Video - Clearwater Creek

Boofs per Minute was the rapid that perked my interest.


I had heard about this elusive, gem tucked away in the Bellingham area, but not a lot about it. I had heard it was super fun, intense and very hard to time as it is a very small trib to the Middle Fork of the Nooksack.

It flashes when it rains so it's in often, but if you're not a local, it can be very difficult to time a trip. I had been skunked two times in the past two seasons, but then again, it's hard to commit to that drive when Robe is so close and so good. So I might have missed some oportunities...


Scott, Chris and I were fortunate enough to have a local legend showing us the ropes after a big rain event. Leif Embertson is an old school charger even though I doubt he's out of his 30's. Great guy and very patient with noobs. He also runs the Robe Race, so huge props for that undertaking.


The run starts off in an inconspicuous pool and once it starts it doesn't let up. Even the takeout is pretty full on; miss the last eddy and drop into a beast of a seive pile that is only runable at super low water levels (or so I've heard).

There are 31 destinct rapids spread out over 1.9 miles. The gradient isn't huge (~360 fpm) but the rpaids just never let up. There is nothing over about 6 feet, i feel like, but there are a few very sticky looking ledges in there. Swimming is never advised, but here it could be expensive... I would describe the run as a mini version of Robe Canyon, just much more busy. The rapids are significantly lower volume but the same style features. Maybe even as a tougher version of the cooper? Scratch that, Put in a mile or so above the normal put in for Ingalls/Peshastin (at high water) and you'll get the vibe of Clearwater Creek. Very continuous.

I had some time on my hands the other night and put this quick edit together. We only got two runs and nobody got out of their boats, so if you're not a fan of POV videos, stop right here.

If you're into that kind of thing, however, grab a beer and get STOKED for the NookGnar.

Paddlers:
Scott Waidelich, Chris Totten, Leif Embertson and Daniel Patrinellis.
Music by Ben Khan.
Edited by Dan Patrinellis.

Enjoy!




Thanks for watching!