Georgia Wilderness Society
Hiwassee River
Hiwassee River Rodeo
by trip leader Curt Cole
The Hiwassee River is a beautiful, rollicking class II-II+ river about 40 miles ENE of Chattanooga. It's very wide, in some places reaching 800' or more, giving paddlers a wide choice of easy or more difficult paths to choose from. It has many ledges and islands, and, given that several outfitters operate on it, lots of paddlers.
On Saturday, July 29, 2017, 7 GWS members, a guest, and 3 visitors from Tennessee paddled the river from Reliance to US 411. This section was roughly 6 miles and a bit tamer than the upper section, so it was our warm-up for Sunday. While mostly flat-water, it still has some class II rapids with some fun and challenging waves. The mountain views from the river were really beautiful. We took a break at Gee Creek Campground before completing the run. Total time spent paddling was about 1.5 hours.
The parking lots under US 411 and at Reliance fill by about 1:00, give or take, so better to get there early and wait for the water to rise than spend time waiting for a parking space to be vacated.
Several of us camped at Gee Creek Campground Friday & Saturday nights. Because it sold out, others camped at mountaintop Chilhowee Recreation Area. For a group to stay at Gee Creek, you should probably reserve a month in advance. Showers but no electricity at the sites, but the $12 rate is nice and the sites are level. Lots of paddlers and families camp here.
On Sunday, 7 of us put-in at Powerhouse ramp and took out at Reliance. This upper section was roughly a 6 mile run of frequent class II rapids, with some large waves and many ledges to find a channel through. The blue sky, scattered cumulus and decent temperature made for an exceptionally beautiful day. Paddling time was around 2 hours plus lunch stop.
The lunch break was at the bottom of the The Ledges (a.k.a. The Stairsteps or Lunchtime Rapid). The only spill of the trip occurred here. Most of us played at surfing the last ledge. While surfing, one person found out just how cold the river was. This was a safe place to demonstrate the half-roll, with a good, slow recovery pool, so no harm done. (Playing the waves and eddies is a great way to improve one's skill, so my ego prefers the term "half-roll" to "capsize". I've performed my share of half-rolls, usually while surfing.)
I came across a forlorn-looking middle-aged man standing in the river with PFD on, but no paddle or boat. As I was passing him I asked if he was ok and he said he was looking for a ride. He had capsized and lost his boat/paddle. Basil and Dee tried to reach him, but the current was too strong and he showed no inclination to come to them so we gave up. He shortly got a ride on a passing raft. This brings up the point that self-rescue is an important part of paddling. We have to be involved in saving ourselves and not just float or stand around waiting for someone else to do the job, possibly putting themselves or their equipment in jeopardy.
Devil's Shoals was our last big rapid with a long train of waves that were near 2' high. I expected we would have a few capsizes on this trip but was very pleased at how well everyone handled themselves, and I'm sure it raised the skill and confidence level of all.
Thanks to all who participated and thanks to Wayne for helping me with the shuttle. GWS participants were: Curt Cole, Wayne Etheridge, Gary & Dee Harwell, Jo Scott, Jeff Sorensen, and Basil Youman. Jo's grandson Taylor Santaloci also paddled with us. Two visitors from the Marysville, TN area were John Moyer and Brenda Medlock, and from Nashville was Suzy Wilson. We had a mix of canoes, kayaks and an inflatable.
Georgia Wilderness Society
Welcome
Hiwassee River 2020
Hiwassee River 2019
Rip Roaring Hiwassee River, or Not
by trip leader Curt Cole
Four GWS members and three quests gathered at Ocoee/Hiwassee State Park, at Delano, Tennessee, to paddle the Hiwassee River. If only the power station would cooperate. The scheduled release of water did not happen as scheduled, but we headed down river anyway.
Saturday, 10 August 2019, we got on the water despite the water level being well over a foot lower than normal. Equipment problems kept the two generators from releasing. We struggled to get through the shallows and took a break at the campground hoping the water would catch up. About 3:30, it finally came up over a foot in 10-15 minutes. The rest of the way down this 11 mile run, from Reliance to Patty Bridge, was uneventful but pleasant flatwater. After all that work, we enjoyed a Mexican dinner that evening.
Paddlers were: Kerry Coburn, Curt Cole, Jo Scott, Jeff Sorensen, Jo's adult grandsons Taylor and John, and Curt & Jeff's friend Mike Barrett.
For Sunday, one website indicated the usual release of 10:00 and 11:00 A.M. for the two generators, while another site indicated a delay of 3 hours. Jo and her grandsons had late-day commitments, so they couldn't wait for a late release. They headed over to the Blue Hole on the Conasauga River to snorkel with the fish. The other four of us waited for 2:00 o'clock for the full release so we could run the upper section, from Powerhouse ramp to Reliance.
Once we got on the water, the fun began. This is a great mountain river, with beautiful views and lots of class II rapids. We only had one capsize. Jeff ran Three Foot Drop and hit a hidden rock at the bottom of the drop. The rest of us took a more conservative approach and ran it further right, where the drop is not so much. This is about a 6 mile run. We took our time and spent almost three hours on it, playing the waves often. The TVA is scheduled to release water through October and the scenery should be gorgeous in the fall. Any takers?
Curt Cole
Hiwassee River 2017
Rain, Rain, Go Away
by trip leader Curt Cole
On August 22-23, 2020, eight paddlers took part in the Georiga Wilderness Society's annual run down Tennessee's Hiwassee River at Reliance. This was despite dire predictions of rain over the weekend. We did indeed get some rain, but only before and after our time on the river. While on the water, the solid cloud cover gradually turned to scattered puffy cumulus, and the sunlight sparkled on the river as it cuts down through Chilhowee Mtn.
We camped on top of Chilhowee Mountain, at the Forest Service campground. Tarps kept us dry during the brief rain Friday evening, and the downpour Sunday morning, which kept most of us in bed until it stopped about 8:30.
Jeff, Irene & I ran shuttle up to Powerhouse ramp, while the rest of the group got a refreshing ride to the ramp while standing up in the back of a stake bed truck. They had rented inflatable kayaks from Hiwassee Outfitters. We got on the river about 11:30. This class II run, six miles long, goes through such rapids as Foxes Cabin, Thread The Needle, The Stairsteps, Funnel Rapid and Devil's Shoals. All of these were run successfully, some with aplomb, some resembling a game of billiards, with boats careening off the rails in all directions. Our aluminum canoe justified its common moniker of "rock magnet" by sticking to a number of rocks that refused to move out of our way. But we all stayed upright. Lunch was held at our usual spot at the bottom of The Stairsteps. At one point, a perched osprey took of and flew in front of us with a 5" fish in its talons. Take-out was at Reliance.
Back at camp, we got showers, relaxed, and were treated with peanut butter fudge from the Fudge Lady, (Irene) and cookies from the Cookie Lady (Genise). After the twenty minute rain shower, we got a campfire going and sat around it until we got sleep-eyed.
Once Sunday morning's storm blew over, we crawled out of bed and took our time getting up and about. The Hiwassee is a dam-controlled river and the two generators don't come online until 10:00 and 11:00 a.m. Powerhouse ramp is only a quarter mile or less from the powerhouse, so put-in there can happen by 11:00, but it takes the water at least two hours to reach the lower section's put-in at Reliance, so I didn't want to get on the water before about 1:30. Last year some folks got impatient and we put-in before the water level came up to maximum, and most of us frequently got hung up in the shallows. I didn't want to repeat that this year.
We ran shuttle first, then ate lunch at the picnic tables at the public boat ramp at Reliance. The six of us (Genise and Bernard decided to hike instead of paddle this day) got on the water about 1:20, as the water level neared its peak. This section of the river is mostly class I down to Ocoee-Hiwassee State Park, and flatwater from there to the take-out at Patty Bridge, an 11 mile run.
There is one rapid on this section I thought might give us some trouble, but all of us ran it just fine. Irene & I ran it first in our Grumman, then Tom/Holly, and Franke in their canoes breezed through it like they were sightseeing in Central Park. We took a break at the state park ramp, where Jeff caught up with us. He had been playing by himself all afternoon, surfing every wave he came across.
Despite the weather forecasters understandably scaring some people off (I'm not a fan of starting off in the rain), it turned out to be another great weekend of paddling. No one capsized and all had fun. Participants were: Franke Christian, Curt & Irene Cole, Tom & Holly Payne, Bernard and Genise Spenle, and Jeff Sorensen. Hope to see you next year.
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