Honolulu Creek (Packraft)

Pat Gault at California Ledge

Clear blue water, under clear blue skies, interrupt whitewater from crashing waves. Mountain colors drench the landscape with obsidian and ochre, like the earth’s palette has erupted and drenched the landscape as it cooled. Honolulu Creek, which flows from deep within the Talkeetna Mountains, is such a pleasant trip that it seems almost foreign to Alaska, as remote and idyllic as its name implies. There is almost no brush on the ten mile stroll to the put in, which follows an extensive tundra lawn past tarns that reflect the Alaska Range. The whitewater is thrilling and constant, an improbably continuous series of joyous rapids descending through mini gorges that become too numerous to count. It may be the best packraft day trip in Alaska.

Honolulu is the kind of backcountry adventure that was barely possible more than a decade ago, before the advent of advanced packrafts. The first Honolulu paddlers had to fly into Goat Lake, drag their plastic kayaks miles to the river, then descend a dark and steep upper gorge on Honolulu. Without a river gauge indicating water level, nailing the right amount of volume for a plastic boat was and is quite difficult when planning from Anchorage. In the more recent past, a few highly skilled paddlers descended the creek in early-generation packrafts, which lacked the whitewater spray decks and extended stern of more recent inflatable crafts. Now, with modern boats, Honolulu is open to just about Class III+/IV paddlers who don’t mind traipsing through alpine meadows on their way to whitewater.

The walk into Honolulu begins on the north side of Hurricane Gulch, nearly four hours north of Anchorage. After parking in the large lot by the chasm, follow an obvious ATV trail nearly due east up a gentle ridgeline. The double track climbs gradually to above brushline, and becomes indistinct where tundra gives way to shale. From here, on a clear day a mellow pass should be visible to the east. Sidehill briefly on the north side of the ridge toward a prominent alpine lake. From the lake, continue climbing gradually to the pass. The whole climb from parking lot to pass is a leisurely four miles, with panoramic views of the Alaska Range across the Chulitna valley.

From the pass, it is another five to six miles of easy walking to the river. First, follow a broad, nearly flat tundra bench eastward until you’re overlooking Honolulu Creek. Most likely, this overlook is above a short gorge that contains Cave Rapids, which is marked on a useful map of the “Waikiki” route Roman Dial has on his website (packrafting.blogspot.com). Link meadows and scree fields on your descent to the river. It is possible to put in above the gorge, below it, or right below Cave Rapid, which is marked by a cave-like formation and a huge boulder obstructing the creek. I suggest putting in either at Cave Rapid or higher to enjoy paddling the steep-walled but not particularly difficult gorge.

Following the gorge, Honolulu spreads out and flows through a mile or so of gravel bars before entering another small gorge. At the first obvious horizon line, take out and scout California Ledge, which is the largest single drop on Honolulu Creek. At lower water, boof (launch out with a strong paddle stroke from the lip of the pourover) to the left of the rock in the center of the rapid to avoid the nasty piton rock in the right channel. At higher water, the right side opens up. Either way, set safety on the beach below the rapid on river right if group members are concerned about flipping. It would be an unfortunate place to lose a boat and have to hike all the way back out.

Miles of boulder gardens follow, generally interspersed with pools. Most rapids are innocuous, but a couple are notable. At certain flows, “Slideways” could be quite retentive where it forms a steep pourover, so scout if possible and if not be particularly suspicious of the center, steeper dropoff. Farther down, “Monkey’s Garden” has much sharper and more undercut rocks compared to Honolulu’s other Class III boulder gardens. At lower volume flows, Honolulu is Class III+, with ample opportunities to recover boats. At higher water, it would take on more of a Class IV character as pools disappear, and a swim would be much more likely to result in lost gear and a tedious walk out. Note that this description does not contain details on the significantly more difficult upper gorge between Goat Lake and Cave Rapids.

Over the course of miles, Honolulu slowly makes its way out of the Talkeetnas into the Chulitna valley. As it leaves the mountains, it passes through more canyons before diminishing in intensity in the broader valley. The last few gravelly miles of river don’t seem to take very long before the creek runs under the Parks Highway bridge. From this bridge, it is about five miles uphill to the putin, short enough for a bike shuttle. There is also decent car camping at the bridge.

Viewing the creek from that bridge is the only way to gauge the water level in Honolulu. If there is enough water to float the stream immediately above and below the bridge, the rest of Honolulu has enough to float. If there is more than enough water flowing through the shoals above the bridge, be prepared for intense high water in the canyons. Generally, Honolulu is high during early summer runoff, runnable into midsummer, and runnable after rainy periods in late summer. Call Alaska Mountaineering School in Talkeetna or the Denali ranger station for intel on water levels.

Rather than drive up from Anchorage and float the same day, it is preferable to camp at the takeout bridge and get an early start the next morning. Honolulu is remote, so bring a robust patch kit, extra paddle, safety basics like throw bags for each paddler, and some extra food. Low visibility could significantly slow down the approach hike, and paddlers should be prepared to rescue each other and gear to avoid a brushy walk out.

There is enough packrafting in Southcentral to challenge paddlers for a lifetime. Much of it is only accessible with after stout bushwhacks, or in very challenging rapids, or in creeks that typically are choked with strainers. Honolulu is the rare trip that combines challenging but light hearted whitewater with a delightful walk in. It should be at the top of every experienced paddler’s list of desired rivers.