Oregon Slender Salamander

On Saturday, I found myself with some extra time on my hands. After taking a look outside, I decided to grab my camera and head out to see if I could stumble onto any salamanders. I felt my chances were pretty good for finding an Ensatina.

I poked around up the Molalla River a little bit before heading out to my parent's place in the foothills northeast of Molalla. To my surprise, I found an Oregon Slender Salamander. I have been trying to find one of these little guys on and off for a couple years and it a was great thrill to find one on my family's property. I was able to get a couple pictures, but the lighting was very poor and I didn't want to handle the little guy too much.

The Oregon Slender Salamander is Oregon's only endemic salamander and can be found primarily on the western side of the cascades over it's 240 km range. They are an old growth associate, but have been found in naturally reproducing stands of 50-80 year old forests. (This is what my parent's place has) There are thought to be less than 200 discrete sites known for this species in the world. This salamander is quite a treasure for us as it exists no where esle on earth. I'm thrilled that I was able to see and photograph such a special animal.

I was up the Molalla River again yesterday and came across a juvenile Oregon Slender Salamander. I was happy to finally find one along the Molalla.

As you can see, these guys are really small on top of being difficult to find. (The adult pictured at the beginning more than covered my hand)

I also came across several Dunn's Salamanders, but they proved to be too fast and elusive to photograph. However, I did manage one shot. I also want to mention that if you do go searching for salamanders that you be sure to replace anything you turn over or look under. The micro-habitats that salamanders depend on can easily be destroyed by careless searching.

Clackamas River: The Killer Fang Section

Looking into Prelude

With summer coming to an end and the winter rains yet to come, I found myself eager for a little adventure. I had never done the Killer Fang section of the Clackamas and it kept calling me as it's the only section I haven't done. I made a call to Marcus and we agreed to give it a shot. While I was on my way to the river, Marcus gave me a call saying he was really sick and wasn't up for boating. Nuts. So, I decided to go ahead and give the run a shot solo. It didn't take too long before I was able to hitch a ride up to the put in from some great people from Bark. If you aren't aware of their organization, I recommend you take a look. They do some great work protecting the wild places we all like to visit. I quickly put on my gear and slid into the river at the confluence of the Clackamas and Collawash Rivers. The river is very scenic and very mellow. The first mile or two was basically flat water. I soaked up the scenery and the solitude that this most remote section of the Clackamas afforded me. Slowly the rapids started to appear, but nothing Killer. Mostly just nice class II and III drops. Eventually, about 2/3 of the way into the trip the canyon starts to close in and I came up on the first significant rapid that I needed to scout, Prelude. The rapid exits through a couple different slots and feeds into the pool above Killer Fang. I did a quick check for wood and made sure I could see the eddy to get out above Killer Fang before hopping back into my boat. Prelude proved to be a nice rapid with plenty of space to exit the river above Killer Fang.

Killer Fang Rapid

Killer Fang is an ugly rapid. That said, there is a thin line that could be run, but a mistake would put you in a huge sieve where most of the river is going. IF you make the cut left, you would still have to deal with an undercut cliff wall before exiting into the pool below. It was an easy descision for me going solo and in a playboat, so I shouldered and did the somewhat difficult portage. (Lots of climbing and lowering the boat)

The outflow of Killer Fang

Looking back at Killer Fang.

The lead-in to The Sieve.

The next rapid below Killer Fang is a rapid known as the Sieve. I hopped out and scouted right first and then ferried back left to get another look. The Sieve is a solid class IV rapid with significant consequences for a mistake. After looking it over, I opted to portage the initial drop leaving a mandatory ferry back to river right. (The Sieve can be portaged it's entire length on the left.)

The entrance to the Sieve. I portaged just below the log.

This is where I put back in to ferry across. Still class IV, but manageable.

The rest of the run was fun with one class three that stood out. I had a nice mellow level of about 1,000 cfs at Three Lynx. It was nice to finally see the run, but I think it will be awhile before I go back. If you haven't seen it, I wouldn't let the Killer Fang name hold you back. It is just one rapid after all. Do be careful to check all of the narrow slots for wood before committing, otherwise it's a nice class II-III float.

SF Clackamas Exploratory Hike

I had recently read about the first decent of the SF Clackamas and was immediately intrigued. Stories of old growth trees, no trail, and big falls had me hooked. So, I called my brother Todd and Dan and with a little talking, they were on board.

We got going before sunrise and set the shuttle. (We were only going to hike through one way as it sounded like a tough, long hike) It was around 8:00AM by the time we got on trail to drop into the upper canyon. The trail ended at the river and the adventure began.

Dan pondering the massive trees at the bottom of the trail on the way in


We started making our way down river, enjoying the canyon scenery and thinking that this was a lot of wood for a kayaker to deal with. The hike was slow going without a trail and we crossed the river several times before we reached the first 30' falls.

Todd at one of the many river crossings


The first 30' falls from above


I had gotten some beta from the first decent team about the portage lines around the falls which proved valuable for us and speed up our progress down river.
The same falls from below



We continued on down the river through this incredible untouched canyon before coming to the next 30' falls. This was a hard one to get a could look at as it was tucked in a tight canyon and our portage route took us a long ways from it. Finally, as the light was beginning to fade some, we came to a horizon line that must be the big falls, aka the end of the world. There is no portage line around this falls that drops 100'+. However, there was a water project initiated in this canyon in 1913 to supply drinking water for Oregon City. This project had punched a tunnel into the canyon wall that would allow us passage to below the falls.

Looking downstream at the horizon line of the falls. You can see the tunnel entrance on the left.


Todd wondering if we really are going in THERE?



Dan in the entrance of the tunnel


Dan and Todd decending through the 100'+ tunnel. Bring your headlamp for this one.


The tunnel had, at one time, a wood plank walkway, but this has fallen apart over the years. Watch your step. The water line is still in the tunnel and some small cave formations have begun taking shape. Upon exiting the first, long tunnel we ran into a very sketchy looking bridge. None of us wanted to test it out, so we skirted around on the left.




Todd and Dan looking back into the tunnel


The 100'+ falls that we just walked around.



The author at the base of the 100'+ falls (Taken on a later trip)


Below the tunnel, we encountered the remnants of a roadbed. This made for easier going and faster travel. Short on time, we were unable to check out the last 50' falls on the SF or the double 30' and 40' falls on Memaloose Creek. Those would wait for a later trip. We made it out of the forest and to my truck just before dark, tired and glad to be done.

The 50' falls that we didn't get to on our trip. It has been ran. (Taken on a later trip)


To exit the canyon without having to cross the Clackamas River, we went back up Memaloose Creek.

The confluence of Memaloose Creek and the SF Clackamas with the old bridge crossing



There are two falls of significance on this creek. The upper roughly 20'-30' falls is very difficult to see and I've never been able to see more than the horizon line. The bottom 40' can be seen with much less difficulty.




Looking down at the horizon line of the upper 30' falls


On a later trip, Dan and I explored the upper reaches of Memaloose creek. It was clogged with wood and there were only a couple of small 8' to 12' falls.

Dan and Todd on the last hill coming out of the canyon


What a trip. While it's not one I would do often, it's one I will be back to.