We all knew it was just a matter of time . . .

The combination of massive amounts of snow, warm temps and consecutive days of rain ignited the idea of Outlet Falls, a 70 foot waterfall, for a First Descent. Eric Boomer has been looking at this waterfall for over three years. On each of his prior visits to the falls, the drop has either been too low or too high. On this particular day, Friday, January 9th, the level . . . the drop . . . the weather . . . the crew . . . everything . . . was perfect!

The day prior, due to feeling completely exhausted and unmotivated to paddle, I drove up to Glenwood and hiked into the Falls. After scouting for a while and snapping a few photos, I headed back to give a full report of my findings.

Eric Boomer stopped over to check out the photos, as he was the one to drop this falls for the first time. “Man, that’s perfect” he said as he looked at the photos. “I felt it, sitting in class today, I think today was the day!” We continued to watch levels throughout the night, feeling very optimistic that Friday was it!

Nate and I got up at the crack of dawn and headed over to Glenwood around 7:00 a.m. to get a quick level check . . . “I think it’s good”, Nate said. “Let’s give Boomer a call.” Once this call was made, the crew was informed and everyone headed towards the falls. The crew consisted of – Sheer Madness Productions (Nate and Heather Herbeck), Barney Bonito, Sam Drevo, Jed Weingarten, Ryan Scott, Richard Hallman, Keel Brightman, Christie Glissmeyer, Ben Stookesberry, Devin Knight, LJ Groth and of course, Eric Boomer!

Upon arrival, the camera men positioned themselves, safety positioned themselves and the paddlers prepared themselves. First to go was Eric Boomer . . .

Due to the amount of water in the creek that day, it was decided to seal launch in above the class II/III rapid above Outlet Falls, instead of running the Class V. With walkie talkies in hand at the entrance, at the bottom of the drop, and at the overlook . . .we all felt confident that our communication would allow us to get the shots we wanted. “5 minutes” sounded over the walkie talkies . . . after 5 minutes passed, “5 more minutes” . . . “He’s in” . . . Within a matter of seconds, for the first time EVER, an orange boat was pointed downstream, paddler leaning forward and plunged over the falls! After what seemed like an eternity, Boomer surfaced downstream from the 6 foot high boils below the falls . . . without his paddle. He attempted multiple hands rolls, but bailed close to shore. Wow, amazing!!!

Next to go was Ben Stookesberry . . . he travels the world, hucking everywhere he goes. To him, this was nothing! After seeing his boat soar off of the 70 foot drop and landing more at a 45 degree angle, we awaited his return to the surface to make sure he was alright. Another successful descent.

Lastly, was LJ Groth . . . another hucker and another great line. Making his way over the lip, tucking forward and resurfacing downstream of the boil. The landing was pretty violent, as LJ’s paddle got ripped out of his hands, too! He managed to hand roll up after a few attempts and paddle to shore.

What a spectacular day! First Descent, friends, great weather, and memories! Nate and I had a hard time walking away from this drop, but that particular day, Outlet Falls did not have our name on it . . . we look forward to the day we can enjoy that beautiful waterfall!

Word has it that Luke Spencer and Cody (from Seattle) ran Outlet Falls the next day. After hearing about there lines, my guess was the level was a bit lower. It sounded like the landing got a lot more violent at a little lower flow. Sprayskirts imploded and paddles ripped out of their hands. I believe both ended up swimming and Luke injured his ribs.

Nice work everyone for making this happen . . . .

~Heather~