The Vermont Paddlers Club

Stoney Brook is a roadside, but somewhat secluded, stream that flows out of the Northfield Mountains south of town into the Dog. The wife dropped me off below the last Ice bridge that cut off about a half mile of the run that contains at least 1 good drop, and what I thought was prolly the biggest drop of the run. The other drops of note that I could see from the road were class III ledges and one dam that is very runnable and a great, but not easy to get, clean boof off a really nice green tongue, into a deep pool. ( this would make great boof practice). So I slide in off the snowy bank and am enjoying a truly beautiful stream that is a mix of small ledges and boulders, hidden down in a shallow wooded gorge with the occasional slate wall marking a bend here and there. Gradient wasn't steep, but the rapids were continuous and fluid, class II creeky boogie with a III here and there. Fun for a solo run. Then the run crosses under the road and the character changed to some very interesting ledge drops that were III- at a low boatable level, but could be nice class III hole punching with more flow...then the dam rapid, a nice ledge boof, vertical 3-4 feet into a small backwater, then a nice 5 foot vertical boof off the old dam. Then run crosses under a covered bridge and calmed a bit. A few class II ledges and some very scenic quick water and around a bend a horizon line.

''Bonus!'', I thought. A great drop that is about 6 feet high, boof onto a pillow, melt down into deep pool, similar to horseshoe in size, I would call it a 3+ as the right side looked like it had some piton/pin potential, left side went very cleanly. "Sweet", I thought. By this point I was pretty stoked on my little home town micro. So the run out to the dog was just around the corner and then the takeout at Norwich and a quick hike accross the street to the house..."Whoa....eddy." A big horizon line confronted me where the old granite block abutments from a bridge-long-gone behind a house on river left. The last rapid ended up being a 20+ foot multi tiered drop with a few lines, the easiest being down the left the whole way, with a 5 foot boof, followed by a super fun slide with a perfect lip that sends you over the last hole, Which was sizable for a run of this volume. It wen super clean, even though I missed the boof and plugged a bit. Very stoked. Laughed out loud. This last drop puts this run into the "quality" cataogory and i would encourage anyone looking for a creeky class 2-4 experience on the next high water day. NO WOOD, and the ussual put in would be at the end of chamberlain rd, off of stoney brook road, off of 12A south of Northfield. I haven't run the very top yet, and put in at the bridge below chamberlain, but there is at least one more nice drop visable from the road on the upper section. Put in n your list, and call me when you're headed that way.

Bueatiful day with light snow falling on a new creek. Nothing better the exploring a run for the first time, unbelievably no portages and some nice sizable drops. Ryan, you are gonna LOVE this run.