Gauge: Snowmelt vs. rainfed makes a notable difference on this run. 2,000 cfs is a good medium flow. 1,000 cfs during the winter is not really enough water to justify the trip.
Stream: A remote and pristine canyon with a dozen class V drops packed into a section of less than a mile known as The Gem. The gradient of the first section is 600 fpm.
Read a
description at Oregon Kayaking.
There is a more current write up from a
low water trip at Wheels and Water.
At medium flows around 2,000 cfs, this run fully lives up to the title of 'The Gem.'
Access: The take-out and gauge location are at a bridge 16 miles upstream of Powers (42.719242, -124.036273). Views from this bridge can be seen in the photo gallery.
To get to the put-in from this bridge, drive uphill, then take the first left. In about two miles you will reach the discretely marked trailhead to 85-foot Coquille Falls, 100 yards after crossing a bridge over Sru Creek (where an eye catching, runnable slide is visible upstream from the road). Walk the short distance down the trail to the base of Coquille Falls and put in wherever is clever.