Russell Creek Whitewater May 31, 2016
Put In: Cul-de-sac at the end of Needham Dr, Allen, Texas
Take Out: Oak Ridge Dr, Plano, TX
I have paddled the section from Alma to Oak Ridge in the past after a good rain but this upper section was new to me. It had been raining heavy in the afternoon and Zach was available to shuttle me. After he dropped me off I drug the kayak through the brush down to the creek and found a suitable place to launch. The creek was really up and moving fast but narrow. My main concern was strainers and trees lying across the creek. Once I put on I could tell this was going to be a ride and a fast one. There were lots of twists and turns and some high retaining walls where the creek runs right into them and make and hard turn. About 3 minutes after I put on the skies opened up and another deluge was in progress.
I came to the Hedgcoxe road bridge which is a series of adjacent rectangular culverts and manage to eddy out to decide to shoot the middle. That was a good decision as far left would have been a sure dump an swim. After I passed through the creek was taking on a lot of water from the rain and every culvert was shooting water at you as you went by and water flowing over the tops of the banks spilling into the creek over the top of me and it was getting loud and faster. There were a lot of good wave trains and very turbulent water. By now there is a lot of debris in the water, logs, trash, and such. Sure enough I came screaming around a corner and there is a tree laying completely across the creek with only about 18 inches of clearance. I managed to swirl around and hold on to some roots in attempt to get a better look at the tree and if I could get around it. The banks were vertical walls so it would be difficult to get out and pull the kayak out. After taking a couple of looks at the log I could tell it was rapidly disappearing then it was totally submerged. That creek came up 24” in about 3 minutes, by this time the banks are not a high and almost out of the banks. I managed to get the skirt off then toss my paddle into the brush and pull me and the kayak out to portage around that tree. After I walked through the brush and briars I could see I was already at the Alma bridge so I decided to walk the kayak over Alma and put in on the other side.
The place I normally put in along Alma was underwater and raging so I found a spot just downstream through some trees and managed to get the skirt on and shove off. The water was just totally out of control. I managed to maneuver only a couple of turns for about half a mile then over I went and had to do a wet exit. Hanging on to my paddle in one hand and the kayak in the other I was now swimming and moving fast along with the logs and other crap. I managed to find a spot of slower but still fast water and grab a root with my paddle hand then tossed the paddle up and pulled the kayak out. I drained re-skirted and slid in again for some more fast action. Shortly after I went under one of the golf cart bridges at the golf course and a couple of turns I went over again and just absolutely screaming down the creek. I am glad I had my helmet on as when I went over I hit my head on a floating log. Once again I managed to pull up on a mud pile with some roots. By now I am in the middle of the golf course and the water was just about out of its banks and flowing across the course. I remembered that even at moderate flows there are not any good spots or eddy currents down at the Oak Ridge bridge to hold on or pull out. So I decided to walk the last quarter mile to the bridge where Zach was waiting on me. I mentioned that right after he dropped me off the rain came down so hard that there was a trash receptacle floating down one of the streets. This was the highest Zach or I had ever seen this creek.
I survived to see another day and I will run this part of the creek again but not at these levels.
SYOTW,
Earl