Monday, June 09, 2008

Upper Silver Creek

Tret & Shertl told us Silver Creek was a lay-up. I was lured in & on the hook with tales of bedrock & waterfalls. Shertl arranged for a NF valley resident to pick us up at the gated road closure, then it would be a quick drive up the road plus an easy 3-mile hike in, then just fly down the creek & be back in town in time for BBQ .. I had even gone so far as to make plans to drive to the beach afterwards to camp & surf that night.

Hmmmm ..

Truth be told, I played waaaaay too hard & waaaaay too late the night before, & was operating on about 3.5 hours of sleep. The realization that our day wasn't going to be expedient set in when, before we'd even started our hike, Drew pointed out that we'd already invested 4 hours into getting to that point.

Hmmmmmmm ..

Sometime after my gnarly hole beatdown & logjam swim, plus several hundred subsequent log portages (with my club-like frozen feet), all that was going through my head was that witches' line from Macbeth, Double double toil and trouble! .. Over & over & over like a mantra.

For those of you who've forgotten, here's the whole passage, to refresh your memory:
Thrice the brinded cat hath mew'd.
Thrice and once, the hedge-pig whin'd.
Harpier cries:—'tis time! 'tis time!
Round about the caldron go;
In the poison'd entrails throw.—
Toad, that under cold stone,
Days and nights has thirty-one;
Swelter'd venom sleeping got,
Boil thou first i' the charmed pot!
DOUBLE DOUBLE TOIL AND TROUBLE;
Fire burn, and caldron bubble.
Fillet of a fenny snake,
In the caldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt, and toe of frog,
Wool of bat, and tongue of dog,
Adder's fork, and blind-worm's sting,
Lizard's leg, and owlet's wing,—
For a charm of powerful trouble,
Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.
DOUBLE DOUBLE TOIL AND TROUBLE;
Fire burn, and caldron bubble.
Scale of dragon; tooth of wolf;
Witches' mummy; maw and gulf
Of the ravin'd salt-sea shark;
Root of hemlock digg'd i the dark;
Liver of blaspheming Jew; (ED NOTE: Drew, no blaspheming!)
Gall of goat, and slips of yew
Sliver'd in the moon's eclipse;
Nose of Turk, and Tartar's lips;
Finger of birth-strangled babe
Ditch-deliver'd by a drab,—
Make the gruel thick and slab:
Add thereto a tiger's chaudron,
For the ingrediants of our caldron.
DOUBLE DOUBLE TOIL AND TROUBLE;
Fire burn, and caldron bubble.
Cool it with a baboon's blood,
Then the charm is firm and good.


Anyway, here's a couple shots from the day .. the real trip report & lots more photos will be posted at Bellingham Whitewater shortly .. so best you go there to check now.


The hike was so awesome!


Splashy whitewater sometimes frightens Shertl. This look of terror is something I've witnessed all too often.


On the hike up we couldn't help but notice the massive avalanche that bridged the creek. We were sure we'd have to climb out of the canyon & portage it. To our amazement, we were actually able to paddle beneath it. Bueno!






There IS a waterfall on this creek.

Remember, full TR at Bellingham Whitewater.

Also, Bryan's got some awesome stuff up at the Reel Water site .. "bergy bits" & such .. Go there!

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Goodness gracious...I gotta work on my on-river-face. That's re-friggin-donkulous.

Maybe Werner might want that pic for an ad? It's really quite confidence inspiring.

Yours truly,

The Gloved One

Anonymous said...

By the look of the last waterfall pic - it was bone low to boot! How ws that MANKY second half out of the bed rock. Bed that made it all worth it. Boy am i sure glad I bailed on you guys! The BBQ was sweet and thanks for providing all the beer Todd.

B-rock

JB said...

Sounds like its time for a stihl.
Is little brother Salmon Creek all wooded up too?
Those little mineshafts are great! The opening scene of "There will be blood" helps put the effort that those things required into perspective.
Is the recent declaration of Wild and Scenic going to keep the NF road washed out permanently?

Anonymous said...

T - Enjoyed the Bellingham Whitewater pics!

M

Josh Guske said...

that expression is priceless!

Anonymous said...

The photos going under the avalanche are crazy. You guys get into such great adventures! Keep the great photography coming! ~Sarah, Vancouver

Anonymous said...

Where did TRL go??

Bryan Smith said...

We have all been "off the grid" the past couple months. I have been on the east coast all summer shooting a new sea kayaking film. Don't woory. We'll be back in August, when the BC scene kicks into full force.

Bryan

h2othomas said...

Um, Silver Creek looks sick! What else is in Washington? I hear FITW lite is off the hook! You got any pics of that?

ROCKY said...

These photos are tyte!!!

Anonymous said...

Too long without TRL!!

Steve K said...

Okay TRL - we all need a new fix. Pleeeze!!!

Monk said...

...someone has to have done some paddling that I can live through vicariously.

h2othomas said...

What up TRL? You guys still kayak? Nice work Smitty. Digging the pics over there. Check out some cali stuff here:

http://jscreekin.blogspot.com/

and

http://8thriver.blogspot.com/

Cool stuff to keep ya busy while we're waiting for the resurrection of TRL.

Anonymous said...

TRL when?????

Anonymous said...

sicko stuff, y'all. i miss you all and don't even know ya. get a ticket to santa cruz, you got a place to stay. ~tree

Steve K said...

Hello...? Bueller....








Bueller....?

Elliot said...

Are you guys gone for good? I hope not!

Anonymous said...

By far the best Creeking Story adventure/ pics I have read to date. Wish I was a part of it!
That is exactly the kind of creekin I am looking for.
Whats the next expidition and when can i come out and paddly with you.
Man I am so stoked to paddle but its all Ice Around here - Cranbrook, B.C. -
Contact me: kayakcanada@hotmail.com
Rob Porter
Seriously the best of th best Creeking I have ever seen.
I Need to paddly with you guys soon.
Thanks for sharing such a rad story.