PLANTER CREEK (Gogebic Co., MI, 1 mi. east of Wakefield)

LENGTH: 1.8 mi, CLASS III-IV, GRADIENT: 300' per mile for first 0.3 miles, then 40' per mile

SEASON: Starts running in early spring and stays up as water drains from the lake that fuels this creek. Can last as long as a month.

PUT-IN: Hwy. 28 bridge across Planter Creek, 1 mile northeast of Wakefield, MI

TAKEOUT: Hwy. 519 bridge across Planter Creek

GAGE: visual, check the water level under the Hwy. 28 bridge

FUN FACT: classic creek boating with lots of logs

FIRST DESCENT: 1997 by Steve Corsi, Harry House, Bill Obrien, Tom O'Keefe

This creek flows out of Sunday Lake in Wakefield, but runs underground for half a mile before emerging out of a tunnel just south of Hwy. 2. It's quite a site to see the water exploding forth straight out from the side of a hill. Be prepared for some portages on this run. Logs choke the channel in several places. The portages themselves can be rather dangerous as broken glass and other debris litters the banks.

The steep gradient ends about 0.3 miles into the run with a 9' drop over Cashew Falls, a nice little drop with a big rock right in the center. Scout it carefully. This drop can snout your boat. You can see the drop from Wertenen Rd., a dirt road that turns off of Hwy. 28 Approximately 100 yds. east of the put-in. This road parallels most of the run and comes to a dead end at the creek at a spot that could serve as an alternative takeout.

After the initial steep section of Planter Creek, the gradient mellows out a bit and there are not quite as many logs. At one point the channel splits up and passes through some swampy areas. Make sure you stick together as unlike most creeks the channels don't come back together for a long time. Once you reach the confluence though you only have a couple hundred yards to the takeout, but with logs so thick you can portage just about as fast as you boat your way through the maze.

We didn't boat the section downstream of the Hwy. 519 bridge, but it looks like the gradient picks up again (60' per mile) until Planter Creek flows into Jackson Creek.