Voila! This short but exciting trip through Thoroughfare Gap (between the Bull Run and Pond Mountains) has become a 'must' for advanced boaters in the Washington area. It starts off mildly, but quickly steepens, right after Trapp Branch enters from the right, in a narrow class II+ rock garden where big boulders and mid-stream trees block the view, and most of the eddies are either behind the boulders or in the woods. You can glimpse this section from I-66 west, and you can hear the traffic even over the sound of the rushing water. The rapid continues for almost a half-mile, and reaches class III at the end, where most of the water heads left under a sometimes-overhanging thorn bush (where Eric Gervais chose to flip and roll rather than scarify his face). Watch out for strainers throughout, but especially here and in the final class III rapid below the ledges.
Catch the eddy on the left just before the class III- first ledge, and climb up to the railroad tracks for a good view of the second ledge as well. The first ledge is normally run straight down the middle of the left chute. Eddy out quickly after running this drop, to bail any water and set up for the second ledge. This one is class III+, with a hydraulic on the left side, but it is not really as hard as it looks. Enter the drop on the right edge of the main channel, angling left. Open boats sometimes take on a lot of water here, and then have to try to stay upright in the steep run-out and avoid the midstream boulder just below and the rock wall further ahead on the left. Above about 1 foot, a sneak route opens up to the right of the island. There is calmer water below, where you can bail and recover, before a class II- rapid and then a bouncy class III boulder garden, which is a pretty straight shot after a twisty entrance -- a fine finale to the trip.
You can park along the road on the downstream side at the put in. At the take out, park on the field at downstream river right - the owners of the property are very friendly to paddlers, whereas the road shoulder is posted against parking.
This is a popular run, often done in conjunction with nearby Cub Run, which is somewhat easier to catch.
Ed Evangelidi testifies:
There is a gauge at the put-in. There is a long stretch of fast water with narrow channels through small woody trees growing in the middle of the stream before you get to the good whitewater. This section is potentially dangerous because there are few eddies if you encounter any kind of blockage.
See Also:
_Classic Virginia Rivers,_ Ed Grove (1992 ed), p. 93.
_Virginia Whitewater_, Roger Corbett (2000 ed.), p. 27.
_Exploring Virginia's Waterways_, Ed Gertler (2022 ed.), p. 19.