The Upper Clackamas is my home river. These are my shorter Clackamas videos in one place: a cloudy day, fall 2023, a run in snow and ice, the Narrows in 2024, two clip reels and SOTAR SL slow motion at Rock and Roll. For the big days, see 6,500 cfs and my flips.
Disclosure: SOLWYRX Paddle Gear sells Sawyer, Oar Snubber and SOTAR gear, and I earn money when you buy it here. SOTAR also sponsors me as an athlete.
Cloudy Day on the Upper Clackamas
An ordinary cloudy day rowing the Upper Clackamas River in a Super Puma, the river I call my whitewater playground.
Video: Cloudy day on the Upper Clackamas on the SOLWYRX Paddlesports YouTube channel.
The Upper Clackamas run
Most people put in at the Three Lynx bridge. Big named rapids include Hole in the Wall (Class III, where the river hits an undercut wall and turns hard right), Carter's Bridge (Class III+ to IV, a ledge into a series of holes), Rock and Roll, Toilet Bowl, and the play spot at Bob's Hole (Oregon Kayaking). It's busy, fun Class III–IV water, and it changes a lot with flow.
Why "average" days matter
Not every run is a highlight reel, and that's the point. Days like this are where you build consistency: same lines, cleaner strokes, more confidence. I row the Super Puma on Sawyer DyneLite XD MXS oars, and I'd recommend an Oar Snubber for any rowing rig on a river like this.
Want to boat the Upper Clack with the community? Check out R1 Fest and River Rat Sunday.
Source: Oregon Kayaking, The Upper Clackamas
Fall 2023 on the Upper Clackamas
Fall 2023 on the Upper Clackamas River with a full crew of rafts and catarafts. It's one of my favorite Clackamas videos.
Video: Fall 2023 The Upper Clackamas By Jacob Linkhart on the SOLWYRX Paddlesports YouTube channel.
Filmed: Fall 2023
Fall is a special time on the Clack. The leaves turn, the crowds thin out, and the first rains start bringing the river up. This trip had a great mix of boats, from paddle rafts to catarafts, and it shows how differently each craft handles the same rapids. If you're deciding between them, read Picking Your Boat: Raft, Cataraft, IK or Packraft?
The crew
A big thanks to some notable people on this trip: Jason Davis in the red paddle raft (camera 2), David Pauli in the brown Maravia with flames, and Val Shaull in the red cataraft. Good people make good river days.
The Upper Clackamas runs from around Three Lynx down through rapids like Hole in the Wall, Carter's Bridge and Toilet Bowl (Oregon Kayaking). For more, watch Cloudy day on the Upper Clackamas, and if you want to run it with a community group, check out River Rat Sunday.
The Upper Clackamas in Snow and Ice: Paddle Raft and Rowing
A cold winter day on the Upper Clackamas with snow and ice on the banks, paddle rafting and rowing the Super Puma.
Video: The Upper Clackamas on the SOLWYRX Paddlesports YouTube channel.
The Super Puma works both ways: as a paddle raft with a crew, or rigged with a frame and oars. This video shows both, which makes it a good look at how the same boat handles differently depending on who's driving and how. For frames, I like DRL River Gypsies.
Paddle raft vs. oar rig
In a paddle raft, everybody's strokes matter and the guide steers. On oars, one person does all the work and has a lot more power and precision. For paddles, I like the Sawyer Guide Styk; my Guide Styk vs. Guide Styk PRO article compares the two. For oars, I run Sawyer DyneLite XD MXS.
Snow on the banks means extra care
When there's ice on the rocks, scouting and portaging get slippery, and a swim gets serious fast. Dry suits, warm layers, and a group that keeps an eye on each other matter more than ever. For a community winter trip on this river, check out River Rat Sunday.
The Upper Clackamas: The Narrows 2024
The Narrows on the Upper Clackamas in my AIRE Lynx in 2024, and my dad flips his kayak right at the end.
Video: The Upper Clackamas, The narrows 2024 on the SOLWYRX Paddlesports YouTube channel.
Filmed: 2024
Boating with my dad is one of the best parts of all this. He's a lifelong whitewater boater and the reason I'm a third-generation paddler. He's also not immune to the river, as this one shows. Everyone swims eventually.
Short videos like this are good reminders that flips happen at the end of rapids just as often as in the middle. You relax, the boat catches a seam or a little wave, and over you go. I try to stay focused until I'm actually in the eddy. More on why IKs flip in My Flips on the Upper Clackamas.
My dad also runs River Rat Sunday on the Upper Clackamas, an open community trip for all craft types. Next up from the same season: carnage on the upper Clackamas.
Clackamas Kayaking Clips
A collection of early inflatable kayaking clips on the Clackamas River in my AIRE Lynx.
Video: Clackamas kayaking clips on the SOLWYRX Paddlesports YouTube channel.
This was the season right after my Sandy River turning point, when I was spending every day I could in the Lynx. You can see the skills coming together: boofing small ledges, catching eddies, and reading the Clack's rapids from water level.
The Clackamas is a great river to grow on because it has a bit of everything. The upper run has Class III–IV rapids like Hole in the Wall, Carter's Bridge and Toilet Bowl (Oregon Kayaking), and you can step down to easier water when you need to.
If you're shopping for your own IK, start with What to Look For in a Whitewater Inflatable Kayak. More from the same stretch: Upper Clackamas kayaking clips 2.
Upper Clackamas Kayaking Clips 2
Part two of my early inflatable kayaking clips on the Upper Clackamas in the AIRE Lynx.
Video: Upper Clackamas kayaking clips 2 on the SOLWYRX Paddlesports YouTube channel.
Short clips are one of the best ways to study your own paddling, and looking back at these, I can see how much I was reacting instead of driving the boat.
Compare these with my later kayaking on the same river, like the upper Clackamas kayaking in Slo-mo in a SOTAR SL, and you can see the progression.
Keep your boat in good shape between days like these, too. My Sawyer DIY Repair Kits and Gear Care covers cleaning and storing inflatables so they last.
Upper Clackamas Kayaking in Slow Motion: SOTAR SL at Rock and Roll
Slow-motion footage of my tan SOTAR SL inflatable kayak in huge water at Rock and Roll Rapid on the Upper Clackamas.
Video: the upper Clackamas kayaking in Slo-mo. by Jacob Linkhart on the SOLWYRX Paddlesports YouTube channel.
Rock and Roll sits below Carter's Bridge on the Upper Clackamas, and it's a spot where boats often spin and get ends (Oregon Kayaking). At high water it's big, and slow motion shows exactly how the SL handles it: how it rides up the face of a wave, how it sheds water, and how much control you keep through the hits.
Why I love the SL
The SL was my mom's tan SOTAR 11' SL, handed down as my main kayak. It's stable without feeling dead, it tracks, and it's tough enough to take the abuse. If you want one, check out the SOTAR SL kayaks in the shop, and read What to Look For in a Whitewater Inflatable Kayak to see why the details matter.
For more SL action, watch Project AIRBORNE and The OLDGROWTH project.
Personal trip report: flows, wood and hazards change, and what worked for me that day isn't a rule for your boat or group. Check current conditions, scout, and boat within your training.
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Updated October 31, 2026 · By Jacob Linkhart, owner of SOLWYRX Paddle Gear · Spot a mistake? Email me and I'll fix it.
