Information on Bear Creek (Middle Big Piney Tributary)
Rating: III-V *
TDCR: ????
Location: Go 4 miles West on Hwy 123 from Pelsor (Sand Gap) and take
Forest Service Road 1802 South at Bertha. The road runs the
ridge on the West Side of Indian Creek. Drive about 1.3
miles and look for a deer camp on the left. Park at the
camp and carry down the trail directly across the road. The
trail immediately passes by a small pond. Follow the trail
North to the end of the knob and follow the trail 3/4 down
the mountain. The trail continues North and crosses a small
creek. Bushwhack to the left on the North side of the creek
to the main creek. This is where the 3 upper forks come
together at the beginning of a long slide. (Elevation 1490)
Reach the take-out by going East from the Hwy 123 bridge
over the Piney for 1/4 mile. The Hwy crosses over Sugar
Creek in a right hand turn then curves left up the hill.
Look for the first road to the left (South). Another deer
camp is located here. A 4WD trail leads 1/4 mile to the
creek just above the confluence with the Big Piney.
(Elevation 720)
Topo Quad(s): Fort Douglas
Gradient: 185 fpm
Length: 4 mi
Season: FLOOD
Gauge: Gage at Richland Campground should to be above 6 or headed
that way. Look for 1.5" or more rain at the Deer and Ben
Hur rain gages, at the BNR Data Page. Rain must have fallen
within the last 6 to 12 hours. If the Sugar Creek just East
of the Hwy 123 bridge over the Piney is flowing good, it's
a definite run!
Hazards: Undercut ledges and rocks, overhanging branches,
strainers, waterfalls. Very tight in places (pinning
hazards). Don't broach in "Mama Bear Falls" and beware of
"Papa Bear Falls". The "Bear Trap" is a nasty undercut 3/4
of the way down the creek after section of class II water.
The first 1.25 miles drops at 300 ft/mile.
Description: First known descent was December 12, 1999 by Lance Jones,
Cowper Chadbourn, Greg Churan, Shelby Johnson, Mitchell
Ford, Graham Henry and Jeff Riley. The creek starts out fast
and narrow with a 50-60 yard long stair stepping slide
ending in a steep funnel dropping 10-12 feet. The creek is
very narrow as is starts to cut into the gorge, several
long slides and boulder fields are encountered in the
first 1/2 miles. At this point be on the lookout for a
small creek crashing in on the left. Immediately below the
confluence is the "Bear Pin". A cluttered approach makes
the left side boof difficult. A vertical pin is very
likely with a missed boof. A few hundred yards downstream
the creek turns 90 degrees to the left as a small
tributary enters on the right. Get out on the river left
and portage the inside of the corner around the multiple
logjams. This is the end of the warm-up. The creek drops
200 feet in the next 2/3 mile! Maximum gradient tops out
over 550 ft/mile in this section. After a couple of nice
drops the creek sweeps to the right and cuts back to the
left around a steep right bank. Eddy out and scout the
next boulder jumble, "Bear Claw". There are multiple
routes through the jumble and pinning is very possible.
Low water runs through here are tight and bumpy. Only a
couple smaller drops separate the end of "Bear Claw" and
the entrance slide to "Baby Bear Falls". This is a very
clean and very beautiful 15+ drop. A gentle slide
transitions into a 45 degree slope then empties into a
fantastic grotto pool over a 8-10 ft waterfall. Enjoy the
view and be ready to scout the next big drop less than 100
yards downstream. "Mama Bear Falls" starts with a 20 yard
gentle slide 20 feet wide then drops 15+ feet at a very
steep angle as it funnels into a 4 foot wide notch. After
leaving the notch the water fans out over bedrock as it
pushes toward the left overhanging wall. Eddy out above
the next horizon line. Scout and/or portage on the left
for the big boy, "Papa Bear Falls". The creek splits into
two narrow slots around a large boulder in the middle of
the 15-foot wide creek. The water drops 12+ feet from each
slot into a 8-10 ft wide cauldron. The exit from the
cauldron is through a 3-5 ft wide 15 ft deep sluice that
is 50-60 feet long and makes a jog to the left in the
middle. The sluice looked nasty at the low water level, a
flip or pin in there will be disastrous. The water exits
the sluice over a 10 foot drop out of a wall into another
picture perfect grotto pool. This was the only drop not
run on the first descent. This is truly a unique drop. The
creek calms down a little for half-mile before entering a
mini gorge recognized by the return of large boulders to
the creek. Pick you way through the slots. The creek
returns to calm fast class II, but don't get lulled just
yet. A small tributary will enter on the left as the creek
takes a hard right turn. Again boulders reappear in the
creek. After a slot to the left cuts back to the right
along a steep shale bank, look for a very large boulder on
the left followed by another very large on the right bank.
Cut to the left immediately behind the first boulder and
scrape down the boat-wide channel. The main channel stays
to the right toward and UNDER the second Boulder. It is
very difficult to recognize until you are right on it or
know it is there. This one is apply named "Bear Trap".
Fast class II water takes you the last mile to just above
the confluence with the Piney. Look for the 4WD trail on
the right just as a field comes into view. Like other
micro-volume creeks, meaningful ratings are difficult to
establish on the accepted International scale. At lower
levels, the creek will seem like a very technical Class
III, with much rock bashing, scraping, and some portages.
At higher levels, several rapids are expected to become
solid Class V. A tip o' the hat to Lance Jones for a
write-up of this great Ozark steepie!
See Lance Jones' Pages for more info on Bear Cr.
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