The dawn of the 1970s brought evolution to North Central Oregon's Lower Deschutes as the river started to become known for the chills and thrills offered whitewater enthusiasts. By 1990, the river had become a mecca for white water adventurers in all types of craft, including rubber rafts, kayaks, canoes, drift boats, jet boats, and even float tubes.
Prior to the Oregon Scenic Waterway designation in 1970, most of the boating activities on the Deschutes were limited to fishermen accessing their favorite fishing holes by drift boat. However, there really wasn’t much drift boat usage at that time, because the river was known to have dangerous undercurrents and some major rapids that required advanced skills to navigate. Drift boats are known to be incredibly unforgiving in whitewater situations.
By 1990, the river had become over crowded with white water enthusiasts from all walks of life, each looking for their own brand of river experience, each in their own way. As a result, user conflicts followed. Concerns were rising about how the crowds of people were affecting the fragile, high desert river system. There were also public safety and sanitation issues. In response to those issues, the Lower Deschutes Management plan was developed in the early 1990s.
Hazards on the Lower Deschutes
The Deschutes River is a big and mighty river that deserves utmost respect from those who decide to recreate there. There are Class III and IV rapids along much of the waterway that can be challenging to navigate. Even areas that appear fairly calm and sedate may have submerged snags, boulders, and strong undertows.
River conditions can change rapidly as water levels change due to dams upstream and extreme weather events. Two fatalities by drowning per year is average. Locals consider zero river deaths a very good year, but the year 2006 was tragic when the river took five people’s lives.
Humans have had a relationship with the river for centuries, but most of the character and hazards of the Deschutes were formed thousands of years ago through prehistoric volcanic eruptions and flood events. More recent historic floods such as those in 1964 and 1996 have affected the navigability of the channel only slightly through rearrangement of cobble and sediment.
One of the most notable rapids formed by the prehistoric events is the Whitehorse Rapids. Whitehorse Rapids is a long, hazardous, boulder strewn series of rapids with extremely turbulent water. Many drift boat wrecks, fatalities, and near misses have occurred there through the years.
Although most of the rapids on the Lower Deschutes were formed by prehistoric events, there are exceptions. In July of 1995, a lightening storm that produced heavy rain came over Tygh Ridge (approximately 8 miles south of the Columbia) and caused flash flooding. As a result, Mud Springs Canyon belched out large amounts of boulders and debris that formed a new class III rapid, which was called Washout. Washout Rapid experienced some rearrangement during the flood of February 1996, but remained as challenging as it was from its beginning for boaters.
Train tracks follow the Lower Deschutes for much its Wild and Scenic designated distance. The trains enter the Deschutes Canyon north of Madras at Trout Creek, and continue along the river all way to the Columbia. Boxcar Rapids were named after a train derailment in 1954 when a train hit a rock slide and went into the river. It took two weeks to get the engine out of the turbulent water of the rapids. The boxcar remains at the river bottom.
Further down river, Class III Wreck Rapids were named such because they were the site of a 1949 head on collision between two trains.
Sherars Falls will likely always be considered the grand daddy of all hazards on the Lower Deschutes. Sherars Falls is a class VI rapid and considered by most prudent people to not be navigable. However, in the late 1970s and early 1980s a few folks tried, but very few survived. Attempting to navigate Sherars Falls was then outlawed and the falls became forbidden territory for boats.
In spite of all of the hazards when boating on the Lower Deschutes, accidents and loss of human life are generally due to human error, including lack of knowledge or experience, inattention, failure to wear a life jacket and proper safety gear, or being under the influence of intoxicants.
User Conflicts
The popularity of whitewater adventure on the Deschutes grew more slowly during the 1970s, then took off like wildfire in the 1980s and early 1990s. The Lower Deschutes is a popular destination for weekend warriors because it’s only 100 miles from Portland, so people can easily make a weekend trip without too much travel and expense.
Segment 2 of the river, which became known as the "splash and giggle" segment, runs from upstream of Harpham Flat to Sherars Falls with the town of Maupin being in the center. Segment 2 is very popular because the entire reach can be accessed by road, is an easy day float, and the rapids are a bit easier for the less experienced to navigate. Segment 2 is only 15 miles in length, but in August of 1990 there were upwards of 3200 boaters per day on that segment during peak weekends.
With that many people sharing the river, of course, there was conflict. Some of the boaters trying to share the river were church or school groups, families, and hard core partiers. Reports of lewd and obnoxious behaviors were common coming from offended parties. Water guns were popular and victims of overspray by another party didn’t appreciate it. Fishermen didn’t like the large numbers of boats parading by/through their favorite fishing holes.
All of this activity gave the tiny town of Maupin’s economy new life. The town had been struggling to survive since the sawmill shut down. Many of the businesses revamped and set up guide services, raft rental and shuttle businesses, and other ventures that catered to tourists. However, increased numbers of accidents on the river stressed the all volunteer ambulance and fire services.
Boater use was also inflated on the other three segments of the river which have a much more remote character. Use of jet boats by fishermen was growing more common so there was conflict between motorized and non-motorized boaters.
In some areas, rafters would stand on the railroad tracks while scouting rapids and not hear approaching trains above the roar of the whitewater. This practice concerned the railroad. Scattered parcels of private land are on the river and the landowners also worried about trespass and liability.
Wildlife also depends on the river to make a living. The riparian habitat along the Deschutes is narrow and fragile due to the shallow soils and minimal precipitation. Having thousands of people using the river was compromising the quality of the habitat. Spawning beds for fish were being trampled. River bank vegetation was suffering from trampling and motor vehicle use. With minimal toilet facilities available, people were finding other places to relieve themselves which put water quality at risk.
Lower Deschutes River Management Plan
The Record of Decision (ROD) for the Lower Deschutes River Management Plan (LDRMP) was signed on February 1, 1993 after a long and sometimes contentious planning process that involved the major management agencies and stakeholders along the river.
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) was the lead agency in the process. The resultant plan was direction for the 20,641 acres of public land on the river that is under BLM management. Other major players in the planning process were the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, State of Oregon, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, City of Maupin. The LDRMP was designed to be consistent with other Federal, Tribal, State, and Local plans.
How The Plan Affected Boating Use on The Deschutes
For the first three years after the plan went into effect, managing agencies attempted to maintain the 1990 boater use level, but to lower the extremely heavy use of the peak weekend days by shifting use to earlier or later in the season, as directed by the LDRMP. It was hoped that boaters would voluntarily plan their trips sometime other than the peak weekends in July and August. If the boater use continued to be higher than the desired levels for the season a permit system would be put in place.
Despite aggressive educational campaigns for the next three years, monitoring results showed that voluntary change was not meeting requirements of the LDRMP so the Boater Pass System was put in place.
References:
Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology of the Lower Deschutes River Canyon, Oregon.
Helen McGranahan - Helen McGranahan has worked her entire career dedicated to wise and sustainable management of natural resources.
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