C-Forum

Since several potential first timers have asked, here's my $0.02. Others more knowledgeable please add on:
1) Little in the park-Elkmont to Metcalf Bottoms-Definitely more class III ish as flows increase.
2) Little in the Park-Elbow to the Y- Class II but a knuckle scraper if the water is low.
3)Middle Tellico- You can put in at the Turkey Creek bridge a mile below the bridge at Jerod's knee and avoid most of the early tight Class III
4)Oconoluftee- On the wrong side of the park coming from Lenoir City, but it is Class II. These first four are all road side runs.
5)Lower Santeehla- at low flows is a tight ClassII with a III or two. Very pretty run.
6)Clear Creek Jett to Lilly- Class II, but only a 2.5 mile run
7)Clear Creek Lilly to Nemo- The three Class III's are at the beginning and are straight forward and have recovery pools at low to medium flow. Perhaps best done by putting in at Jett and getting the warm up. These two sections of Clear Creek are without doubt the most frequently run reaches in the Obed/Emory system by beginner/intermediates.
8)Obed-OBJ to Nemo-Not regularly run as there are better options but this is Class II low ClassIII.
9) Big South Fork-Burnt Mill Bridge to Confluence-long drive, horrible shuttle and not very pretty, but ClassII. These last five are remote.

Monty Smith's book (now out of Print) lists other Class II runs in the Obed/Emory watershed but I haven't done them so won't comment. If you do read Smith's book, keep in mind that his rapid ratings are way over done.

All well and good but there is a bunch of stuff good old monty never knew about............. Cummie does.

http://www.waldensridgewhitewater.com/w ... inpage.htm

Talk to a local more than some webb page or out of date book. If you carry a couple of rapid on a lot of the IV run they are now just class II.

Please, please. please do not quote anything you read on American Kayaker ( AWA ) to us locals we know how full of sugar cookie those people are and will wonder about you because you don't.

don't come with any preconceved notion about what you can and can't do. We have more faith in you than you do in yourselves.

White's Creek Rhea County
White Creek flows into Clear Creek above Barnett Bridge
Upper Clear Creek (awesome tandem canoe 2 day trip)
French Broad Section 9
Pigeon
Clear Fork
Section 3 Chattooga
Conasauga
Emory River Canyon
Crab Orchard

I am sure Louie can name many others. More than enough for a week of paddling with water like we had last year.

Ladd

Don't want to pop any balloons here but...

You can make all the list you want, and that's good. But you need to be in the mind-set that you will only know what you are running that morning.

It's the Southeast, you don't get to pick your creeks. We are rain dependent here. The trick is to be flexible.

WaldensRidgeWhiteWater.com is set-up to help you pick for that creek in the morning.

The creeks are listed by region, then by alphabetical , then by class.

The flowpage has a lot of sort features , just click on the headers.

Before ALF bookmark you phone, on its browser.

At your desktop start playing around with the site and learn its features and tricks

Come ALF Fest you won't care about a list...you can go to the site...pick a creek to your comfort level and head out.

The whole website covers East Tennessee and Lookout Mountain in Georgia.

It's flowpage covers a ton of creeks...use the "Precept and Forecast" page too...there are rain gages on it, and good weather models on it also

yeah, jack, haven't you ever boated in the SE before?

White Creek flows into Clear Creek above Barnett Bridge

anybody got any intel on this one?

Drive to Lenoir City, the main drag through town about 8:00am. You can't miss it.

Look for all the open boats (you can't miss them).

Get breakfast and coffee, try to get rid of hangover.

Stand around in the parking lot shivering, listening to people talk about levels and trips for the day.

Eventually, someone will say let's go do S. Creek, it's class II-III. Someone else will say Big Nasty is running, it's class IV-V. Pick your trip, consolidate vehicles, boats, gear. Someone will usually know how to get to the put-in, take-out (we got lost last year trying to get to Crab Orchard, but we eventually found it...at least I think we did -- it was nice run whatever it was).

If you are still hungover, you puke in the first eddy, and then you're okay. Someone will volunteer to be the probe unit and be the first one down the run. See what happens to him/her, and either take the same line or try something different.

At the takeout, and on the way back to Lenoir City, you'll have made some new friends.

Eat, drink beer, sleep. Not necessarily in that order. Wake up in time the next morning.

Repeat.

what about Class Toddler?,
ha ha
i haven been on anything good in a long time.

Hey Gabe, looks like you have to live in the Plateau to know anything about the runs even Class II. I guess I saw my shadow - back in the hole for six weeks.

I still think you are are focusin too much on what the books say. I think you all are overlookin a lot of class II classIII run that have one or two class IV that can be portaged, but because of those one or two rapids they are rated class four.

Little Clear Creek is a perfect example you have a mile and a half of nuthin then you come to a big rapid that is easy to cary around or better still just carry around the first two drops of it and run the last deop. then carry the next two named rapids and look at the last named rapid on the run . Watch a few people run it. Ya it is a little hard and you more likely could swim but it is a no consequence swim and then you get to finsih up runnin Lilly on Clear Creek

Little in the Smokies. Put on at the bottom of the sink, carry bottom up and eddy out and then look at the ones before the Elbow and take out right before the Elbow.

Remember the only time Doopey ran the Green he turned it into a class III. He carried the 12 biggest ones

Louie, one of my Plateau goals is Little Clear Creek. I'd love for you to lead me down it levels permitting.

Jack it and Island Creek are so doable in one day and with a shuttle driver it is a no brainer, before dark your home run.

Cheajack, if you show up in the parking lot with a list or a guidebook, you'll feel out of place. The most important part of ALF is getting to the parking lot; that is, just show up. There will be plenty to do, and plenty of great people to do it with.

I still think you are are focusin too much on what the books say. I think you all are overlookin a lot of class II classIII run that have one or two class IV that can be portaged, but because of those one or two rapids they are rated class four

Years ago when they were still using canvas and aluminum canoe is that not what people would have done ?

Just because there is a water fall or Dam is in the way does not make a river runnable if you can go around it

If I can come( need to make sure son want to come to long of drive by myself) I am not bringing any books My question would be can I go around without dragging the canoe a mile through the woods done that no fun or if I run it how dangerous is the swim

I am going to rely on the experience of the locals but first day I would like to do something easy it will probably be my 1st or 2nd time in a boat since Nov
You only live once might as well have fun!

I appreciate all the advice. I've paddled in the Plateau every March since '98 and this will be my fourth ALF. I started this thread because a person(s) asked for some ClassII-III runs they could read about prior to coming to ALF. I thought it was a reasonable request. I, too, like to spend armchair time reading guide books to seek out new for me runs. Hopefully, finding out that there are intermediate runs in the plateau will encourage more folks to make the trip. I don't think they nor I are naive enough to think that you could come with a cast in stone itinerary for a rainfall dependent watershed. Although unlikey given the amount of continuing precipitation in the SE, we could all end up playing cards. I believe information is power and for me it is certainly a confidence builder when it comes to paddling. I think the more good information anyone can gather the better off they will be and this certainly means that you should never stick to only one source for all your information even if it is a good one.