Chetco River. Hiking in via this trail then joining the Mount Emily trail offers a ten As one of the guides with a special Upper Chetco permit, Andyâs customers experience world-class salmon and steelhead fishing without the crowded conditions that sometimes occur on the lower Chetco. The Chetco river is rightly regarded as one of the premier wilderness multiday trips in all of Oregon.
Only a handful of hearty souls paddle this river due to the 10 mile hike down to the put-in at Carter Creek. The Chetco River at the Slide Creek confluence is accessible from the eastside of the wilderness via the Upper Chetco Trail (#1102), southwest of Chetco Pass. As of 2012, the Babyfoot Lake trailhead looked to be the best bet to reach the put in, replacing traditional access at Slide Creek, where the trail has yet to be cleared. Craig Nunley of Caldwell, Idaho, holds a steelhead he caught and released Dec. 27 while fishing the Upper Chetco River with guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. Scouting and portaging was generally quite easy, and often necessary due to the huge boulders comprising most rapids. In the upper section, the river floor is fairly narrow and boulder-strewn with numerous falls and rapids. A scary moment above camp 3.. About to swim through a boulder sieve. Luckily he made it out the other side ok.. The 44.5-mile designated segment of the Chetco is located within Curry County in southwest Oregon on the Chetco Ranger District of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest.
The Chetco offers some truly great wilderness whitewater. The Chetco heads in steep, deeply dissected, sparsely vegetated, mountainous terrain within the Kalmiopsis Wilderness. Recreationists can access the recreational and scenic river segments and launch boats in several locations, including Miller, Nook, Redwood Riverbars; upper and lower South Fork Camps; the Low-water Bridge Site; Forest Road #1917-067; and the dispersed campsite at Steel Bridge. Rapids are Class III and below during the summer months under average flows and generally higher during winter months. Coupling the upper Chetco River (Carter Creek to the Steel Bridge), with the lower Chetco Gorge (Steel Bridge to the South Fork Chetco confluence) could be the river-time path to enlightenment. Eventually, Sluice Creek joins the Chetco and the river eases a notch.
We used a pack train to haul in most of our gear on this trip, which made the approach much easier.
A great resource for current trail conditions is the Siskiyou Mountain Club. At Slide Creek, the Chetco solidifies and changes character. The Upper Chetco also clears much quicker than the lower river after a major storm. One of the many rapids on the Upper Chetco River Available data for this site Click to hide station-specific text Station operated in cooperation with the City of Brookings and Oregon South Coast Fisherman.
-Jason Shappart in Forest Grove Oregon. He can be reached at We had one near-miss above camp 3, one of the team went into a boulder sieve and Slowly, the Biscuit Fire scars fade, gorge walls climb out of the water, Dropping into the canyon for a three thousand foot descent to the Chetco. Fish also tend to hold up in the upper river, compared to the lower river, where salmon and steelhead can sometimes quickly pass through to reach the upper river’s spawning grounds. Steelhead season is best from late November through March.The Chetco is one of Oregonâs premier salmon and steelhead rivers, and our most popular fishery. Fish also tend to hold up in the upper river, compared to the lower river, where salmon and steelhead can sometimes quickly pass through to reach the upper riverâs spawning grounds. • Smith River • The Smith River is known for its large run of giant king salmon, as well as numerous steelhead of over 20 pounds. Photo by Bill Tuthill. Hardshell kayaks will have fun at flows above 1,000 cfs. In 2012 Brian Vogt posted a trip report on Jason Rackley's Oregon kayaking website, the [upper] Chetco River.