Thunderdome

Just downriver of Great Falls on the Potomac River near Washington, DC. Level was somewhere around 8.1-8.2, approximately 75k CFS. I would not recommend it at this level. Our five person crew had 10 flips in 100 yards of whitewater and it is difficult to brace and roll in the boils. The wave holes are too chaotic to get a good surf on. The risk/reward just feels off. I scouted it at 6.5 a couple days later which looked like significantly better waves for surfing.

[@weemissile]

You can hear our intrepid kayaker making the characteristic "panic grunts" throughout the meatier part of the video, indicating he is getting his ass kicked. Not that it matters when your roll is bombproof, lol. Well done, a braver man than I.

[@Michael65429]

This kinda reminds me of my first time in the New River Gorge. The river was right at 12 feet and big eddy walls. Whale hole was huge and Seldom Seen was a bunch of moving, exploding waves. Absolutely loved it in my Seda Dart, but the trees in the river were scary...

[@Cocora22]

Some of the best paddlers in the world have learned right here!!!!!! You guys are fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@boofsandbeaters]

It's great having Class 1-5 right in our backyard!

[@thomasfaucher2756]

As someone who only paddles out on Lake Huron it was amazing to see how the water grabs the back of these boats. That feeling must be interesting to get used to. It sure does look fun though and I could fit twice as many of these style kayaks than I can my 12 footers. Sweet perspective, thanks for the video

[@tomphillips2608]

I paddled back in '70-71 ish. C1 , heavy boat sluggish but stable. Hard to tell , but @7:25 or so that looks like what we used to call "Difficult run ,md side". Once, while waiting my turn to surf the stacks, I was holding onto a rock with a buddy in his boat next to me. The rock started sinking. Next thing, "TREE!" Someone shouts. I watched a 40 foot long tree with a 15-18 foot diameter rootball "lumber(sorry😂) through. Most amazingly, I could feel the vibrations as it scraped the river bed. You guys are amazing in those "sports cars!"

[@boofsandbeaters]

That’s so cool! I love hearing those stories

[@highpockets82]

Incredible footage!!!! I had a swim on high water near harpers ferry last January and it shook me to the core. The power of that much water in that gorge is insane! My high water winter runs may be a thing of the past.

[@boofsandbeaters]

That is a scary feeling fore sure- glad you were ok!

[@babblingbrookesmith]

That flow is incredible. Good reminder that I do not like high water, I like high water on a handful of specific rivers 😅 Hats off to the whole crew on that run!

[@terrymorris1687]

I don’t know how your kayak floats with those huge set of 🏀 🏀 you have . You guys are real thrilled seekers!!

[@teleyakco]

Those are the most terrifying eddy fences and boils I've ever seen.

[@boofsandbeaters]

Same!

[@joshhall470]

Check out the grand Inga project dude gets toilet bowled literally.

[@weemissile]

@@joshhall470 Grand Inga is a whole different planet

[@knaz7468]

Mesmerizing though

[@joegoober107]

I think you guys definitely get the “bomb-proof roll” merit badge,

[@andrewpalim1978]

Great video, I wonder if the stikine/indus boaters would run bridge channel or virginia or even the main line at those levels.

[@boofsandbeaters]

@@andrewpalim1978 there are a couple boaters who have run it at some weird levels, quicknuclearscience has some great videos of high water runs I know. Not sure about that specific level though

[@johnmaxwell1750]

In the early 1980s I paddled up into Mather Gorge from Old Anglers when the Potomac was at flood stage. We worked slowly upstream along the river right walls. Level was at least 9 feet Little Falls gauge . Might have been higher than that. Water level was about five to ten feet below the top of the Mather Gorge. We paddled about half way up Mather Gorge to a location where we could see the river pouring over a totally submerged Rocky Island. This pour-over created the deepest, scariest, most powerful hydraulic I have ever seen. The hole created by Rocky Island might have been 20 feet deep and featured a huge, angry, boiling upstream recirculation. When we were there the river was still rising. A lot of debris was floating very fast downstream. Saw a huge tree trunk, a sycamore at least 5 to 8 foot in diameter -- probably 50 or so feet long -- careen around S-Turn and float directly into the monster hole created by the current pouring over Rocky Island. It completely disappeared before the entire log was quickly ejected vertically into the sky. The bottom end of the log cleared the water by at least 5 feet; the top end was at least 50+ feet out of the water. The log crashed back into the hole and started pinwheeling in the hole, end over end, for 10 or so seconds. Once again the huge log was ejected vertically skyward again, entirely clearing water. Again it crashed down into the hole and resumed pinwheeling. I think the tree trunk was ejected vertically at least three times before it finally escaped the hole. A few seconds later It came booking past us like a freight train. We were watching this well inside the eddyline and close to the rock walls. Along the eddyline huge whirlpools would suddenly appear for a few seconds and then would disappear. They were more than 5 feet deep, 30 feet in diameter. We avoided them studiously.

[@boofsandbeaters]

What a cool story- that sounds terrifying!

[@jacobklein2778]

Ive never seen a river so mad at itself! Its like the whole fkn river is fighting the flow and going in every direction.

[@saint5203]

For anyone that doesn’t know what this feels like. Just stick to the video. It’s absolutely terrifying. Don’t try this at home.

[@Ranger_k16]

Hell no! Its rowdy in there so send it! 🤙

[@tankmaster1018]

2:31 H.O.L.Y Christ... Edit: Recognize that sound you made at 2:40 well, I've unfortunately made it plenty! Lmfao, the "I can't believe I'm still in my boat and breathing" exhale!

[@Gorlim_the_Unhappy]

I've heard you make that sound in your videos plenty of times 😂

[@tankmaster1018]

@@Gorlim_the_Unhappy Guilty as charged! Lmfao

[@proteus6366]

Exceptionally difficult water! Constant jet failure, whirlpools, swelling.It's more dangerous than jumping from a waterfall.

[@williamrichmond8237]

Great edit! What advantages do you think a half slice / creeker would have had? Do you think if you considered to run this at the same level again, you would use the rewind?

[@boofsandbeaters]

I think its better to have some stern volume to avoid getting swirled like I did in the rewind. I think the best boat for it might be an edgy creeker like the scorch so you would have the ability to carve and not get spun out too easily, but could keep from getting wheelied.

[@JadedBelle]

Beautiful footage

[@Chompchompyerded]

"That was terrifying." Really? Really? Terrified is much more calm and serene than I would be able to muster on that. To me, it looked like being within an inch of your life. I would never have guessed that you'd have time to be terrified. For me, it would have been the zombie stare from the moment I entered the water. Seeing exploding boils from shore is enough to make me soil my wet suit. And on top of that you have wooden alligators floating around everywhere you look. Yeh, that was death on steroids. All I can say is that you guys have the skillz. Way to send it!

[@Brandon-bf5gn]

What a crazy river. Currents going in every direction.

[@Kenmcfarland001]

Brilliant paddling well done

[@Terminatedd]

Looked a bit like Niagara Gorge right there! Scary stuff.

[@macfawlty]

Fascinating to see you guys paddling at these levels. Greatly appreciate all the videos posted. The river changes so much with every .5 on the gauge, but 6 to 8 recently is a raging beast. You’re in a Rewind, not a Code?? Me thinks you’ll do it again, maybe not next week.

[@boofsandbeaters]

I think I would at a different level or different boat. I chose the rewind because it’s better at crossing eddy lines and making ferries etc, and because I wanted to surf if the wave was right. It did do well on the ferry but then the low volume stern became a liability. I think something like a Nirvana would be better- fast, with some but not too much edge, but plenty of stern volume.

[@johnmc8785]

@@boofsandbeaters Have you checked out the Jackson Flow. Decent volume creek boat, but with plenty of edge, so it'll still carve well.

[@boofsandbeaters]

@@johnmc8785 I think that would probably be a great boat for it

[@peppi0304]

2:24 the stabilisation does its wonders here

[@HansEricVanLeer]

Great Falls Maryland!!! Potomac!!! Been there done that!! Remember the flood of I think 1985? We were paddling that same shit with fiberglass, slalom race boats !!! we found half of one of them 30 feet up a tree by the feeder canal couple weeks later when the water came down (Kirk Simon‘s boat - Eric Jackson’s cousin, rest in peace). Huge exploding waves and bathtub effect to the max. Huge trees going by regularly. Whirlpools. Not unlike Zambezi 6 yrs ago or Highwater Colosseum on the Ottawa at 18 about six years ago also Zambezi in a rockstar will always be the craziest!!

[@boofsandbeaters]

I have heard about those big flood waters, it sounds insane! Zambezi is on the list for sure.

[@joebrush4324]

Remember in 1996 Dave Hearn got arrested after running this? I thought they called it Skywalker rapid or some such. I thought they ran it from the top, but I'm getting old and my memory is failing.

[@PepereFouras]

I can confidently say that I'll never do a river at that level, y'all are insane

[@boofsandbeaters]

To be fair I don't know that I would do that run in that boat at that level again myself

[@zekeclark2594]

I have no idea why this was recommended to me, but sooooooo coll soooo scary

[@chido706]

Not sure what ya'll did to that river, but she big mad at you.

[@andrewpalim1978]

Any idea what the little falls dam looks like at that level?

[@boofsandbeaters]

@@andrewpalim1978 I would have to look at some old tape, I think parts of it wash out, but I would tend to avoid it due to the low head dam style feature

[@shakeandbake7324]

Well it's little more water than the Ocoee while surfing Grumpy

[@wyskass861]

Would be nice to state where this is, when posting a video on youtube for everyone.

[@boofsandbeaters]

It’s on the Potomac River in DC

[@wyskass861]

@@boofsandbeaters Oh it's Great Falls ok

[@boofsandbeaters]

@@wyskass861just downstream of the falls

[@haroldthomas1077]

Nightmare fuel. I don't recommend watching before bed! What river is this?

[@boofsandbeaters]

The Potomac in DC

[@jake.sherman]

Is this normal??

[@boofsandbeaters]

No, we only get these levels a few days a year

[@Andreich-v7n]

What’s the name of the river?

[@boofsandbeaters]

The Potomac

[@TonyCalice]

One half slice and a whole lot of adrenaline got this paddler down 🤘

[@bune-kwai]

Does this even have a class rating, or do you just call it, “Death Water”?! 😶

[@boofsandbeaters]

Due to the power of the water, dangerous currents, wood, and the consequences of a swim I would call it Class V, certainly at least 4+

[@mikekelly4481]

Two men enter One man leaves...

[@DrEnduro1]

Wow, that is scary.

[@dMaribo]

There are some hair-rising stories about this part of the Potomac at high levels. The Jumps.

[@boofsandbeaters]

Yep I can see how with even more juice it would be scarier

[@tankmaster1018]

I'm waiting patiently for the day those form again... we need at least 11 feet, only 3 more then in this video!

[@austinnevels7447]

I got flipped and pinned on a large rock by the current of the river I was in, I was only waist deep and to feel that kind of power…. I was in 4 feet of water and I couldn’t stand up Whoa

[@boofsandbeaters]

Rivers are powerful, glad you are ok!

[@overthehedgerow]

What river was this

[@boofsandbeaters]

This is the Potomac, at the bottom of Great Falls on the Maryland side

[@overthehedgerow]

Thanks

[@TokyoNightGirlLofi]

💕Wow💚💚💚💜💜💜

[@oldcrow9495]

Seriously big water. Other level. Be safe out there.

[@charlesshober8840]

you funny

[@stuzworldz]

⁉Ya that looks Fun & SAFE🎯

[@boofsandbeaters]

😂

[@robertjoppe2995]

2:45 guy in red boat river right ( big balls beating )

[@boofsandbeaters]

woah that's a great spot, I hadn't even noticed that I caught it!

[@zekeclark2594]

ahh yes. The art os being waterboarded.

[@boofsandbeaters]

I had been describing it like the feeling of being flushed down the toilet but your description is also spot on!

[@DesertTuna]

Mad asf

[@michaelkaniecki1998]

this is a meat grinder - holy fuck

[@dl3537]

ahahahha hell yeah

[@bradmacdonald7626]

Gnarly

[@an30805]

F Massive!

[@DesertTuna]

Yo to scared to subscribe hahaa

[@chznts5227]

Oh hellllll no

[@Bigblue16]

Jealous...

[@DesertTuna]

A madest team haha yas could accomplish anything

[@DesertTuna]

😂😂😂😂

[@Rcstables]

These guys shouldn’t have launched. Clueless hanging out is the massive eddies instead of the main current as can be seen by multiple rolls.

[@unkownyouknow3696]

Looks scars

[@spacemonster8954]

Not worth it.

[@osetrycom]

Wich is it river?

[@boofsandbeaters]

The Potomac

[@jefflanham1080]

Where is this??

[@boofsandbeaters]

The Potomac river near great falls