Boat Landing · McKenzie River · At EWEB’s Leaburg Dam, near Leaburg
Leaburg Dam Pole Slide
Not a boat ramp so much as its rustic cousin — a hand-launch slide on the bank below a working hydroelectric dam.
On the water here
confirm ratings locally
Kayakdocumented put-in for the gentle run below the dam verify
Whitewater raftClass I-II
Drift boatnot built for trailered boats
Fishingnear hatchery water and the dam tailrace
Canoehand-carry only
Paddleboarddam structures and very cold water nearby verifyThis one needs an asterisk. The ‘Pole Slide’ isn’t a boat ramp in the usual McKenzie sense — it’s an access point on the downstream, river-left side of Leaburg Dam, EWEB’s 1928 hydroelectric structure verify, where a slide (rather than a poured ramp) lets small craft down the bank to the water. American Whitewater lists it as the put-in for the gentle, roughly 24-mile Leaburg Dam-to-Hayden Bridge run, so it is genuinely used by kayakers and small rafts — but it isn’t built for a trailer, and it isn’t the place to back a drift boat down. Best treated as a hand-launch and a point of local interest at a working dam, not a full-service landing.
The dam itself is worth a look regardless — 1920s power-plant architecture, a fish ladder, and the head of the Leaburg Canal all in one spot — even if you’re not putting a boat in the water.
More detail
Getting there & parking +
From Highway 126 near milepost 23.8, watch for the Leaburg Dam facility on the river side of the highway; the access is on the downstream, river-left side of the dam structure, reached from a small pullout area verify.
Facilities & accessibility +
- Hand-launch slide
- Roadside pullout parking verify
Don’t expect restrooms or a maintained ramp here — this is a bare-bones access point beside industrial dam infrastructure.
River conditions & hazards +
This is a working hydroelectric facility, and the usual dam cautions apply: stay well clear of intake structures, spillways, and any posted safety zones, and never launch or linger immediately upstream of the dam face. The water here runs exceptionally cold year-round verify, even by McKenzie standards, and flows can change quickly when EWEB adjusts dam operations. This is not the spot for a first-timer, or for anyone still finding their balance on the water.
Nearby landings & float planner +
Most boaters treat this as a place to start or end a trip on the calmer water below the dam, not as a destination of its own.
Fishing at this landing +
The dam’s tailrace and nearby hatchery water draw anglers after salmon and steelhead, and ODFW tracks fish counts at Leaburg Dam as part of its run monitoring.
