pieces, letting them dry in the fire and slowly build the fire even with wet wood (something I've done several times now).

The two NOLS courses I took taught me a lot about packing just what you need. (on the Wind River Mountaineering course - my first course - they only let us pack one pair of underwear for a 31 day adventure in the wild!...along with all your other gear of course. :))

-Zach

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