Information on Boss Hollow

Boss Hollow

	Rating: IV-V *
	TDCR: ????
	Location: Turn West from Hwy 7 at the "Who Would Have Thought It Gift
		Shop". Take the left hand fork about 1.2 miles to the 6th
		drive/road to the left. Park and carry or drive 0.75 mile
		(4WD only) to a gate. An ATV trail leads downhill just
		before the gate. Drag downhill about 0.5 miles to put-in
		(elevation 1560 ft). Reach the take out by taking the right
		fork at the gift shop down the hill to Hurricane Creek
		put-in. At the bottom of the hill the road forks. The left
		fork fords a creek. If the creek is high park here and carry
		boats out 0.5 mile. If crossable, drive 0.5 mile to house
		on right in left hand bend. Ask permission to park in the
		clearing provided by landowner (Very nice!) 
	Topo Quad(s): Deer, Fort Douglas, Lurton, Sand Gap
	Gradient: 200 fpm
	Length: 4 mi.
	Season: FLOOD
	Gauge: Gage at Richland Campground needs to be above 6. Look for
		1.5 inches or more rain at the Deer and Ben Hur rain gages, as
		posted on the ACC Resource Page. Rain must have fallen
		within the last 6 to 12 hours. If the small creek at the
		bottom of the take-out road is to the point you think
		about not driving across, it's a definite run! 
	Hazards: Undercut ledges and rocks, overhanging branches, strainers,
		waterfalls. Very tight in places (pinning hazzards).
		Vertical pins possible on left side of "THE BOSS". Avoid
		"The Undercut"! 
	Description: First known descent was December 17, 1995. By Cowper
		Chadbourn, Chris Anderson, Chris Jones, Nathan Kline, and
		Lance Jones. The creek starts out fast and narrow dropping
		over several small slides and ledges. The run is 2 miles on
		Boss Hollow (200 fpm with 400 fpm max) then 2
		miles on Buck Branch (80 fpm). Approximately 0.25
		miles into the run there is a small ledge into a pool. Now the
		tight and technical section starts. Lots of pin possibilities
		here. This is where the Toilet Bowl and Baby Boss
		Slide are encountered. These are followed shortly by
		Face Slap Falls and Sycamore Slot. After several more
		extended fast continuous rapids there is another small
		ledge into a pool. The exit to the pool is usually
		cluttered/blocked with logs. Scout on the right bank. This
		is the entrance to THE BOSS, a very serious drop. This
		is the combination of the entrance to the big
		slide (Performance Evaluation), the big slide
		(Broken Paddle) and the last ledge (Half A Paddle).
		Pick your way around the wood or carry. Run down the
		main channel to the left through a slot, over a ledge
		and down a narrow slide and hang a 90 degree right to the
		big slide. Make sure you slide down the right half of the
		slide to avoid the nasty vertical pins on the left side.
		The last ledge into a small pool can create a strong
		hydraulic. Very shortly (100-150 yds) the creek takes a
		sharp turn to the left and funnels down a 3-4 ft. wide
		slot. This is "The Undercut!" A large house foundation
		sized slab rock at least 50% undercut. Run as far left as
		possible. (up on the wall is my preferred route) The next
		0.25 mile to Buck Branch is known as Cheesegrater. A
		long continuous shoal with several surf holes. At low
		water it feels like a your sliding down a cheesegrater.
		(At least your boat will be lighter for the carry out!).
		The final 2 miles down Buck Branch have many class III
		drops and several play spots. Take out just above
		Hurricane Creek at house beside the creek. 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. Either way, because of the hazards, 
		Boss Hollow should be treated with a lot of respect.  Make
		sure you're ready for a serious run before putting in.
		(Thanks to Lance Jones for the description of this
		great Ozark creek!)