Guest akaspecials Report post Posted September 6, 2016 Gotta paddle or hike here, but the bass bite makes it worth the hall. Lots of bighorn too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Allforelk Report post Posted September 7, 2016 Black? Is that rock in the middle of the stream a big mushroom top? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Edge Report post Posted September 7, 2016 Looks like an awesome spot! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Eagle mountain ranch Report post Posted September 7, 2016 Whatha fishing for ? Looks good too me so far .... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest akaspecials Report post Posted September 7, 2016 Not the black. First hint: it's "wild and scenic". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oz31p Report post Posted September 7, 2016 The verde near fossil creek 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest akaspecials Report post Posted September 9, 2016 Oz31p was closest. This is Dry Run Rapid on the Verde. It is approximatly 20 miles south of the confluence of the Verde River and Fossil Creek. The section of the river that runs through the Matazal Wilderness is designated as Wild Scenic. This is a level of federal protection to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values. Basically, it prevents building dams that effect the free flowing nature of the water. Less than 1/4 of 1% of our nations waters are protected by this act. By comparison, more than 75,000 large dams across the country have modified at least 600,000 miles, or about 17%, of American rivers. (See Glen Canyon for an example of dams ruining a pristine environment...) The Wild and Scenic River Act allows access for hunting and fishing. If you have the balls, a float trip down the river allows access to untouched pools full of bass and catfish. It also offers access to great deer, lion, and bighorn country in the Matazals. If you put in on this section of river, don't expect to see a soul between Beasly and Sheeps Bridge except at the Child's Area/ Hot Springs, which are pictured below. The Verde River is a very unique river. When water is flowing fast you can drop from Camp Verde to Phoenix in less than a day. At low water the journey can easily take 5 days and involve lots of portage and dragging boats. You will likely see wrecked canoes from previous visits of unprepared boaters. Although the river is class III with a single class IV (Verde Falls) that can easily be portaged, the scary part of the river is not the rapids. It's the pleateus along the rivier where the water gets shallow and runs through low hanging trees that create wicked strainers. A few years ago some folks went through and cut channels through some of these areas for easier passage. However, these channels are not marked and you often have the choice of 3 or 4 channels and you have no clue whether it is cleared or not until you have the full force of the Verde pushing you downstream. For this reason, I don't recommend the river unless you have some experience and are comfortable with river hazards. I will only run the verde in the inflatable kayaks pictures above because they are malleable and don't get pinned upside down as easily as hard kayaks. The river is often run by canoeist, but they are not the ideal craft and you better be ready to walk 20 miles out the wilderness area of you wrap your canoe around one of the many river hazards. I'd be very interested to hear if any of you have run this section of river and your thoughts on this gorgeous piece of water. I hope you enjoyed the write up and get a chance to float through this amazing area! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Allforelk Report post Posted September 9, 2016 Very, very cool man. Thank you for posting. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
