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Rules for accessing this section of the Calapooia are described below. Do not run the upper Calapooia if you do not understand those rules.
Upper Calapooia Road
- The road is open to the public unless the gates are closed. _A_ notification on
our website when we are going to close the gates.
- The road is posted no parking from the end of the pavement to the national forest boundary. Law enforcement is writing citations to anyone who violates the no parking restriction.
- There is no legal access to the river from the public road until you get into the national forest.
. Weyerhaeuser is actively logging in the vicinity so be very cautious and watch out for log trucks
Before these rules were put in place this section was only paddleable during hunting season. With the new rules you can paddle this section any day of the year, except when indicated on the Linn County Website. While still plenty manageable, the shuttle logistics are slightly unusual. The first option is to have a shuttle driver drop you off at the put in. This can be done 13 miles above the take out at a small spur. Because you are not allowed to park anywhere along the road between the take out and National Forest Boundary, boaters need to gear up at the take out so they can be dropped off and get onto the water as quickly as possible. The other option if you can't find a shuttle driver is to do the same thing, but after gear and boaters are dropped, one person drives the vehicles 3 miles further up the road to the National Forest Boundary and leaves the vehicle there. The person then bikes or jogs the 3 miles back to the put in (the section between the NF boundary and put in has lots of wood and brush).
Below this put in there is about 1 mile of warm up before Big Poo, the largest rapid on the run (IV-IV+). It comes at a somewhat blind left turn, at high water it would be easy to be committed to the rapid before you knew it was there. So it is suggested that paddlers scout the rapid from the road on the way up, or catch eddies on the right above any blind left turns early on. This first rapid is typically run down a chute to the left of center. For boaters not interested in taking on the Big Poo, it is possible to put in below it a short way. Downstream the rapids are nondescript, but enjoyable. There are plenty of small waves and boofs to look for, and the occasional plucky hydraulic at higher levels. Be on the look out for Little Poo, the other class IV rapid. This one is marked by a culvert on the right that sticks out from the bank and can easily be scouted on the way up. Lines are available down the left, the right side had wood in 2020.
Always keep an eye out for wood, while portages are not common, dodging wood is. Try to park your car within view of the river, so as not to pass it. There is a nice path to the water if you are in the right spot.
While 13 miles may seem like a long trip, the run moves along quickly when levels are up and the run doesn't feel too long. Bringing snacks for a lunch break isn't a bad idea though.
A 7 mile portion (of what is now a 13 mile run) of the Calapooia is
described on Jason Rackley's site.