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Klickitat (III)

Description: The Klickitat flows though a narrow canyon cut into a pine-forested plateau in Eastern Washington. There are many spectacular columnar basalt cliffs along the river. Although beautiful, the basalt can be very jagged. I suggest keeping a fair distance from the walls, unless you plan on conducting a clinic on raft repair. The river is runnable between approximately 1600 CFS and 3800 CFS for rafts. At lower flows there are many class II rapids and easy class III rapids suitable for IK's. At higher flows the rapids blend together to form several miles of continuous class III whitewater. Most boaters stop at the hatchery for a look at the low-head weir. It is generally runnable on the far left. This is also a good spot for lunch, and the hatchery does have a grassy area and a bathroom! At 18 miles the run makes for a longer river day.

Logjams can be a great danger on the Klickitat. It is a good idea to check with locals, or get the input of a commercial outfitter.

Most boaters generally combine this trip with the White Salmon River as a Sat.-Sun. combo!

Directions: Allow 5 1/2 hours driving time from Seattle. Take I-5 South to Exit 7 (I-205). Take WA-14 east along the Columbia Gorge. Follow WA-141 north to BZ Corners, and turn onto the county road across the White Salmon. From there it's 20 miles to Glenwood. I suggest visiting the Shade Tree Inn to get a free local map of the roads. The put-in at the Gauging Station is tough to describe w/o a picture. A portion of their map is inserted below.

Accommodations: Camping is available at the Leidl Bridge take-out. A Washington Parking Decal may be required.

Last Update 11-Jun-08