So I thought that a trip report was in order. It's been a while since I've written one, but I gave it a shot last night. This is more of an adventure report as there seemed to be more hiking and boat dragging, throwing your boat into the creek and jumping in after it and conversation containing words such as 'log jam,' 'portage,' 'scout,' 'unrunnable,' 'pin,' 'another portage' and 'who forgot to bring a cooler of beer?' than there was boating. That being said, there were a few quality drops that were runnable in kayaks on this trip—a low water trip. With more water, ohhhhh damn. We will be headed back there for sure.

So, check your latest weather forecast (I'll give you a hint, the long range includes at least nine days of rain) and enjoy this trip report.

Early morning wake-up call...

Wake up— you're gonna run out of daylight! It was still dark. I claw my way out of bed— needing a solid Z-Drag to get the pillow separated from my head. A mid-November morning that begins cold and early, thoughts of the unknown clutter my mind. The nervous energy coursing through me inspires a hasty gathering of my gear. Boat strapped to the top of my car, I head over to pick up Luke. As the sun rises over the horizon, we're headed north on I-5, bound for the eastern reaches of the Olympic Peninsula. We meet up with Kris an hour from our destination of a little-known gem, the Upper Hamma Hamma Gorge. Not much is written about this mile-long gorge that we are determined to explore.

Gary Korb's guide book for the Olympic Peninsula has a minimal description of the Upper Hamma Hamma. It tells of a gorge riddled with class V and VI drops, including mandatory portages (hence the class VI), a 30-footer, and the very likely chances of multiple pinnings (inspiring to say the least). The description tells of an extreme Olympic steep creek with an average gradient around 200 feet per mile. It's a description that continues to fuel the nervous energy of the group, but instills a curiosity that motivates us to explore this seldom seen stretch of pristine whitewater, hidden within a deep gorge. Most of the morning I keep to myself, not saying much. I've noticed that this is a trait I display when I'm excessively nervous—great.

Two hours later we pull over to the side of a gravel road, high above the creek. The water level looks questionably low, making us reconsider our decision to enter the gorge. Knowing full well that the low water increases pin potential and the chances of breaking yet more gear, we suit up. The morning is still cold with ice covering the cliffs above the gorge. High up on the mountain sides, huge ice flows lock up the water needed to bring the levels of the Hamma Hamma up. The cash shelled out for a new drysuit is quickly forgotten as the benefit is immediate! As we slowly make our way down to the creek, we take care to not miss a step on the mossy, ice covered boulders that line the banks of the Upper Hamma Hamma. Sliding into our boats, pulling skirts over our cockpits, we make the decision to commit. Pushing off into the current, we begin our descent into the gorge.

"Kris steps up onto a boulder to check Luke's progress. Kris is pinned."

Within 50 feet, we are out of our boats scouting the first horizon line. We aren't in the gorge proper yet, but the horizon lines already eliminate the idea of boat scouting anything. The first drop consists of technical moves through a small, yet increasingly steep boulder garden. Kris and I are in an eddy as Luke probes the first drop. He paddles out of view from my vantage point as Kris steps up onto a boulder to check Luke's progress. Kris begins to nod his head and as he turns to scramble back to his boat— he stops. Still looking intently down stream, he tells me that Luke is pinned. Kris describes the line to me as he hastily gathers his rope and pin kit.

"There's an eddy just above Luke on river left— go hit that and I'll be on the river right side— Luke is in a bad situation here."

I peel out into the current and spot my eddy. A few technical moves later, I'm out of my boat with a good visual of Luke who is horizontally pinned between two boulders, head out of water. He's hanging on and, as I assess my angle of approach, Kris already has his hands on Luke's boat. Pulling on his stern, Luke slides free of his predicament and is once again free in the current and under control.