Since 1977 about 3,000,000 people have run the Lower Yough. Which is a class 3 section of whitewater located in the Laurel Highlands of Southwestern Pennsylvania. And most of those adventurous folks took on the infamous Dimple Rapid! So what is the big deal about Dimple Rapid? And is it REALLY that hard to run?




Simply put: NO! Dimple Rock is actually one of the easier rapids on the Lower Yough to run as long as you can follow a few simple tips here. First off - if this is your first time rafting you may want to have a guide in your raft to help navigate you through the rapids, teach you about white water and hopefully keep most of you in the raft!! However, if you are up for the high adventure trips and want to take on the rapids yourselves - try these tips to make it through this rapid upright!

1.)  PATIENCE! This rapid is not about having the strongest people paddling full force and punching through a hole - it is about finesse. Start by lining up your raft about 10 feet off the left hand shore line. (note: the lower the water - the farther left you need to be.

2.) ITS ALL ABOUT THE ANGLE. Having the right angle on this rapid is a must! Have your raft pointed to the right at about a 2 o'clock angle (thinking of Dimple Rock at 12 o'clock)

3.) PATEINCE!! Once you a lined up correctly - just relax

4.) MISS PINBALL! The nature of the rapid is for all the water to run right into dimple rock - your job is to split the gap between dimple and pinball rock. However, Pinball Rock gets its name for a reason: Hit Pinball - Bounce off - Hit Dimple - and BAM your in the drink!!

5.) ok now... PADDLE!! Once you are almost lined up with pinball start paddling! and Paddle Hard!!

6.) Celebrate! You have made it through Dimple Rapid!! (note: stop celebrating before you hit "wash over rock".

The Lower Yough is a great river - and Dimple Rock is probably one of the best rapids on the East Coast. Although it is notorious for flipping rafts completely over - you can make it through upright pretty easily too!