Post by davidjeffrey on Jul 13, 2009 17:50:08 GMT -5
July 11th '09
The Dennis stream flows from Moores lake north of St. Stephen up in the country, down into the town of St. Stephen.
It's 20 ft wide at it's maximum and keeps a nice consistent drop to it all the way down, and has some great features to keep you on your toes. One main boulder garden section is very magical looking with lush greenery creating a canopy overhead for quite a while. It's the kind of place you'd see a gnome watching you riverside! ha!
We paddled across Moores Lake into a headwind to warm up, and upon finding the head of the stream we were greeted by a beaver dam and a bridge.
The beaver dam had one section opened up with flow, so we pointed our boats and went for a bumpy ride down and under the bridge. The drop was about 6 ft in total and about 15ft long with lots of rocks to smash our butts off... not to mention a few sketchy logs strategically placed by our hardworking canadian representatives! Without a proper low brace you could get bruised up easily... I wonder how I didn't get bruised cuz I didn't brace at all! lol
Once we successfully plowed through that we realized we were in for a scrapey ride.
Before I say anything else about this run... Do not bother with this unless it's spring high levels or have had alot of rain!
We did alot of pushing and smashing, and a boat load of cursing!
When we did hit sections that tightened up, it was great. There was a great section of boulders and little drops that were technical and would definitely be a riot with high water.
For the most part I'd say this run would be a borderline whitewater creek in some spots with good levels, maybe class 3 sorta deal.
We took out at a covered bridge near an area called black land.
Once I looked at my topo map after doing this run, I found out the majority of the whitewater I've head so many tales about were just below us. Maybe it was good thing we took when we did... flipping with low levels would leave me with my already too many battle scars. I haven't seen this section yet, but coming from a few different sources I guess it's a very intense section... rarely attempted.
One thing to keep in mind if anyone ever tries this...
Where this stream crosses the No.1 highway into St. Stephen, there is a barb wire fence a farmer put up across the river for some stupid reason. That would be a bad situation.
The very end of this stream where it meets the St. Croix in downtown st.stephen has good rapid that is big, mean and burly in spring run-off times.
Again, message me for more details... I'm happy to share.
PS... Charlotte county is full of amazing paddling for those who don't mind a bit of action! I've been spending alot of time scoping out every spot I can, some are secluded, others are convenient.
Enjoy!
The Dennis stream flows from Moores lake north of St. Stephen up in the country, down into the town of St. Stephen.
It's 20 ft wide at it's maximum and keeps a nice consistent drop to it all the way down, and has some great features to keep you on your toes. One main boulder garden section is very magical looking with lush greenery creating a canopy overhead for quite a while. It's the kind of place you'd see a gnome watching you riverside! ha!
We paddled across Moores Lake into a headwind to warm up, and upon finding the head of the stream we were greeted by a beaver dam and a bridge.
The beaver dam had one section opened up with flow, so we pointed our boats and went for a bumpy ride down and under the bridge. The drop was about 6 ft in total and about 15ft long with lots of rocks to smash our butts off... not to mention a few sketchy logs strategically placed by our hardworking canadian representatives! Without a proper low brace you could get bruised up easily... I wonder how I didn't get bruised cuz I didn't brace at all! lol
Once we successfully plowed through that we realized we were in for a scrapey ride.
Before I say anything else about this run... Do not bother with this unless it's spring high levels or have had alot of rain!
We did alot of pushing and smashing, and a boat load of cursing!
When we did hit sections that tightened up, it was great. There was a great section of boulders and little drops that were technical and would definitely be a riot with high water.
For the most part I'd say this run would be a borderline whitewater creek in some spots with good levels, maybe class 3 sorta deal.
We took out at a covered bridge near an area called black land.
Once I looked at my topo map after doing this run, I found out the majority of the whitewater I've head so many tales about were just below us. Maybe it was good thing we took when we did... flipping with low levels would leave me with my already too many battle scars. I haven't seen this section yet, but coming from a few different sources I guess it's a very intense section... rarely attempted.
One thing to keep in mind if anyone ever tries this...
Where this stream crosses the No.1 highway into St. Stephen, there is a barb wire fence a farmer put up across the river for some stupid reason. That would be a bad situation.
The very end of this stream where it meets the St. Croix in downtown st.stephen has good rapid that is big, mean and burly in spring run-off times.
Again, message me for more details... I'm happy to share.
PS... Charlotte county is full of amazing paddling for those who don't mind a bit of action! I've been spending alot of time scoping out every spot I can, some are secluded, others are convenient.
Enjoy!