Paddle Journal

BrokenStraw Creek: Sunday, May 25, 2008

Put In: Cemetery Road Bridge in Spring Creek off route 426; 4 miles south of Corry, PA
Take Out: Town of Girard Bridge on Rt. 27
Time: 1/2 hrs with no stops
Water Gauge: 2.5 ft
Rating: Class II max
Submitted by:Dave Schaffer

This is a section of Brokenstraw that has some challenges. I would give it a class II rating on the day we paddled, with lots of easy whitewater but no big waves. We put in at the bridge at Cemetery Road. Getting the boat into the water was easy, with a short 15 foot walk down an easy gravel path. The trip was excellent, but there are a few areas that require extreme caution. Novices should avoid this section unless accompanied by experienced paddlers. You should look at Google Earth or some other Aerial map to see what I'm talking about.
In addition to about five strainers, we came across a couple of areas where the creek split into two or even three channels. After this trip, I would suggest taking the Right channel whenever possible, even if you have to walk. We chose the Left channels, we reasoned, because it was closest to the road and railroad tracks. One of these, an area that splits into two channels with a house and concrete abutments on the left side, needs caution. Do NOT go left towards the concrete abutments like we did- It becomes extremely fast and narrow and ends at a 6 foot high drowning machine! Logs and debris completely blocked the creek. The water disappeared under the pile. To make matters worse, there was a torn-up PFD in the pile. We didn't see a body or a boat, though. Not a confidence-building exercise.
When you get to this section you will see a house on the left with 2 small footbridges spanning the creek. Make sure you go River Right before you get to the house, going under the right side footbridge. A look at the aerial map and you can see the right channel is much friendlier to paddlers.
The water level was a bit low, but satisfactory, with a good current at 2.5 feet river gage. We grounded perhaps 10 times in 10 miles. Usually a paddle 'pole-push' was all that was necessary. There are a lot of small boulders at this water level that will cause you to navigate around them or be "Lifted and Twisted". A water level of 3 feet would be ideal, I suppose. Much higher and the creek gets "Pushy", making it harder to maneuver around obstacles. About a half hour into the trip, there is an old metal bridge that alerts you to a golf course. This is a great place to see Bald Eagles, Deer, Hawks, Vultures, Kingfishers, and Bank Beavers. We silently floated by deer that looked at us but didn't run. If you feel this creek is too much for your skills, you can abort mission at the golf course. They have a phone and a restroom, and are quite friendly, as everybody is in PA. You only pass about 6 houses or cabins on the whole trip, but Route 426 and a railroad grade are often nearby on River Left.
About halfway through the trip you will pass under a few cable suspension bridges that connect rustic log cabins to the Hyers Road access across the creek. The take-out in Girard is just past the route 27 concrete bridge on River Left.
There was absolutely no litter anywhere. We had the feeling that the creek, in all its unspoiled beauty, was ours and ours alone. We are very happy that we have such a great paddling resource at our doorstep. We plan to paddle the upper and lower sections when conditions permit.

BrokenStraw Creek: April 17, 2005

Put In: Garfield, PA
Take Out: Bridge before Buckaloons
Time: 4 hours
It was a glorious, sunny day in northwest Pennsylvania. The air temperature was about 65 degrees, but the water was probably about 50. Wetsuits were definitely appropriate. Nine days of sunny weather had lowered the water level, so paddling was very difficult. We frequently bottomed out. The chutes of deep water hugged the banks, where tree limbs and roots could overturn a paddler. There were numerous trees down. One strainer almost caught one paddler in our group. His kayak was breached on a fallen tree, but luckily he had a skirt on. Otherwise his kayak would have been swamped with water. Shallow water and rocks presented breaching problems to others in the group as well.

Paddling was slow and exhausting until we got to the confluence of the Little Brokenstraw near Youngsville. This was a good spot to stop for a break. It took about two hours to get here. With the increased water flow, paddling was easier, but we still had to be cautious. There was a low head dam in Youngsville that everyone paddled over with ease. Some of us surfed on the standing waves there.

Wildlife was all around us as we paddled. Canada geese, merganser and mallard ducks, osprey, a snapping turtle, a muskrat, and lots of fishermen!

Downstream we again encountered low water and dangerous chutes. A gravel bar directed the water to river left. The current was very strong as the creek made a sharp right turn. At this point, two of our paddlers collided and one kayak overturned. He wet-exited safely and swam to shore. This is a good lesson on always dressing for immersion, especially in early spring when the water is COLD!

We had started out on the Creek at 2:30 p.m., and after four hours of paddling, we were anxiously looking for the take out. Our bodies were exhausted! Dinner, the hot tub, and bed were our rewards for a rigorous time on the Brokenstraw Creek.

Moral of the story: You never step in the same water twice. What was once an easy float down the creek can be torturous paddle the next time you go.

Brokenstraw Creek: April 13, 2003

Put-in: Youngsville, PA City Park
Take-out: near Buckaloons State Park
Water Level: 3.5
Length of trip: 40 min.
Air temp: 55

Brokenstraw was a new experience for John and me.

There are probably better places to launch from than the Park. We tromped through brush and mud to get into the water.

As soon as we were afloat, we came across a small dam. Paddling river left, it was easy to avoid. The Creek was moving about 3 mph. We encountered a few ripples that were fun. The ride was not difficult. There was only one large tree down, and that was easy to paddle around.

I'm told that the Brokenstraw is low in summer, so check the water level before you go.

The 3.5 that we encountered was a great, easy ride.

We had planned to get out at Buckaloons State Park. However the park is doing some significant groundwork, and it was closed. We parked our truck just down the road. It was an easy take-out at the bridge. If you paddle to Buckaloons, you have to go upstream on the Allegheny River for about 100 yards. That could be a little difficult if the current is strong.

The sun was shining. The paddle was easy. It was the perfect way to start out the paddling season after a very hard winter.