Spring Creek Explore

 I love wandering around in swampy areas in my kayak. A favorite place is the Rabbit Slough/Palmer Slough area. On the map I could see that there is an official creek that runs from close to the Matanuska River, under the Glenn Highway, across Nelson Road and then splits into two forks, both emptying into Palmer Slough. I have tried to paddle up Spring Creek from both junctions but was never able to make it all the way to Nelson Road. The last time I tried, I got lost amid the swamp vegetation. Then I drove up Nelson Road and discovered it was closed where the creek crosses, because the culvert is collapsed. Today I thought I'd give it another try and see if I could actually navigate Spring Creek. The water is much higher now, and fortunately it was very calm. I put my kayak in at the boat ramp and paddled upstream until I reached the first fork of Spring Creek. I found I was easily able to locate the channel until close to Nelson Road, but after a few small detours, I got back in the channel and went right to the crushed culvert. From there I turned around and paddled a very short distance to the fork that branches away from the main one. It was a little more difficult to stay in this channel because the water was so high. At times the channel seemed to disappear and I wondered if the water was so high that I could just go straight back to Palmer Slough. I wandered for a bit trying to do that, but ended up in thick reeds and grasses. I knew I needed to get back to the main channel before I got too stuck to move! I simply backtracked and also used the AllTrails app on my phone to be sure I was still headed towards Spring Creek. Once I reached the actual channel, it widened up and I easily floated back to Palmer Slough. It was very beautiful and quiet out there. I am so happy I finally was able to navigate both forks of Spring Creek. I may try to do it again this winter on my skis. I do appreciate the convenience of a GPS tracking app that helps me know exactly where I am. I think a person could wander out there in the swamp for a long time without that advantage. It's a nice place to lose yourself though.

My Route on AllTrails