All I really wanted for Christmas was some good creeking, so when Sam Burk told me the Water Gap was running I shook off the hangover I incurred on Christmas day and woke up at 4:45 AM to meet him in Baltimore. His enthusiasm is contagious. We added Brenten Petrillo in York, and made our way to the Gap where we joined forces with Jeff Ackerman, Art Barket, Aaron, Garen, and Scott (whose last names I didn't catch).
First on the menu was Hornbeck's. Hornbeck's is nothing but sweet slides and cascades the whole way down. There are two distinct mini-gorges. The first one ends with Goliath, a monster of a drop that has only been run by Joe Stumpfel and Eli Landis. When you see it you'll know why. Alden Bird describes it as "kayaking down a building." The second gorge has seven or so drops and ends with David's Falls, a clean but intimidating 60 foot cascade in two tiers. Once you enter the second gorge you're committed to running the whole thing. Everyone fired it up with varying degrees of success. The hit at the bottom was pretty hard, and everyone was holding something when they landed -- back, ribs, elbows -- but it was worth it! Thanks to Art for showing me down.
After Hornbeck's we sped over to Raymondskill and put on around 4:15. We were racing daylight, so I didn't get to scout anything. The ones I remember are Hacker's Falls, Rottweiler, Iron Staircase, Flirting With Disaster, and a sweet flare boof near the bottom. Running Flirting With Disaster blind was one of the stupidest things I've ever done, but it worked out fine. It's basically a 20 footer into six inches of water, with another 6 foot drop in the run out. There's a slanted rock at the bottom that deflects you out from the base so you don't break your ankles, but that's a lot to take on faith. I just rolled up to the lip with no speed and melted down... Sam talked me into it. Like I said, his enthusiasm is contagious!
Bottom line: Hornbeck's and Raymondskill are awesome, but they're also very abusive. I felt like I'd been in a bar fight! Special thanks to Jeff Ackerman for being our river guide, photographer, and gracious host for the weekend. Jeff probably knows more about the Water Gap than anyone, and he's one of the coolest guys you'll ever meet. Enjoy the Hornbeck's photos below, courtesy of Jeff.
First on the menu was Hornbeck's. Hornbeck's is nothing but sweet slides and cascades the whole way down. There are two distinct mini-gorges. The first one ends with Goliath, a monster of a drop that has only been run by Joe Stumpfel and Eli Landis. When you see it you'll know why. Alden Bird describes it as "kayaking down a building." The second gorge has seven or so drops and ends with David's Falls, a clean but intimidating 60 foot cascade in two tiers. Once you enter the second gorge you're committed to running the whole thing. Everyone fired it up with varying degrees of success. The hit at the bottom was pretty hard, and everyone was holding something when they landed -- back, ribs, elbows -- but it was worth it! Thanks to Art for showing me down.
After Hornbeck's we sped over to Raymondskill and put on around 4:15. We were racing daylight, so I didn't get to scout anything. The ones I remember are Hacker's Falls, Rottweiler, Iron Staircase, Flirting With Disaster, and a sweet flare boof near the bottom. Running Flirting With Disaster blind was one of the stupidest things I've ever done, but it worked out fine. It's basically a 20 footer into six inches of water, with another 6 foot drop in the run out. There's a slanted rock at the bottom that deflects you out from the base so you don't break your ankles, but that's a lot to take on faith. I just rolled up to the lip with no speed and melted down... Sam talked me into it. Like I said, his enthusiasm is contagious!
Bottom line: Hornbeck's and Raymondskill are awesome, but they're also very abusive. I felt like I'd been in a bar fight! Special thanks to Jeff Ackerman for being our river guide, photographer, and gracious host for the weekend. Jeff probably knows more about the Water Gap than anyone, and he's one of the coolest guys you'll ever meet. Enjoy the Hornbeck's photos below, courtesy of Jeff.
One of many sweet slides
Sam cashing in at Slot Machine
Garen resurfacing
Sam with a perfect line at David's
Art going airborne
Scott styling it
Garen keeping it straight
Brenten tucking for impact
Aaron showing off
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