Bird Creek
| Run Length |
4.8 miles |
Average Gradient |
128 fpm |
| Difficulty |
Class V |
Recommended Flow |
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| River |
Bird Creek |
Location |
Anchorage, Alaska |
| Author |
Tim Johnson |
Current Level |
 |
| Drainage |
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Elevation |
650ft to 1ft |
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Bird Creek
Bird Creek is one of those beautiful creeks that just makes you want to go back. Just a 20 minute drive from Anchorage gets you to the put-in. The shuttle does not take long, but there is a catch, which is the 45 minute hike-in, mostly uphill. While the hike-in is not that bad (on a cobblestone road most of the way), it does take some energy. ATV's are allowed to ride this trail, so if you have two of them, or if you can find someone to haul you in, the shuttle would be very easy and totally worth it. This run takes around 3-5 hours because of the hike-in, with about 2-4 hours on the water. Its not a long run at all however, and can be bombed down. The water is pretty cold and has an emerald green tint to it, hinting that it is partically fed by small glaciers.
Medium to high levels are best, as the waterfall can't be run at low water. Beware of the cave on river-right behind the waterfall. A few boaters supposedly almost spent their eternity down there, scary. Other than that, just hit the flake straight with speed and you'll launch right off the 25 footer. The creek has many fun drops, including a 10 foot waterfall where you must thread two walls at the bottom, several boulder gardens & sluices, sticky boxed out canyon ledges, and Mushroom, which can be a particularly nasty drop. To run Mushroom must stay up against the right wall (boof top drop) through the "cave" and go for the river-right boof at the bottom(6 ft tall boof) but beware of the deadly sieve 1 foot to your left and the nasty undercut 1 foot to your right, in other words, there is VERY small margin for error on this drop. Water must be atleast medium level to run Mushroom. Bird Creek is alot of fun and is an excellent afternoon run. Be careful of wood in the upper section. The inner-sanctum (class IV-V) is usually clear of wood for some reason. All drops are scoutable & portagable (some easier than others) although it would be hard or impossible to portage 1 drop (easy class IV) in the inner sanctum because of the 10 foot wide river and cave walls on both sides. Enjoy & be careful.
This run is eligible for the EddyFlower Vertical Challenge. Go HERE to learn more.
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