Just got in this morning at 2:30 am from Clayton Georgia! I had the privlidge to run some fantastic NC/GA whitewater with local boater Brad Stine & some Asheville paddlers that we randomly met down there, and were nice enough to take us on some runs.
We opened with the Narrows friday mid-day and I got to witness a bunch of paddlers (including Brad) run Gorilla, which was simply amazing, and a good bit beyond my skill level. Afterwards we drove across NC, and down into Georgia, where we planned our trip down Chattooga section IV the next day.
It rained most of friday, so the Chattooga was at about 2.4 feet, normal flow being 1.5 ish. We were pretty excited. As chance would have it, the locals we ran the narrows with decided to run chattooga the next day, so we joined them again. What a fantastic river. A good bit easier than the narrows, but still very challenging. At the very bottom there is a rapid called Sock 'em Dog. The main line was probably the highest volume, steepest, and most inescapable holes I have ever seen. Even the sneak line threatened to draw you backwards into a cave...
On Sunday, we hit the main event (my personal emphasis), Tallulah Gorge. I've been watching videos of Oceana for about 2 months now, trying to figure out if I could or would run it. When the time came, I will admit I was scared shitless, but refused to leave without notching it in my belt, so I did. The videos don't do the feature justice. The slide is enourmous, and much faster than it seems. Really you're just holding on for dear life. I ran it, and from the video, it looks like I did a 15 foot head slide, but I felt fine, no injuries, and no boat damage. The same can't be said for one of our group members, who crumpled the front of his boat when he hit "The Thing". Luckily he had a special foam block setup (honey comb style) and didn't injure his feet. (time for me to re-do my footing).
All in all, a great weekend, we drove over 1600 miles, spent over 24 hours in the truck, and actually slept in it thursday night at a truck rest stop on the side of the highway outside asheville. But we met some great paddlers, paddled some bad ass whitewater, and lived to tell about it!
Trip Links:
Chattooga Trip
Tallulah Trip
Oceana Video
Chattoooga - Jawbone
Chattoooga - Bull Sluice
Tallulah - First 100 yards
Tallulah - Oceana
Tallulah - Oceana - Group Photo
