Blue River is more like a creek than a river, with many fun, technical rapids that drop through a series of small, tight gorges. The upper mile (from Quentin Creek to Cook Creek bridge) is usually very woody- the last time we ran it (June of 1999) we had to portage a logjam and dodge many other logs. The four mile section from Cook Creek bridge to the reservoir is much cleaner, with many fun drops and very little wood.
Most of the photos in this guide were taken at a relatively low flow of ~200 cfs, mainly because that was the only time I ever took my camera on this run. I have never again run this section this low as it is much more enjoyable at four to five times the flows shown here.
If you choose to put in at Quentin Creek, you will encounter the class V rapid known as Food for Thought. This double ledge drop isn't really worth all the wood you have to deal with to get to it, but if you insist on paddling this section, here's why this one is class V. A local expert nearly lost his life running this drop a few years back. He pitoned into the rock, got worked, swam, and got trapped in the hydraulic for a long time. This hole is really sticky as it is strongly backed up by the boulder, so be sure to set up a rope!
Griff runs the middle drop on Food for Thought. The large boulder backing
up the hole is barely visible in the middle of the river. (flow: 500 cfs)
Below FFT, get ready to deal with some wood... Mike is in here somewhere...