Pouring steps down to the creek/swimming hole...nope, never done it before!

[MAX-24-Dean]

Clear as mud?

Pictures are worth a thousand words. Size of rip rap and lack of significant elevation change, I would probably do it the same way you are.

I installed some stairs on a fast moving creek and had to do it over with a concrete pad attached to bedrock at the bottom of the stairs to secure my steps.

 

[Streetcar]

How big is the drainage area of the creek. Is most of area upstream farm land

 

[2manyrocks]

With that much water this time of July, how would you anchor the stairs to bedrock? That seems like a key to keeping them from getting washed out.

 

[MotorSeven]

Some friends of mine used to ride their dirt bikes through a creek. They used to say snakes would be crawling out from everywhere when they did that.

We used to have a resident Diamodback Water Snake that liked to sun on the logjam, but have not seen him in years. Kids played with a baby one last summer. No Cottonmouths in this part of TN either,

 

[MotorSeven]

That looks like a fun place to go wading to get cooled off. How deep is the "hole" in these pics?

About 6', but we plan on adding to the rock dam to raise it a bit more. It's spring fed, so no matter how hot and bothered you are, it just sucks the heat right off you.

I installed some stairs on a fast moving creek and had to do it over with a concrete pad attached to bedrock at the bottom of the stairs to secure my steps.

I am planning exactly that at both top and bottom.

How big is the drainage area of the creek. Is most of area upstream farm land

Origin of creek is 12ish miles away and yes all farmland.

Funny(not) story...we have been swimming in the creek every summer since 2001. About 10 years ago, a 100+ year old Sears house upstream by about half a mile sold. The new owners could not find the septic tank or field line......yep it had been piped directly into the creek

Now that that is taken care of, its just cows and other critters...."If it don't kill ya, it makes you stronger"

With that much water this time of July, how would you anchor the stairs to bedrock? That seems like a key to keeping them from getting washed out.

The trackhoe never hit any bedrock digging the footer for the rip rap, so stabbing rebar straight down might not help at all, and it could be dangerous if the concrete breaks up over the years. I think a cage of rebar parallel to the steps and down into the entry exit pads would be the best choice.

I did some calculating, and each stair is going to contain about 2 yards of concrete. This means each stair w/pads will weigh in around 7,000lbs. Since they will be partially shielded by the pig wall and the rip rap weir, My hope is they will survive the flood(s), but it's really just a WAG.

 

[2manyrocks]

Water does not seem hindered by weight. Trying to build so the water can’t fully push against it would be my goal. Old time bridge piers were rounded, not square.

 

[MotorSeven]

Agree, and I 'think' the locations posted are the best for that. It only takes one giant tree stump rolling downstream to mess things up though.

 

[2manyrocks]

I am guessing water comes over the bank sometimes?

 

[MotorSeven]

Yep,

I am guessing water comes over the bank sometimes?

Same pasture, but 1/4 mile down stream...I was standing on the county bridge which is how we access our driveway.

Aftermath of the 2019 flood. You can now see the concrete pig wall which I built prior to doing the rip rap. The gazebo and a large deck encompassed all of the top of the pigs.

The water broke the deck in half, and it pushed the gazebo 30' to the edge of the creek:

From the opposite side, 70' up the mountain, I caught the mayhem in progress. The entire pasture is under water....

 

[MotorSeven]

2018 March....gazebo and deck survived this one....: