Middle Piru Creek between Frenchmans Flat and Piru Lake is a beautiful Class IV wilderness run with incredible scenery and geology. It can be runnable for a few days immediately during and after large winter rain storms, or for longer periods during very wet winters. In the near future, releases from Pyramid Dam will be tailored to providing an increase in boating opportunities as compared to the present situation. American Whitewater has been leading the effort to obtain these additional boatable days for this spectacular whitewater run.
Getting There
Piru Creek lies just to the west of the Grapevine section of Highway I-5, north of Los Angeles.
Put-in: From the Highway 126 junction in Castaic, take I-5 north, 10.5 miles to the Templin Highway junction. Turn left (west) under the freeway, then immediately turn right onto Golden State Highway. Travel 5.2 miles to Frenchmans Flat Campground (
Google map).
Take-out: Take I-5 to Castaic. Take Highway 126 west, 11 miles to the town of Piru. Turn right on Center Street and go 7/10 mile to Orchard Street and turn right. Travel 2/10 mile on Orchard, then turn right on Piru Canyon Road. Travel 6.5 miles to the Piru Lake boat ramp. (
Google map).
Note: Be aware that there may be barbed wire across the river about 2 miles or so before the creek flows into Lake Piru, and NYLON FENCE and BARBED WIRE slightly further downstream. This creek has many strainers and pinning spots. The creek is normally boated at fairly low flows, so it is usually not disastrous, but if things go wrong you have very few options. It can make a very long day if something goes wrong. Bring extra food on this one -- 15 miles of Class IV is longer than you think!
At the end of the run, the river gets shallow and braided. If flows are too low or you choose the wrong channel you may have to drag your boat occasionally. Then you have three miles of flat water paddling on the reservoir to get to the boat ramp. Paddlers are supposed to stay within 100 feet of the west shore while paddling on the lake to the boat ramps. Also, the boat ramps close early in the winter time. Contact the recreation area for specifics.
Other Information Sources
Gary Valle
Piru Creek Slide Show by Gary Valle and Gary Gunder. Excellent!
Lake Piru Recreation Area
United Water Conservation District operates Lake Piru and uses the water for farm irrigation.
Approximate elevations
Put-in: 2,040 feet
Take-out: 1,060 feet