C-Forum

Me thinks you might be makin an argument for a smaller boat. Mirco Eddies ain't as Mirco in a eight foot boat vs a thirteen foot boat. If I get fifty gallon of water in my boat, it is flowin out the top. Fifty gallon in coal barge and ya it is only eight inches deep but it still weights 8. sumthin lbs per gallon. Also consider this with two of those big bad boulders you all worry about so much placed nine foot apart I got six inches of clearance on each end and you got two foot of boat pinned on each end. While it is true a big boat is a lot less likely to flip, particulary in the hands of a marginal paddler, that don't mean it is easier to do good in it. I remember and have video of Dale Johnson tryin time and time again to get the eddy behind that big rock in National Fall in an Edge but the boat was so long his assend was always still in the current and he keep washin out the back end of it. While another boater in a Profit wallered into the eddy with no style or grace but after he hit the eddy he was able to stay in.
One final thing Longboat. You said you did the Tellico years ago, but due to drugs and alchoil it was fuzzy. Can you remember if you did the"Upper Tellico" or just Tellico? Your post wasn't clear on that point. I think you could remember if you did the upper by this one thing, did you do a 13 foot waterfall, in as much as that is twice as high as anything on the upper Yough, let me put it another way. did you pencil in off a drop that was high as your boat is long, I can't see you bein into boofin in that you are stuck in decades old boat design I'd say you prefer the older styles of river runnin, not that anyone could boof a coal barge.

Anybody paddling the UY on this weekend? Was thinking of hitting it Friday and Saturday.

Alden

Alden wrote:Anybody paddling the UY on this weekend? Was thinking of hitting it Friday and Saturday.

Alden

Wouldn't you rather go scrape down the Tellico?

UY = dam release

UY +1

Not lookin' to get in the middle of this but I've seen Longboatin' drop the 15 footer on Jacob's Creek in PA.

I might be working near Wiliamington Del. for a few weeks. are any of these runs goin and how far away are they from where I will be.

TonyB,

I would suggest that you take Longboatin's advice about the UY. If you swam Jared's Knee and Crooked Fork then walked the Crooked Fork waterfalls then I don't think that you should be running the UY just yet, especially in an OC-1. Although the UY isn't a super hard river it certainly isn't "easy" either. You need to have very good boat control because things happen fast on that river and there are many, many "must make" moves. Swimming is a lousy option.

Jim

like I said it seams like a long time ago, and I like to think Ive improved since then. I ve been pushing things on the LY, and looking for more than my local trickle

louie - on our long ago southie trip the only reason we went to Telli was that falls.
Also you can boof a 16ftr, it all depends on where you sit.
Hey like you say, I use the longboat 4 the difficulty of doin it right, that and the stand up surfin is killer fun, and makes the butties feel real salty.

Longbloatin',

The Russell Fork was fantastic this weekend because I had the opportunity to paddle with some really good friends from Ky., Va., and W Va. The weather was great, the water was good, and the beer was cold. What a great weekend!

Your comment concerning Ohio boaters is without merit. Some really good paddlers that I have paddled with are from Ohio. Eric Jackson, Erica Mitchell, Billy Craig, Scott Parsons, Jamie Simons, Risa Shimoda, Jeff, Duncan, Clark, Andy, Sean, Eric, Mike, John, etc., etc., etc., etc.

I have paddled with alot of really good Pa. paddlers as well. Dean Tomko, Mike Bailey, Don Smith, Bruce Berman, Charlie Walbridge, Bob, John, Paul, etc., etc., etc., etc.

Its' not about where your from, its' about paddlin'. So called sneak lines may be embarrassing to you but other paddlers may find them to be another opportunity to explore. The so called hairy scary time warp, IMO, is no more difficult than the gun barrel.

I enjoy the Mad River behind the shop ( class 1, in Ohio ) as much as the UY and the Tellico. ( Both rivers are really fun runs but don't let this thread be as annoying to you as it obviously is to me! )

Did I mention that I am from Ohio!

Still paddlin' C-1,
Bernie

My bad B
Its a hard habit to break that Stillers vs Browns mentality... its rilly all about the boatin 4 me too...
R fork is indeed tight, havnt been for quite a while

That is the good things about single stickers , we can give each other hades but pull together in a heart beat is a buttboater starts running their pie hole.

but of course I have the advanatge bein from Tennessee, I know both Penn. and Ohio suck.

Bernie have to agree with ya...just remember first time down the UY and that was how the lines there were explained - by the way I ran the barrel that day - it it was (is) a blast! Doesn't count where you're from or what you're running - just that you are having fun!

Tony hitting some of the local runs noted is a good way to step it up. The tribs of the Sandy (Little, Upper Big, Big etc running into the Cheat) would also be a good next step. Based on time spent with ya you're more than ready to take that next step up. Do some research and make sure you go with someone that knows the lines, is willing to take the time to explain them and not rush ya down them. You'll do just fine and have a hoot of the day.

I'd say that if you can paddle the Tellico at high water with your eyes closed and run all the drops backwards, then you might be ready to run the Upper Yough, if you have a good guide. If you were just stepping up to class III in March, then you probably want to wait a bit if you haven't improved by leaps and bounds.

Tony,

If you are trying to work your skills on the Lower Yough up to the level you will need for compitency on the Upper Yough I will tell you the best qualifier for you to be proficient at.

At Cucumber rapidland on Guides Rock to scout this. What it entails is an S turn from the eddy at the head of Guides Rock, eddying out in the first big hole. From there you power ferry back across and eddy out behind Guides Rock. C-1, OC-1, or K-1 can do this move, but it is a power move.

That is it man. Class IV moves in a class III rapid. If you can do that you have the skills required to run the Upper.

Jim Gross