Dead - Spencer Stream to West Forks - August 9, 2025

The boats get loaded

There are rivers that aren’t too difficult if you take the right lines, but can be brutal if you don’t. I was on one of these rivers on Saturday – the Dead in ME, and I paid the price for a bad line on the last rapid - Lower Poplar. My first swim of the year.

The Dead is one of the longest continuous whitewater runs in the Northeast with approximately thirty rapids along a fourteen-mile stretch. The river is mostly boulder-type rapids with lots of holes and pour-overs. The shoreline has thick vegetation that grows right up to the river's edge that can make it difficult to rescue swimmers or bail out an open boat. The major named rapids are:

• Spencer Rips –big weaves are to the right, big eddy below on left to stop and regroup.
• Minefield (2 miles) – long boulder garden with big waves and lots of holes – difficulty increases where the river turns left.
• Hyden’s – (3 miles) good lunch spot – run in middle and stay out of holes.
• Gravel Pit (4.5 miles)
• Enchanted Stream (7 miles) – another good lunch spot.
• Elephant Rock – (7.5 miles) a river wide ledge immediately below Enchanted Stream. You can run the big waves in the center, or the slot on the right between Elephant Rock and the rock wall.
• Mile Long (8.5 miles) – another long boulder garden with big waves and lots of holes. There is an eddy on the left about half-way down
• Upper Spruce Ledge (10.5 miles)
• Lower Spruce Ledge (11 miles)
• Upper Poplar Falls (11.5 miles) – short but intense rapid filled with rocks and holes. Go right and stay away from holes – stop in big eddy bottom right.
• Lower Poplar Falls (12 miles) – a longer intense rapid that tumbles down the left side in huge wave trains and large holes. Left is hero line with lots of dangerous holes. The right line along the boulder garden is the usual open boat route.

Heading out

I picked up Paul for the six hour drive up to the Forks. We stayed in a two-person cabin-tent at Northern Outdoors. We had a small fire on Friday before settling in for the night.

We were up early Saturday morning to meet our group and the shuttle. We were paddling with the Penobscot Paddle and Chowder Society - aka the Chowder Heads. We had a group with 13 boats – 6 canoes, 6 kayaks and 1 shredder.

Charlie in one of the unnamed rapids

Old-time Dead River paddlers probably remember Webb’s Shuttle Service run by Ed Webb. Webb's (later Riverdrivers) no longer provides shuttle service, so we met the new shuttle company - Ironbound Outdoors - at 8:00 at the Public Takeout on Dead River Roar in West Forks.

With the large group of MVP'ers running the Dead for a step-up weekend, it took forever to load the boats. We finally got on the road around 9:30, and got to the river about 45 minutes later after a long, bumpy, dusty trip down 20-miles of dirt logging roads. We finally got on the water around 11:00.

Paul running Lower Poplar

The release was supposed to be 2,400 cfs, but was closer to 2,100 cfs with 25 cfs from Spencer Stream - a nice class II/III. At lower levels (1,200 cfs to 1,800 cfs) it is primarily class II except for the very first, and last couple of rapids. At medium levels (2,000 cfs to 3,500 cfs) it is mostly class III. At higher levels (4,500 cfs to–8,000 cfs) it is class IV.

We ran through Spencer Rips, Minefield and some other unnamed rapids before stopping for lunch at Hayden's. Then we ran Hayden's, Gravel Pit and some other unnamed rapids before taking a break at Enchanted Stream. Paul wanted to get some video so I ran the big waves in the middle of the ledge at Elephant Rock rather than the shoot on the right.

Erik running Lower Poplar

The next major rapid was Mile Long – another long boulder garden with big waves and lots of holes I filled my boat about half way down, but was able to empty it in a big eddy on the left before finishing the rapid. After running the Upper and Lower Spruce Ledges we took a break at the Poplar Portage Trail before taking on Upper and Lower Poplar.

Upper Poplar is a short but intense rapid filled with rocks and holes. Most of us ran it to the right and made it through fine. Lower Poplar was another story. The river turns right along a boulder garden as the water tumbles down the left side in huge wave trains and large holes.

Swimming Lower Poplar

Most of the open boats took the right line along the seam between the boulder garden and the big holes. As I was coming down I saw Charlie flip in front of me. I got around him to the left, but now I was  out in the big holes and pour-overs. Before long, my boat was full of water and I was struggling to keep it upright, never mind avoiding the rocks and holes. About half way down, I went sideways over a large rock into a hole, and over I went.

As I swam downstream I looked back to see my canoe still stuck in the hole. That was the least of my problems. Swimming through rapids is something that I try to practice, but it doesn’t match the real experience. First, I swam though a series of “haystacks” or standing waves where you have to breathe in the trough, and hold your breath as you go through the wave - breathe, glug, breathe, glug, breathe, glug.

Reunited with my boat at
the bottom of Lower Poplar

After the waves, I could see a horizon line downstream indicating that I was approaching a rock with a hole on the other side. I tucked into a ball as best I could as I went into the hole. When I came out the other side Paul was yelling at me to swim hard to the left shore since I was approaching another big hole. I wasn’t making much progress so I threw away my paddle thinking that would allow me to swim better. After more waves, rocks and holes, I finally got myself to shore. It was about a 200-yard swim, but it seemed like forever.

After I caught my breath I looked over and could see Paul on the other side of the river with my boat. I hiked downstream and was about to jump in the shredder for a ride to the other side when Craig paddled over towing my boat. I had paddled through 30 rapids over 14-miles only to swim the last 200-yards. We had 3 other open boaters swim Lower Poplar, so I guess I shouldn't feel too bad. 

The swim earned me a new poem from Tom.

It’s really not an Outrage,
until one’s stood on end.
But chill we will baptised beginning,
again, again, again.

If that ol’ paddler’s adage, “Ya ain’t really learnin’ unless yer gettin’ wet,” holds any water, we’re gonna have t’call ya, Doctor Dunk, Erik.

Man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.

TW

Links:

My Pictures

My Video - Four Open Boat Swims in Lower Poplar
River Description from American Whitewater
Dead River Gage
Spencer Stream Gage

Northern Outdoors 

Ironbound Outdoors 

Penobscot Paddle and Chowder Society

Rapid Shooters 

Video - Poplars on the Dead

Dead River Weekend - Day Two – August 11, 2019

Heading Out

As I was preparing for my Dead River trip, I got an email from Jonathan wondering what was up for the weekend. When I told him that I was going to the Dead, he decided to join us on Sunday. Our original plan was to paddle tandem on something easy (“anything but the Dead”), and then get an early start home. After a good day on Saturday and with a lower release level on Sunday, I convinced him to paddle tandem on the Dead instead.

We rigged-up Jonathan’s Mad River Explorer with the end and center bags that he had brought, and an end bag scavenged from my Encore. The shuttle from Webb’s was a joy compared to yesterday. We only 12 paddlers, so we were all able to sit in the van. Ken and Jim decided not to paddle with us on Sunday, so we had 7 boats (one tandem canoe - me and Jonathan; one solo canoe – Norm; and 5 kayaks – Jonathan, Ken, Dave, Doug, Cian and Conrad). The release was 1800 with another 100 from Spencer Stream – mostly class II rock dodging. The weather was great – sunny with a few clouds. 

Bottom of Minefield

We started with me in the bow and Jonathan in the stern but decided to switch when others commented how out of trim the boat was. Although I generally like to be in the bow, I must admit that it was better with Jonathan up front. The boat was more stable and maneuverable, and to be honest, Jonathan is better at picking out lines than me. 

We ran Sunday pretty much the same as Saturday. We ran Spencer Rips, Minefield and a bunch of other unnamed rapids before taking a break at Hayden's. After the break, Hayden’s was our first real test on a class III rapid with big waves, and we made it through fine. We then ran Gravel Pit and some other unnamed rapid before stopping for lunch at Enchanted Stream. 

View from the stern

After lunch we headed out to run Elephant Rock. This time, we followed the crew left and then right to line up on the shoot on Elephant Rock – we nailed it. Next up was Mile Long, and we managed to make to the bottom before filling up the boat. From there we continued down through some unnamed rapids and Upper and Lower Spruce to Upper and Lower Poplar. Considering ourselves lucky to have made it this far without swimming, we decided to portage Upper and Lower Poplar. 

We carried up the first hill hoping from there it would be “down-hill” all the way. It wasn’t. We dragged the boat up and down numerous hills before we finally reached the put-in below Lower Poplar about a mile away – definitely a class IV portage. For there, we enjoyed the quickwater back down to Webb’s. The rest of the crew was waiting for us at the take-out. We packed up our gear and said our good-byes before heading out for the long drive home.

Dead River Weekend from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.

Links:

My Pictures

Dead River from American Whitewater

Spencer Stream Gage

Dead River Weekend - Day One – August 10, 2019

Norm running Spencer Rips

It has been a couple of years since I have been up to the Dead, so I was able glad that Conrad was willing to move the Boston AMC trip that he usually runs during my family vacation in July to August. We would be running a 2400 release on Saturday, and an 1800 release on Sunday.  

The Dead is a great river, but it definitely makes you work. First, it is out in the middle of nowhere. My drive up on Friday, which should have taken 4½ hours, took over 7 hours due to traffic. Then there is the shuttle, which can be brutal. On Saturday we had 64 boaters heading up to the put-in. I ended up in the back of a pickup truck with 8 other boaters in the pouring rain for the 45-minute trip down dirt logging roads. 

Jim running Minefield

Once you get on the river, though, it is all worth it. The Dead arises at Flagstaff Lake and flows 42-miles to its convergence with the Kennebec River at The Forks. It has one of the longest continuous whitewater runs in the northeast with approximately 30 named and unnamed rapids along the 14-mile stretch from Spencer Stream near Grand Falls to The Forks. At lower levels (1200 to 1800), the run is primarily class II rock-dodging except for a couple of the larger named rapids, which are class III.  At medium flows, (2400 to 3500), it is class III with lots of long wavetrains. At higher levels (4500 to 8000), it is class IV and beyond my skill level.

The release on Saturday was 2,400 cfs with another 100 cfs coming from Spencer Stream – an easy class III. We had 9 boats (3 canoes -  me, Jim and Norm; and 6 kayaks – Jonathan, Ken, Dave, Doug, Cian and Conrad). The day alternated between sun (rarely), clouds (lots) and rain (occasionally). We even had a couple of rumbles of thunder. We ran through Spencer Rips, Minefield and a bunch of other unnamed rapids before taking a break at Hayden's. We then ran Hayden's, Gravel Pit and some other unnamed rapid before stopping for lunch at Enchanted Stream. 

Conrad below Minefield

After lunch we headed out into Elephant Rock. I got confused and thought that Elephant Rock was closer to Enchanted Stream than it actually is. I went right immediately and ended up bouncing through a nearby boulder garden that everyone else avoided. I then followed Doug down through the waves on the ledge at the left side of Elephant Rock. It was only when I got to the bottom and saw Conrad running the slot that I realized that I had missed it completely.  Oh well, good to know I can also run the left side.  

Next up was Mile Long that has always been my nemeses. I headed in and I did fine in the top half. I followed Cian through the middle and over the rock that usually fills my boat. This time I made it through relatively dry and was able to get down to the bottom before emptying my boat.  

The crew running Hayden's

From there we continued downstream to run Upper and Lower Spruce and Upper Poplar. Hayden’s is often said to have the largest waves, but on this day, I thought the waves were bigger at Upper Poplar. Now, all that was left was Lower Poplar. I headed into Lower Poplar center right and followed the seam between the boulder garden and the big waves down to the middle where a large group of rocks forces you left into the waves or right into the boulder garden. In the past I have always gone right into the boulder garden, which is boney at lower release levels.  This time I went left into the waves and bounced my way to the bottom of the rapid filling up my boat in the process.  It was a fun ride. 

We paddled the last couple of miles of quickwater down to Webbs to complete this great day - no swims. We had a nice dinner at Hawks Nest and returned to the campground for an early night.

Running Hayden's - photo by Rapid Shooters Maine

Links:

My Pictures

Dead River from American Whitewater

Spencer Stream Gage

Hawks Nest Restaurant

Dead River – August 8, 2015

Waiting for the shuttle

Sometimes it doesn't pay to play it safe. At least that's what happened to me yesterday on the Dead.

I wasn't able to run the Dead in June or July, and knew that things would be busy in September, so decided to head up to the Forks for the August release. I wasn't sure who I would paddle with until I saw that Charlie Sweet was leading a trip for the Boston AMC. It turned out to be a small group (Charlie, Rich, Josh and me), but all open boaters.

Rich does some surfing

With the large group of MVP'ers at the Forks for Family Step-up Weekend, the shuttle took forever. We finally got on the road around 10:00, and got to the river about 45 minutes later. With two trailers attached to the bus, they stopped at the top and made us carry down the hill. We finally got on the water around 11:00. 

The release was 2,400 cfs with another 100 cfs coming from Spencer Stream - a nice class II/III. We ran through Spencer Rips, Minefield and a bunch of other unnamed rapids before stopping for lunch at Hayden's. After lunch we ran Hayden's, Gravel Pit, Elephant Rock, Mile Long and Upper Poplar in quick succession. Before we knew it, we were set to run Lower Poplar.

Charlie below Minefield

I followed Rich into Lower Poplar taking a middle right line along the seam of the rapid. About a quarter of the way down, Rich went left into the rapid, but I went right along what I thought would be an easier line into the rock garden. Before long, I got hung up on a shallow rock and flipped. Fortunately I was close to shore, so I was able to get my boat to shore quickly. Soon I was back in my boat and finishing the run, but like I said, sometimes it doesn’t pay to play it safe. 

We were back in the campground around 5:00 - a six hour run that was a lot of fun.

Kelly runs the slot at Elephant Rock

Links:
My Pictures
Spencer Stream Gage
River Description from American Whitewater

Dead River Weekend – Day Two – June 8, 2014

Grand Falls

After a fun night around the campfire, the morning started late for us on Sunday.  Most of us enjoyed a nice breakfast at Riverdrivers before packing up and bringing our boats to the shuttle.  We were still at the campsite at around 9:10 when Kelly came down to tell us that the shuttle was leaving – that got us moving. 

Once at the put-in, we decided to take the short walk to see Grand Falls before getting on the river. It would be a mellower run today with a release of 2,400 cfs, and another 350 cfs coming from Spencer Stream for a total of 2,750 (class II/III). While the waves in Spencer Rips were still 2 – 3 feet, the rapids that followed were significantly smaller than on Saturday.

Mine Field

We stopped for lunch at Hayden’s Landing, and then ran Hayden’s, Gravel Pit and Enchanted Stream before eddying out on river right above Elephant Rock.  I went through the slot first to see if I could get some pictures. The big hole above Elephant Rock that had filled my boat on Saturday was gone, and I made it through fine.

The next major rapid was Mile Long – my nemesis from the day before.  The waves and holes were smaller, but it was still a long, challenging rapid.  Just like on Saturday, I filled my boat about half way down, but this time I was able to get to shore. After emptying my boat, I was able to pick my way through the remaining rocks and holes. 

Andy running Elephant Rock

As we approached Upper and Lower Poplar, I didn’t see much of a difference from the day before.  The waves were a little smaller, but these were still significant class III rapids.  Upper Poplar went quickly, and we proceeded to the final rapid of our trip – Lower Poplar Falls. 

In Lower Poplar, I took the far right line, but the rest of the crew went middle right.  Paul and Jon went a little to far left and had to blast through the big hole at the top.  Jon flipped in the hole as he had the day before  but at the lower level, he was able to roll up and continue down the rapid.

We gathered at the bottom of the rapid both sad and relieved that the run was over.  With just one short swim on Sunday, the run had gone much quicker – about 5 hours.  We headed back to the cabin tired after two great days on the river. 

The crew minus Kelly

Links:
My Pictures

River Description from American Whitewater 

Spencer Stream Gage

Riverdrivers

Dead River Weekend – Day One – June 7, 2014

Our cabin at Riverdrivers

I did my first Dead River weekend last year with Mike, Earl and Tommy, and it was so much fun that I decided to go back again this year with Andy, Paul, Pat, and Jon. 

The Dead is a classic New England whitewater river with 14 miles of continuous rapids. Releases are controlled from the Flagstaff Lake Dam above Grand Falls.  Releases can range from 1,200 cfs (class II) to 7,000 cfs (Class IV+). Last year I ran an 1,800 cfs release.  This year, I would be stepping it up by running a 3,500 cfs release (class III) on Saturday, followed by a 2,400 cfs release (class II/III) on Sunday. 

I arrived at Andy’s house at around 10:00 on Friday for the six hour drive up to West Forks, ME. We arrived at our cabin at Riverdrivers (formerly known as Webb’s Campground) at around 4:30 and began to unpack.  Paul, Pat and Jon arrived a couple of hours later.  We lit a fire and settled in for the night in anticipation of a great weekend. 

The shuttle bus at the put-in

We awoke early on Saturday and began to pack up our gear for the shuttle. Old-time whitewater paddlers will remember the Webb’s Shuttle Service then run by Ed Webb.  In those days, the 20-mile shuttle down dirt logging roads was done on the back flatbed trucks.  Today, the trip is done in the relative comfort of an old school bus, but it is still a long, bumpy ride.

When we arrived, the put-in was busy with rafting companies and boaters getting ready to launch. The release was 3,500 cfs, with another 450 cfs coming from the Spencer Stream for a total of 3,950 cfs – a solid class III. We hooked up with Kelly, Wayne and Andy and headed downstream.

The first major rapid on the river is the Spencer Rips – a short but intense rapid with 2 – 3 foot waves that sets the tone for the rest of the trip.  As I bobbed my way down the rapid, I saw Jon up ahead of me flip, and then quickly roll back up again.  I knew that it was going to be a fun and busy day. 

Jon running Spencer Rips

It turned out to be a fun level for kayaks, but I found it challenging in my canoe.  Water from continuous 2 – 3 foot waves can quickly swamp an open boat.  Big water paddlers in open boats often solve this problem by installing small battery powered electric pumps. Unfortunately, I hadn’t gotten around to getting a pump, so I had to avoid the big waves as much as possible.  Since I was also the only open boater in the group, I was forced to read my own lines, which turned out to be great “read and run” practice. 

At this level, the rapids came at us fast and furious, and we did have a few swims along the way.  Everyone got a chance to rescue boats and paddlers – except me.  By the time I reached the bottom of most of the rapids my boat was full of water and I was looking for a place to bail.  I really need to get a pump!

My only swim was in a long rocky rapid known as “Mile Long” - you can guess why it has that name.  About half way down, I went over a rock into a hole filling my boat with water.  Now it’s possible to paddle a swamped canoe, but it’s difficult.  My options were to try to bail out the canoe while bouncing down the rapid, or try to work my way over to shore.  I decided to paddle over to shore, and got about 15' before I dumped and took a swim.

Andy running Gravel Pit

Once in the water I grabbed my boat and tried to swim to shore, but in the fast moving water, I wasn’t making any progress.  Looking downstream I could see that I was approaching another set of rapids, so I abandoned the canoe and assumed the safe swimming position - on my back with my feet downstream. 

Swimming through rapids is something that I try to practice, but it doesn’t match the real experience.  First, I swam though a series of “haystacks” or standing waves where you breathe in the trough, and hold you breath as you go through the wave - breathe, glug, breathe, glug, breathe, glug. If this continues long enough, it can be though to catch your breath. Fortunately, it was a short set of haystacks. 

After the waves, I could see a horizon line downstream indicating that I was approaching a rock with a hole on the other side.  I tucked into a ball as the pour over pulled me down into the hole.  When I came out the other side, I swam hard toward shore.  Fortunately, Pat had been working my boat toward the same spot.  It was just a short time before I was back in my boat, but the two most difficult rapids remained – Upper and Lower Poplar. 

Jon in Lower Poplar

Upper Poplar is a short but intense rapid filled with rocks and holes.  After Upper poplar is Lower Poplar.  The river turns right as the water tumbles down the left side in huge wave trains and large holes.  I took the sneak route to the right and made it down fine.  Unfortunately, Jon flipped in the large hole at the top, and after several unsuccessful roll attempts, he ended up swimming the rapid.  It was a long and nasty swim, but we got him back in his boat, and continued downstream to our cabin. 

Day one was complete.  It had been a tough day with six of our eight paddlers swimming at least once, and a total of nine swims in all.  The run took us six hours.  Still, it was a lot of fun, and we were looking forward to another run on Sunday.

Links:
My Pictures
Pat's Boot Chug Video with Andy and Jon

River Description from American Whitewater

Spencer Stream Gage 

Riverdrivers

Dead - Spencer Stream to West Forks – July 6, 2013

At the bottom of Spencer Rips
(Photo by Tommy Taylor)

The Dead has been on my list of places to paddle for a long time.  I remember my first canoe trip with my father on the Androscoggin way back in 1990.  The Boston Chapter of the AMC ran that trip, and many of those members talked about running the Dead.  It’s apropos that our small group (Mike, Earl, Tommy and me) hooked-up with the Boston Chapter (Donna Jean, Rod, Deb, Barbara, Ken and Scott) to do the run. 

We arrived at Riverdrivers around 8:30 and loaded up the boats for the shuttle.  With all the rain, we were concerned that the level might be significantly higher than the scheduled release of 1,800 cfs.  Andy at Riverdrivers told us that the dam release would be “an honest 1,800 cfs”.  With another 550 cfs coming from Spencer Stream, we estimate that the total flow was 2,350 cfs – a solid class III. At lower levels (1,200 cfs to 1,800 cfs) it is primarily class II except for the very first, and last couple of rapids.  At medium levels (2,000 cfs to 3,500 cfs) it is class III.  At higher levels (4,500 cfs to–8,000 cfs) it is class IV (and well beyond my skill level).

Running the slot at Elephant Rock
(Photo by Tommy Taylor)

The Dead is one of the longest continuous whitewater runs in the Northeast with approximately thirty rapids along a fourteen-mile stretch.  The river is mostly boulder type rapids with lots of holes and pour-overs. The shoreline has thick vegetation that grows right up to the river's edge that can make it difficult to rescue swimmers or bail out an open boat.  The major named rapids are: 

• Spencer Rips – deep water is right, big eddy below on left to stop and regroup.
• Minefield (2 miles) – long boulder garden with big waves and lots of holes – difficulty increases where the river turns left.
• Hyden’s – also know as Humpty Dumpty (3 miles) – run in middle, stay out of holes.
• Gravel Pit (4.5 miles)
• Enchanted Stream (7 miles) – good lunch spot.
• Elephant Rock – (7.5 miles) immediately below Enchanted Stream is a river wide ledge – blends into Enchanted Stream.  Can run the ledge, but usually run on right between Elephant Rock and the rock wall.
• Mile Long (8.5 miles) – another long boulder garden with big waves and lots of holes – filled up my boat here – twice!
• Upper Spruce Ledge (10.5 miles) – stay out of hole bottom left.
• Lower Spruce Ledge
• Upper Poplar Falls (11.5 miles) – Stay  away from holes upper right and lower left – stop in big eddy bottom right.
• Lower Poplar Falls (12 miles) – left is hero line with lots of dangerous holes.  The right line through the boulder garden can be boney, but much easier - I took the right.

We made it through without too much trouble.  We had just one major swim in the Mile Long Rapid – and it wasn’t me! 

Mike running Minefield
(Photo by Tommy Taylor)

Links:

River description from American Whitewater
Spencer Stream Gage

Riverdrivers Camping

Northern Outdoors Campsites