How To Ford a River
SAFETY TIPS FOR RIVER CROSSINGS WHILE HIKING AND BACKPACKING
July 28th, 2023
A PCT thru-hiker on a minor creek crossing in the Sierra. When snowmelt is really going, even smaller creeks can pose challenges. Photo courtesy Mike Unger.
River fords and stream crossings are potentially the biggest danger for hikers, backpackers, and thru-hikers. Some hiking trails like the John Muir Trail are designed so each season, hikers will have to attempt stream crossing. Sometimes, you may find that a bridge has been washed away due to high snowmelt and the only way across is by doing a river ford. In this guide, we will walk you through steps that work well for us during river crossings. These tips are based on our experiences on over 30,000 miles of backpacking trips and thru-hikes.
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Crossing an easier creek on the Chinook Trail in the Columbia River Gorge. Practicing on smaller creeks is a good way to gain more confidence and practice techniques. Photo courtesy Whitney LaRuffa.
Before your trip
Take a Course
We strongly recommend you take a river crossing course or a Swift Water Rescue class.
Learn about backcountry risk assessment
Read our article about risk assessment in the backcountry, and consider taking a course on how to make safe decisions, especially while in a group.
Consider not hiking in areas with known high snowmelt
If you know it's a high snowmelt year, plan your route around avoiding areas where you may be forced into a dangerous water crossing. Postpone your hike, change your itinerary (e.g., a flip-flop on a thru hike), plan on a different route entirely, or hike in a different destination. See our guide on How to Prepare for Hiking in a Big Snow Year and our video on Thru-hiking in a Big Snow Year for more tips on backpacking in these unique conditions.
Bring the right gear for your route
If you know that high water crossings will be part of your route, carry extra gear. For example, thru-hikers on the Hayduke Trail and Northern New Mexico bring a lightweight packraft and plan to use it for areas where water is high. While carrying a packraft and a life jacket or PFD is not a guarantee that you can safely navigate high water, it can help. If you do packraft, learn how to use a packraft safely and consider taking a packrafting course before you go.
Avoid rivers or creeks in a flood stage
Floods are extremely dangerous. Wait for the floodwaters to recede before attempting any river crossings. It's much easier to attempt a river crossing when the water level is lower.
Silver Creek Falls crosses the PCT/JMT and can be a challenge during high snow melt. Photo courtesy Kate Hoch.
Before you enter the water
Don’t Ford Alone
Never attempt a river ford on dangerous water alone. If you are hiking solo, wait for another hiker (don’t worry--you shouldn’t have to wait too long during prime PCT hiking season).
Cross in the Morning
Rivers and creeks are most swollen towards the end of the day after the snow has a day’s worth of sun-brought melt. There’s no shame in deciding to end a hiking day early (camp on the safe bank). Wait to attempt the river crossing in the morning when the water level will be lower. Although it can be disappointing to not make as many miles as you expected, having shorter days is very normal on trips where you are fording rivers. This is a normal part of a backpacking experience. All the thru-hikers on our staff have done it multiple times.
Bypass the Ford
Is there a way to reconnect to the PCT that doesn’t require doing this river ford? A classic example of using the map to bypass a ford is in the Sierra. The infamous ford of the South Fork of the Kings River claimed the life of a thru-hiker in 2016. See this ford bypass map for how it works.
Find a Different Place to Cross
You don’t have to cross where the trail crosses. Don’t worry. Your hike won’t be invalid. Look upstream and downstream for stream crossings with shallow water. Avoid fording where there is fast moving water.
Treeline Review writer Mike Unger and has trail family (tramily) crossing a log high above a ford in the Sierra on the PCT. Photo courtesy Mike Unger.
Look for Logs and Rocks
We advise scooting across (no shame in that) and keeping your center of balance low, maintaining 3 points of contact at all times. As with any river ford, check downstream beforehand to ensure there aren’t eminent waterfalls or debris (called strainers) where a body could become trapped if you were to fall off the log. Look downstream for dangerous rapids. Remember rocks, boulders, and logs can be slippery. Logs may not be stable or secure, so make sure they can hold your weight and not too high above the water in case it breaks or you slip.
Crossing glacier rivers, like this one on the Great Divide Trail in Canada, can be especially tricky because the water is opaque and it is more difficult to judge the depth. Photo courtesy Naomi Hudetz.
GET YOUR GEAR READY FOR A FORD
Secure your shoes
Make sure your hiking shoes or hiking boots are tied securely for the river/stream crossing.
One of our writers has come dangerously close to losing their trail runners during a crossing. We strongly recommend crossing with your everyday hiking shoes or boots to protect your feet and for additional traction. For easier fords, many people prefer to cross in their camp shoes, water shoes, or hiking sandals. However, keep in mind that fast-moving water can easily pull off lightweight camp shoes (such as Crocs) that can't be secured to your feet.
Remove baggy clothing
A friend of ours has nearly been trapped in a stream ford by his “MC Hammer” pants. Some friends prefer stripping down to their undies before entering a ford (bonus with that system: your hiking clothes stay dry).
Double bag and secure electronics
A wet phone is a bummer. It's a good idea to secure all of your electronics (such as phone, camera, headphones, and headlamp) as well as their charging cables and power bank batteries in a zippered compartment. Don't leave them in an unzippered pants pocket or shoulder pouch.
While most electronics will need to be protected from water, there are a few exceptions. Most hiking watches can stay on your wrist during the ford. This is handy considering many watches can activate SOS emergency help in a pinch while working in conjunction with your satellite messenger. In the worst case scenario that you are separated from your backpack, this may be helpful. Additionally, some waterproof cameras can be fully submerged and still work.
Use a dry bag and make sure your pack liner or trash compactor bag is sealed tight
A wet sleeping bag can be deadly come nightfall. Secure your sleeping bag and clothing like your down jacket in a lightweight dry bag. These items need to be dry to insulate and keep you warm. Use a pack liner to keep all the contents of your backpack dry.
A thru-hiker fording Wallace Creek on the PCT/JMT corridor. Wallace Creek is one of the first big fords that northbound thru-hikers encounter. Photo courtesy Mike Unger.
Use Your Trekking Poles
Hiking or trekking poles will help you maintain three points of contact with the river bottom or stream bed at all times. If you aren't carrying poles, look for a good walking stick. As you cross, put one trekking pole in each hand and securely place it so you have three points of contact.
There’s debate on whether strapping or unstrapping your hipbelt is best for balance when crossing river fords or balancing high above rivers on slippery logs. Know your options and the reasons behind the thinking, practice somewhere safe, and choose what is best for you. Photo courtesy Mike Unger.
Strap or Unstrap Your hipbelt
Most experts (including the New Zealand Government) recommend releasing your sternum strap; however, there is disagreement in about whether to release your hip belt before starting a ford. Justin “Trauma” Lichter, one of the pair who thru-hiked the PCT in the winter, suggests otherwise in his book Trail Tested: A Thru-hiker’s Guide to Ultralight Backpacking. Lichter writes you should consider how releasing your hip belt may impact your body’s balance. The Hiking Life (see Additional Resources section) has tried it both ways and writes about his experiences with each crossing technique. In short, he finds just loosening his hip belt to be sufficient.
Prepare for cold water
Often river crossings are filled with glacial water or recent snowmelt. Be aware that you may temporarily become very cold. Mentally prepare for how you will warm yourself up after you've made it across, especially if the worst happens and you fall into the stream. In some cases, Treeline Review writers have had to build campfires on the other side of the shore to dry gear and warm up. This may mean changing from camp shoes, water shoes, or hiking sandals that you used for the river ford to dry footwear and dry hiking socks.
Big Wilson on the Appalachian Trail in Maine is a river crossing that can be difficult for Appalachian Trail thru-hikers. Photo courtesy Mike Unger.
MAKE A PLAN
Look for a Wide Spot in the River or Creek
You can find a good crossing point by knowing a little about how water flows. In general, as a river narrows, the flowing water gets deeper and the current increases. Wide and/or braided areas generally make a better spot for crossing as you can hop from small stream to small stream. Sometimes, slower water--even if it is deep water--can be safer than fast moving water.
Assess Depth and Current
Test the water depth using a trekking pole or throwing a rock into the middle of the creek to determine how it “plops.” Look for a water level that is no deeper than the knees of the smallest in the group.
Identify Your Entry and Exit Points
Avoid steep banks, tree branches, boulders, or debris where it can be tricky to exit from the waterway quickly. Look around not just on the shore you're standing on, but also to the shore on the other side.
Look Upstream and Downstream
If swept downstream, you don’t want to go over a waterfall or get caught in debris or trapped by a downed tree trunk.
Use your satellite messenger
Set your satellite emergency messenger to tracking mode. Consider texting folks back home to let them know where you are, what you are about to do, and when they should expect to hear from you. Make sure your messenger is attached to your pack securely.
Watch for rocks
You do not want to get your foot or shoe trapped under a rock.
Bear Creek is considered one of the riskier fords on the PCT/JMT corridor and is best done with others, not solo. Photo courtesy Mike Unger.
SOLO FORDING STRATEGY
We'd like to reiterate that we don't recommend fording alone. Pause and wait for another group to come along, which likely won't take long on popular trails like the Pacific Crest Trail, Appalachian Trail, or John Muir Trail.
However, in the event you need to ford a river solo, we recommend the following method:
After prepping your gear and choosing the best place to cross. Put one hiking pole (or walking stick) in each hand. Enter the water facing upstream to watch for debris coming your way. Keep your knees slightly bent so that you're closer to the ground.
Start to shuffle across the stream, always maintaining three points of contact with the ground.
As you shuffle, angle slightly downstream to work with the current, rather than against it.
Test each step before placing your full weight. Rocks can shift underfoot or be slick with moss. If a rock is too slick or unstable, find another foothold.
If you find that there is no good way forward, turn around. There's no shame in turning around. I've done it many times before, and have always found a better stream crossing.
Hiking with others around crossings can be a way to gain confidence and have mutual support. Photo courtesy John Carr.
GROUP FORDING STRATEGIES
There are several different techniques for how to ford a river as a group. We'll describe two of them here: the eddy method and the mutual support method.
The Eddy Method
After prepping your gear and choosing the best place for crossing, line up one behind another, with the largest and strongest person in front. This person will take the brunt of the force of the current, but will be reinforced by the people behind them. They will create an eddy behind them, making it easier for the people behind them to cross.
Each person should hold and press down on the hips of the person in front of them.
Enter the water facing upstream.
Sidestep across the river with coordinated steps.
The leader should call for each new step.
The anchor should verify each person has made a step before the leader calls for a new step.
The Mutual Support Method
Line up according to the experience of each person:
A large, strong person on the upstream side;
The strongest, most experienced person should be second;
Inexperienced people in the middle
Another strong person as the anchor
Each person should insert their arms between the pack and back of the people next to them and hold their hip belt or shoulder straps
Enter the stream and stay parallel to the current
Walk with coordination
Each person acts as a backup to their neighbors in case they lose their footing during the river ford
In conclusion, we highly recommend taking a course and practicing before leaving for your trip. Reading about river fording technique is no substitute for real-life experience. By arming yourself with knowledge and practice, you'll strengthen your skills and help those around you at the same time!
