| Cispus — 4 - Road 28 Bridge to Scanewa Reservoir (Lower)™ © |
Class III
16Miles
Avg Gradient 24 fpm
River Mapplet
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GPS/GIS |
Maps |
| Zip Code : |
98377 |
General Area |
| Put In Longitude : |
-121.83976 |
Putin |
| Put In Latitude : |
46.443935 |
| Take Out Longitude : |
-122.07952 |
Take Out |
| Take Out Latitude : |
46.4728726 |
| County : |
Lewis |
Shuttle
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Gauge Information (Professor Paddle updated levels from CISPUS RIVER AB YELLOWJACKET at 6/13/2025 2:18:42 AM)
| Gauge |
Forecast |
Height |
Current Flow |
Authority |
Physical Update |
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CISPUS RIVER AB YELLOWJACKET
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NWRFC | FC Page |
14.59 |
1020 cfs
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USGS - NWIS |
2025-06-13 02:00:00 |
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Minimum Recomended Level: 800 cfs Maximum Recomended Level: 3000 cfs
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Putin DetailsCispus Road (NF Road 28) Bridge. There is access on the upstream side of the bridge on both sides, however as of May 2025 there is wood blocking the river right side access. Be sure to use the bridge to scout the wood downstream of the bridge which may require a portage.
Alternatively put-in or take out at Twin Cedars for a shorter run Twin Cedars is on NF Road 76 a little less than a mile from the intersection with NF Road 25 |
Takeout DetailsCopper Canyon Creek Takeout. Located where the Cispus drains into the reservoir. This is a well developed access site provided by Lewis County PUD as a requirement of licensing the Cowlitz Falls dam.
https://www.lcpud.org/recreation/take-out-sites/
Alternatively you can take out at Twin Cedars as described in the Put-in details or a Crystal Creek bridge, about 2 miles upstream from the main take-out. |
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Other IssuesThe 2 miles upstream of the put-in is very braided with wood. Unfortunatley this discourages most boaters from combining this section with the upper section (III-IV).
This run has potential for wood hazards throughout. |
Fun FactsCool run with great camping. Lots of other tougher runs around within striking distance. Good eats at MT adams cafe. |
Run DescriptionThis is a beautiful river with many miles of pool-drop II-III and fantastic scenery. It's a long run for a day trip, but it moves along nicely and there are opportunities for an overnight run as well.
This run is often broken down into two halves with the Twin Cedars access spot being roughly in the middle. The upper half is more scenic, flowing largely through the Gifford-Pinchot National Forest with magnificent stands of huge trees. It also has less whitewater and more potential for wood hazards, especially in the first mile or so where there are braided channels and manufactured log-jams for fish habitat. The rapids in the upper half are no harder than class II except at high water but still class 3 skills are recommended for recognizing and avoiding wood hazards. The lower half of the river is a bit less scenic especially once you cross over from USFS land to private timber land but there are more rapids. There are a number of fun class 2-3 rapids in this section, some of which may be class 3+ to 4 at high water.
LEVELS:
400-800 - Low runnable. Technical but still good for kayaks, IKs etc. Rafts will likely be getting stuck in the shallow spots
800-1200 - Medium low - Nicely filled in but still shallow in many of the wide areas.
1200-3000 - Medium - Some big wave trains and holes at the upper end of this range
3000-6000 - Med High to High - Gets fast and recovery from swims can be long, river will be up into the trees at the upper end. Consider the run a half to full class harder.
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