Last weekend me and 3 friends decided to do the Chattooga. I had
previously done Sec II a while back. One guy had fished Sec II
another had never been and Matt has gone on 2 GCA (Georgia Canoe
Assoc) trips on Sec III. We had 2 digital 3 megapix cams and one point
and shoot Pentax WR90. The scans from the Pentax were very crappy
amateur scans so we don't have much in the way of many nice quality
pixs but I thought some of ya'll might enjoy the fall colors and some
river pixs of the Chattooga.

Four of us put in Sat. at Long Bottom and paddled to Sandy Ford where
we camped. Two of the guys were taking out there and me and Matt were
gonna stay one more night dump our camping gear and run the rest of
sec III the next day. Unfortunetly the weather turned and started
raining non stop early Sunday morning and our weather radio said
heavy rain and 10 to 15 mph winds the next day so we decided to go
home and try it another time.

The portage out of Sandy Ford was brutal with our big boats and all
the camping gear. I ain't nevah doing that again. I brought back a
killer flu which has had me bed ridden since last monday. Next time we
go we'll prolly car camp at Earls Ford the first night then run Sec
III the next day.

Levels were at 1.4 and Sec II was very bony. There were many areas
thatthere was no choice but to get out and drag the boats. The river
totally changes character after Earls Ford and it is absolutly
beautiful. The Rock Garden, and Dicks Creek were just jaw droping
beautiful. I'm really stoked up to do the rest of Sec III now!!
Specially with empty boats. We walked Dicks since it was the end of
the day and we we're all pretty tired and also it just looked too low
and and making that first eddy right after the drop did not look too
inviting with the low water and our loaded BIG boats. Matt was in the
16 ft Appalachian and even with decent levels making that 1st eddy
with a loaded 16 ft boat woulda been a challenge.

Hope ya'll enjoy the pixs. Set you screens to 1024x768 for best
viewing

www.paban.net/toog

SY'llOTR

Pepe

"Pepe" wrote in message m...
Last weekend me and 3 friends decided to do the Chattooga. I had
previously done Sec II a while back. One guy had fished Sec II
another had never been and Matt has gone on 2 GCA (Georgia Canoe
Assoc) trips on Sec III. We had 2 digital 3 megapix cams and one point
and shoot Pentax WR90. The scans from the Pentax were very crappy
amateur scans so we don't have much in the way of many nice quality
pixs but I thought some of ya'll might enjoy the fall colors and some
river pixs of the Chattooga.

Four of us put in Sat. at Long Bottom and paddled to Sandy Ford where
we camped. Two of the guys were taking out there and me and Matt were
gonna stay one more night dump our camping gear and run the rest of
sec III the next day. Unfortunetly the weather turned and started
raining non stop early Sunday morning and our weather radio said
heavy rain and 10 to 15 mph winds the next day so we decided to go
home and try it another time.

The portage out of Sandy Ford was brutal with our big boats and all
the camping gear. I ain't nevah doing that again. I brought back a
killer flu which has had me bed ridden since last monday. Next time we
go we'll prolly car camp at Earls Ford the first night then run Sec
III the next day.

Levels were at 1.4 and Sec II was very bony. There were many areas
thatthere was no choice but to get out and drag the boats. The river
totally changes character after Earls Ford and it is absolutly
beautiful. The Rock Garden, and Dicks Creek were just jaw droping
beautiful. I'm really stoked up to do the rest of Sec III now!!
Specially with empty boats. We walked Dicks since it was the end of
the day and we we're all pretty tired and also it just looked too low
and and making that first eddy right after the drop did not look too
inviting with the low water and our loaded BIG boats. Matt was in the
16 ft Appalachian and even with decent levels making that 1st eddy
with a loaded 16 ft boat woulda been a challenge.

Hope ya'll enjoy the pixs. Set you screens to 1024x768 for best
viewing

www.paban.net/toog

SY'llOTR

Pepe

Hi Pepe :

Thanks for the pics. Brings back some fond memories of a great river.
It's pretty bony at 1.4 ft. on the Hwy 76 guage. I've been fortunate enough to paddle Sec. II & III at varying levels but always
between 2.0 and 2.2 ft. on the guage.

John S.

Thanks for the pics. Brings back some fond memories of a great river.
It's pretty bony at 1.4 ft. on the Hwy 76 guage. I've been fortunate enough to paddle Sec. II & III at varying levels but always
between 2.0 and 2.2 ft. on the guage.

John S.

You're welcome John. I'm really looking forward to Sec III at decent levels.
I'm hoping to get a chance to do it before it gets too cold this fall.

Pepe

In rec.boats.paddle.whitewater Pepe wrote:

You're welcome John. I'm really looking forward to Sec III at decent levels.
I'm hoping to get a chance to do it before it gets too cold this fall.

Enjoyed the trip report and pictures. Are the rapids harder than they look
in the photos? Even Bull Sluice doesn't look too difficult, though I know
there are many underwater entrapment points.

What does "falling" mean in this context? Does it refer to canoeing as a
gravity-assisted sport, or is it some new-school term I don't know?

Bill Tuthill wrote:

What does "falling" mean in this context? Does it refer to canoeing as a
gravity-assisted sport, or is it some new-school term I don't know?

Well Bill, you remember lookin' at the pictures doncha? Whut season was
it when these gents ventured on the rio?

--
Michael, Camp Meeker, CA

Enjoyed the trip report and pictures. Are the rapids harder than they look
in the photos? Even Bull Sluice doesn't look too difficult, though I know
there are many underwater entrapment points.

Glad you enjoyed it. We did Sec II and only did the very begining of
Sec III and that's when the river is classed III/IV and Vs at higher
levels. There's only one rapid of any consequence in Sec II and that
would be Big Shoals which I would prolly class as a II+ maybe III at
the levels we did it at.

It's hard to tell at Dicks creek from where we shot our pixs since we
walked it river right of the classic line . The classic line is a 5/6
ft drop/slide with a must make eddy right immediately after the drop.
I can really see swiming there in a 16 ft loaded boat and if you look
at the pixs leading away from Dicks you'd know you wouldn't wanna be
swimming that. The levels were very low (1.4) so I'm sure things
looked a lot tamer than at levesl over 1.8 or so. The pixs of Bull
Sluice both because of the angle, light and low water is a bit
deceptive. Being that that was the first time I've seen the Bull live
I also thought "well daimm, this don't look as difficult as I've heard
tell".

I have a video of 2 guys running the Bull on the classic approach and
catching the eddy left just above the drop and then peeling out and
going river right of Decapitaion Rock and while I doesn't look super
difficult I'll reserve judgement for when I try the same thing in my
15ft OT Cascade .............;+D There are also a coupla must make
moves on the approach to the eddy left above the drop that I can see
could be a bit of work at higher levels with much pushier water.

What does "falling" mean in this context? Does it refer to canoeing as a
gravity-assisted sport, or is it some new-school term I don't know?

Oh, just a bit of "colorful" (hint,hint) poetic license...........;+D

Michael Dooley wrote:

What does "falling" mean in this context? Does it refer to canoeing as a
gravity-assisted sport, or is it some new-school term I don't know?

Well Bill, you remember lookin' at the pictures doncha? Whut season was
it when these gents ventured on the rio?

Doh! (If I were any yellower, I could *be* Homer Simpson.)

The [Cha]Toog[a] looks like a great trip, and one of the good reasons
for living in the southeast. Out here in California, there's nothing
(nearby) left to run except the Yuba below Englebright Dam. Yawn.