Skeletor's Gorge
Skeletors Gorge Very low water shot of the warm-up below the crux I named this one after a sun-bleached skeleton of a moose or a bear, or something big, I dislodged out of a logjam in the crux prior to my run. This is a pretty hairy and committing run through a steep and narrow stretch of canyon, 200' below the road, portaging is difficult and eddies are rare to nonexistant. If you want to try it, It is absolutely essential that you walk up the whole 1.4 miles with saws and clean everything out first. Bring your arm guards if you have-em, I nearly broke my fore-arm on this one. It is class IV to V at low flows and suicidal when the water is high. The quarter-mile crux drops about 1,000 fpm. If Mr. Skeletor didn't make it out alive, do you think you would?? I did, and discovered three or four 20 to 50 foot long bedrock slides below the put-in, a half mile of ultra low water read and run steep boulder gardens, sharp turns, and congested chutes(after flossing, as of 5/07/09 all free of wood hindering progress down river). But at the core of the crux is a 30'+ cascade which is not fun at minimum flow, and otherwise suicidal. It is approx. found at: 31.213' n. and 36.539' w. It (HAD) a small eddy about a hundred feet above it, at 30 cfs (visual.) The last half mile the gradient decreases, but is a woodfest till Balls to the wall, a steep and very narrow stretch, two hundred feet long with a cliff running along one side and some very pushy currents at higher flows. Take out right after that. The creek continues to be even more of a bonified woodfest for abt the next 1.2 miles until Pulverizer which is described in the run description for the Upper North Fork.
Suggested river levels for paddling this section of the North Fork American Fork are between a bare minimum of 50cfs and a high of 200cfs.
River conditions sourced from USGS 10164500, the American Fk Ab Upper Powerplant Nr American Fk
Remember only watercraft are permitted
at Skeletor's Gorge.
Run Stats
Status | Too Low |
Class Level | IV+ |
Elevation | 5,991 ft |
Run Length | 1.4 Mi |
Gradient | 350 FPM |
Streamflow Discharge | 12.4 cfs |
Gage Height | 5.9 ft |
Air Temperature | 44° |
River | North Fork American Fork |
Reporting Streamgage |
American Fk Ab Upper Powerplant Nr American Fk
USGS 10164500 |
Gauge | Streamflow | Stage |
---|---|---|
Sixth Water Cr Ab Syar Tunnel
USGS 10149000 |
24 cfs | 4.2 ft |
Provo River Near Hailstone
USGS 10155000 |
140 cfs | 6.4 ft |
Little Cottonwood Creek @ Jordan River Nr Slc
USGS 10168000 |
3 cfs | 0.2 ft |
White River Bl Tabbyune C Near Soldier Summit
USGS 09312600 |
5 cfs | 2.0 ft |
Summit Creek Abv Summit Cr Canal Nr Santaquin Ut
USGS 10147100 |
8 cfs | 1.2 ft |
Fairview Tunnel Near Fairview
USGS 09309600 |
0 cfs | 1.6 ft |
Ogden River Nr Gibson Avenue At Ogden
USGS 10140700 |
24 cfs | 4.8 ft |
Snake Creek Near Charleston
USGS 10156000 |
29 cfs | 2.4 ft |
Provo River At Provo
USGS 10163000 |
25 cfs | 3.8 ft |
Weber River Near Coalville
USGS 10130500 |
42 cfs | 1.5 ft |
Snotel Site | Snowpack | 24hr Change |
---|---|---|
Clear Creek #2
SNOTEL 400 |
15" | -1" |
Dill'S Camp
SNOTEL 444 |
13" | -2" |
Brighton
SNOTEL 366 |
30" | -2" |
Dry Bread Pond
SNOTEL 455 |
25" | -2" |
Gbrc Meadows
SNOTEL 1222 |
38" | -1" |
Chalk Creek #2
SNOTEL 393 |
33" | -1" |
Redden Mine Lwr
SNOTEL 1225 |
18" | -3" |
Upper Joes Valley
SNOTEL 1227 |
6" | -2" |
Rees Flat
SNOTEL 1217 |
13" | -1" |
Bug Lake
SNOTEL 374 |
30" | -2" |
Ben Lomond Trail
SNOTEL 333 |
12" | -2" |
Horse Ridge
SNOTEL 533 |
24" | -1" |
Hardscrabble
SNOTEL 896 |
27" | -1" |
Lookout Peak
SNOTEL 596 |
56" | -1" |
alta - guard house
SNOTEL AGD |
56" | -2" |
alta
SNOTEL ATAU1 |
60" | -2" |
Clear Creek #1
SNOTEL 399 |
20" | -154" |
Mt Baldy
SNOTEL 1224 |
42" | -1" |
Louis Meadow
SNOTEL 972 |
19" | -3" |
Thistle Flat
SNOTEL 1226 |
18" | -2" |
Red Pine Ridge
SNOTEL 714 |
19" | -3" |
Daniels-Strawberry
SNOTEL 435 |
9" | -3" |
Smith And Morehouse
SNOTEL 763 |
18" | -2" |
Kilfoil Creek
SNOTEL 1145 |
16" | -3" |
Parrish Creek
SNOTEL 971 |
36" | -1" |
Snowbird
SNOTEL 766 |
64" | -1" |
Farmington Lower
SNOTEL 1054 |
23" | -2" |
Tony Grove Lake
SNOTEL 823 |
49" | -2" |
Farmington
SNOTEL 474 |
60" | -2" |
Temple Fork
SNOTEL 1013 |
22" | -2" |
Seeley Creek
SNOTEL 742 |
22" | -3" |
White River #1
SNOTEL 864 |
8" | -2" |
Ben Lomond Peak
SNOTEL 332 |
44" | 0" |
Beaver Dams
SNOTEL 329 |
7" | -2" |
Usu Doc Daniel
SNOTEL 1098 |
56" | 0" |
Chalk Creek #1
SNOTEL 392 |
40" | -1" |
Huntington Horse
SNOTEL 1216 |
35" | -1" |
Parley'S Summit
SNOTEL 684 |
25" | -3" |
Thaynes Canyon
SNOTEL 814 |
43" | -2" |
atwater study plot
SNOTEL ATH20_MADIS |
61" | -2" |
Payson R.S.
SNOTEL 686 |
12" | -3" |
Gbrc Hq
SNOTEL 1221 |
14" | -3" |
Klondike Narrows
SNOTEL 1115 |
24" | -3" |
Hobble Creek
SNOTEL 1223 |
6" | -1" |
Garden City Summit
SNOTEL 1114 |
26" | -1" |
Lightning Ridge
SNOTEL 1056 |
23" | -3" |
Strawberry Divide
SNOTEL 795 |
17" | -2" |
Cascade Mountain
SNOTEL 1039 |
24" | -2" |
Mill-D North
SNOTEL 628 |
43" | -2" |
Beaver Divide
SNOTEL 330 |
13" | -2" |
Rocky Basin-Settleme
SNOTEL 723 |
34" | -1" |
Monte Cristo
SNOTEL 634 |
41" | -2" |
Dry Fork
SNOTEL 906 |
24" | -2" |
Mammoth-Cottonwood
SNOTEL 612 |
24" | -2" |
Wrigley Creek
SNOTEL 1228 |
12" | -2" |
Campground | Campsites | Reservations | Toilets | Showers | Elevation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Whiting | 13 | 5,451 ft | |||
Timpooneke | 27 | 7,546 ft | |||
Tanners Flat | 34 | 7,208 ft | |||
Hope | 26 | 6,669 ft | |||
Warnick | 6 | 6,260 ft | |||
Redman | 40 | 8,318 ft | |||
Wasatch Mountain State Park | 139 | 5,999 ft | |||
Rock Canyon | 4 | 6,901 ft | |||
Mt. Timpanogos | 27 | 6,985 ft | |||
Spruces | 105 | 7,363 ft | |||
Little Mill | 36 | 6,035 ft | |||
Nunns Park | None | 4,994 ft | |||
Granite Flat | 52 | 6,756 ft | |||
Utah Lake State Park | 71 | 4,491 ft | |||
Cherry | 14 | 5,211 ft | |||
Albion Basin | 18 | 9,444 ft | |||
Deer Creek State Park | 75 | 5,565 ft |
Ski Area | Snowpack | Air Temperature | 5 Day Forecast |
---|---|---|---|
Alta Ski Area | 64" | 39° | 7.94" |
Canyons | 43" | 35° | 9.07" |
Brighton Ski Resort | 43" | 35° | 9.07" |
Snowbasin | 12" | 48° | 9.71" |
Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort | 64" | 39° | 7.94" |
Sundance | 37" | 43° | 0.83" |
Solitude Mountain Resort | 43" | 36° | 9.78" |
Park City Mountain Resort | 43" | 35° | 9.07" |
DC Shoes Mountain Lab | 43" | 36° | 9.78" |
Deer Valley Resort | 43" | 35° | 9.07" |
River Run | Streamflow | Length | Class |
---|---|---|---|
Henefer to Taggert | 0.79cfs | 7.0 Mi | II- to III |
Middle Provo (Jordanelle to Deer Creek) | 120.0cfs | 25.0 Mi | II+ |
Spanish Fork | 72.0cfs | 1.6 Mi | III- |
Park and Ride to Old Mill Catch Pond | 25.2cfs | 1.25 Mi | IV to V |
Scrambled Eggs Bend | 71.2cfs | 4.0 Mi | IV |
South Fork Confluence to Below the Narrows | 25.9cfs | 3.7 Mi | II to II+ |
Round Valley | 0.79cfs | 5.5 Mi | II |
Bridal Veil (BV) | 140.0cfs | 4.0 Mi | III to IV |
Skeletor's Gorge | 12.4cfs | 1.4 Mi | IV+ |
Morgan Waterfall | 0.79cfs | 0.1 Mi | III+ |
Mouth of Weber Canyon to Riverdale | 0.79cfs | 10.0 Mi | III |