| Sauk — 1 - Bedal Campground to Whitechuck River (Upper)™ © |
Class II-III
8.3Miles
Avg Gradient 37 fpm
Play Rating (1-10): 3
River Mapplet
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GPS/GIS |
Maps |
| Put In Longitude : |
-121.38912 |
Putin |
| Put In Latitude : |
48.0970345 |
| Take Out Longitude : |
-121.47232 |
Take Out |
| Take Out Latitude : |
48.1730309 |
| County : |
Snohomish |
Shuttle
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Gauge Information (Professor Paddle updated levels from SAUK RIVER AB WHITECHUCK RIVE at 4/19/2024 6:39:21 PM)
| Gauge |
Forecast |
Height |
Current Flow |
Authority |
Physical Update |
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SAUK RIVER AB WHITECHUCK RIVE
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n/a |
3.04 |
583 cfs
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USGS - NWIS |
04-19-2024 18:15:00 |
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Minimum Recomended Level: 1000 cfs Maximum Recomended Level: 5000 cfs
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AccessEasy access from the Mt. Loop Highway. |
Putin DetailsBedal Campground. Follow the road in the park down to the river. There's a sign marking the river access spot with a small staging are. Park outside the camp to avoid being charged camp fee. |
Takeout DetailsWhitechuck confluence. 100 yards south of the Mt. Loop Highway bridge over the Sauk turn onto the side road immediately crossing over the Whitechuck river on the new 1 lane bridge. Follow the road a short ways to the well maintained launch spot with lots of parking and outhouses. (this is the put-in for the Middle Sauk run) |
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Other IssuesWood hazards change from year to year. There is always wood along the banks in places. As of 5/28/2011 the run was cleaner than it's been in years with no mandatory portages. |
Fun FactsCan be combined with the next run downstream for a long day trip or one of the best overnight trips close to Seattle. |
Run Description [Season: Oct - July]Put in is on the NF Sauk. In about 1/2 mile you'll reach the confluence. There are several fun class 2 rapids in the first part of the trip which are just easy boulder gardens at low flows but develop fun waves at high water. The river valley is quite wide in most places offering gorgeous views of the surrounding mountains on a clear day. There are some big beaches on the lower half of the run that make for nice camps for overnight trips, often with a nice supply of firewood.
Rocky Road rapids appears at the end of the run, just after a gauge station on river left. It's the one class 3 on the run, the rest of the rapids are all class 2 except at high water. It's more than what you see from the highway bridge too, from there you're just seeing the end of a long class 3 rapid.
Notes on river levels:
Minimum level for kayaks is about 800. It will be bony, especially on the NF, but doable. Rafts will want 1200 or more. 2000 is a nice medium flow.
Above 3000 Rocky Road becomes big water class 3+/4- and may be a bit much for beginner paddlers.
For a nice long day on the river you can continue down the next section of river:
2 - SAUK RIVER - Whitechuck River to Clear Creek
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