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Nantahala River Whitewater to Wesser, west of Bryson City NC |
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Our Route Summary
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Entry
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Exit
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What We SawThe Nantahala was a great way for us flatwater paddlers to get a taste of whitewater. We watched the NOC video about the trip, then decided to rent a double ducky for my wife and me and singles for the boys. The NOC supplied paddles and somewhat smelly wetsuits. We supplied neoprene booties. Out we went on the 9:30 shuttle to the put in just above Pattons Run, a Class II rapid that begins the trip. Other than Pattons run at the beginning and Lesser Wesser falls at the end, there were only minor rapids in between separated by sections of moving flatwater. |
This is a very civilized whitewater run. We passed a
"Pizza by the River" ramp shown above about 5
miles into the trip. There were camp grounds along the
way and much of the route ran along the highway where
there were several places to stop if one was so inclined.
Per the Closewaters Principles,
don't stop at private campgrounds, especially those with
signs telling you not to stop. We kept a group of guided rafts in view about 100 yards in front of us most of the trip. Having watched the excellent NOC video introduction to the run, negotiating the rapids was exciting, but we knew what to expect and what to do. We tried to approach rapids on the inside of turns but stayed away from rocks or trees. At about 6 miles, we stopped and pulled our boats up on the landing upstream of Lesser Wesser Falls (see photo at right) and took a short walk up the path to scout Lesser Wesser Falls. The NOC told us if we decided not to try the falls, we could leave the duckies there and walk back a short walk back across the footbridge to the take out and rental return. |
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Lesser Wesser falls shown at left is a Class III
rapid consisting of two large steps oriented 45 degrees
to the river. We approached mid river and turned the duckies 45 degrees to the left entering the falls to get more perpendicular to the steps and avoid a large rock to the right of the falls (which a number of rafts hit). It was exciting fun and we had no problem in the duckies. A guy with a throw line was ready to help those who ended the falls apart from their boats, which is not an unusual event. |
Soon you'll see the buildings of the NOC shown in the
photo at right. The river is easy here as it widens, but
watch out for rocks in the shallower water that can snag
a raft or ducky in front of a large audience. At this point, head to the public take out on river right just beyond the first large building or to the designated commercial takeout area for your particular outfitter. We headed to the sandy beach on river left to the NOC return and our parking lot. All of us really enjoyed our Nantahala family fun. |
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