About Soap Creek Rapid
Named after Soap Creek which enters the Grand Canyon here on river right. As mentioned in the Soap Creek Camp page, the name comes from Jacob Hamblin accidentally creating soap when he boiled a Badger he had killed in the alkaline waters of the creek located here.
Historically, this rapid was considered to be very challenging and was typically always lined. The first time it was ran was by mistake, by the Clyde Eddy Expedition of 1927. They had mistaken Badger Creek Rapid for Soap Creek, had lined that, and then ran Soap Creek Rapid thinking it was something else entirely.
On August 9, 2015, Soap Creek flooded, changing the rapid and making it more challenging, especially at low flows. This rapid can be scouted easily on the right bank, but scouting typically isn’t necessary.
How to run Soap Creek Rapid
Due to the rapid change in 2015, the standard line of down the middle is no longer preferred. The typical line is now to enter right of center and pick your way carefully through the waves and holes towards the middle and bottom. The rapid has large features in the center and left. At low water, avoid this, but at medium and higher flows these waves over on the left are fun and good to go.
Further Reading: “A Mad, Crazy River: Running the Grand Canyon in 1927” by Clyde Eddy. Link.
