Wildcat Rapid on the Rogue

Private Boaters
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On August 4th, there was an incident on the Rogue involving a group of private boaters. The group had four boats, two rafts and two duckies. The Rogue was flowing at ~1200 CFS at the Grants Pass gauge. These are the facts we know as reported by a team of guides who interacted with the private group after the incident.

One ducky got pinned on the hazardous center rock island at Wildcat Rapid(referred to as the Bedrock Boulder in the Rogue River guidebook). The boater was pinned on a log which is lodged in the rocks of that island. Rescue attempts were made, but were unfortunately unsuccessful. His body ended up flushing downriver. Afterward, his PFD floated to the surface but his body was not found that night or the next morning.

On August 7th, a body was found downstream above Slim Pickin’s rapid, and on August 8th, the reported body was successfully retrieved by deputies and transported out of the river corridor.

The center rock island at Wildcat is extremely hazardous; people have died here before this incident. Staying right throughout the rapid avoids this hazard.

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There is also a run left of the main island in Wildcat that is good to go at most water levels. I used it every time with my beginning rowing school students. It takes the “Bedrock Boulder” out of the equation. Stay left of the big island at the top of the rapid and hug the right hand shore. This line spits you out into the channnel that runs left of the Boulder.

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Here is more information on the American Whitewater Database with some great information about factors leading to the incident:

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The left channel at Wildcat is a really cool 2nd day test for our rowing school students. It requires several quick pivots initially, patience, down stream oar management and spacing.

I did have one student this year decide to ferry from the left channel to the right, right absolve the undercut rock. A bit scary but the student made it well.

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