4) Bear Swamp to Zoar Gap

The Fife Brook section of the Deerfield River is a popular Class II run in Northwestern Massachusetts. The Fife Brook section ends with the Class III Zoar Gap Rapid, that can be easily portaged along the road on river right. Fife Brook is one of the best sections for instruction in the Northeast drawing those interested in learning to paddle whitewater from a wide geographic area. It's generally shallow, with a consistent class II rapids, good recovery pools or stretches, and the bigger challenge of Zoar Gap at the end which can be easily scouted or portaged. Notes on Flow: The USGS gage is several miles downstream from this section and two major tributaries, the Chickley and the Cold, flow in between this run and the gage. Therefore the downstream USGS gage offers only limited insight on whether the river is flowing. The important information to know is whether the dam is releasing and Waterline offers this release schedule and an estimated flow. This is especially helpful during spring runoff when water is flowing over the dam or they are releasing when it is too high. Look here for data: Deerfield Riv at Fife Brook Dam Florida MA. The following ranges are from Waterline and not from the USGS gage at Charlemont: 700-1000 cfs: a standard release level. 1000-1500: the river gets a bit bigger, but not much harder. >2000 cfs: significant sections of rapids wash out, and new holes develop. Rapids are not significantly more challenging (i.e. still class II) until Zoar Gap. Zoar Gap becomes a whole different beast and above 2500 cfs, Zoar Gap is very solid class IV big water; watch out for some nasty holes in Baby Gap that are backed up by huge eddies.