Georgia Canoeing Association-2010 Fall Gala (Episode 2)

On the second day of the Fall Gala, I joined other GCAers and paddled the Nantahala River near Bryson City, NC. The Nantahala is affectionately called the “Nanty” by paddlers and is a classic Southeastern Class II/III river. The river is dam released and the water temps never reaches above a frigid 48 degrees. The Nanty is touted to be the most rafted river in America.

Georgia Canoeing Associaton-2010 Fall Gala (Episode 2) from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

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Georgia Canoeing Associaton-2010 Fall Gala (Episode 2) from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

Because of the predictability of water levels it is also a very popular river in the Southeast for individual paddlers as well. The Nantahala Outdoor Center, which makes its home along the banks of the Nantahala, is one of the world’s premiere paddling shops. I must admit that I have bought more than one boat and tons of gear from the NOC.

Despite the inviting lively wave trains and crystal clear water, the Nanty does have its dangers. Unwary novice rafters and a few experienced boaters have tragically lost their lives paddling the Nanty. Any risk associated with paddling the Nanty can be mitigated by paddling with experience boaters and developing your paddling skills.

Perhaps, one of the most photographed and videoed rapid in America is Nantahala Falls (or Little Wesser). The Falls are a solid Class III and have a very sticky hole at the top. The hole is not terminal, but it will hold a swimmer for an uncomfortable amount of time.

Unfortunately, my camera became fogged up early in the paddling trip and it only toward the end did it unfog so much of the video is a bit blurry. It does sort of give it a neat effect.

The Nanty does remain one of my favorite rivers and I have many fond memories of floating down this gem of a mountain stream. This beautiful Fall day was no different. The wonderful gold leaves would occasionally waffle down into the stream and the mountains provided an awe inspiring backdrop to the bouncy waves and color laid paddlers floating upon them. My camera could never do this special river justice, but I will continue to try.

Jamie
“Queen Rat”

Georgia Canoeing Association-Fall Gala (Episode 1)

In October 2010, I participated in the Georgia Canoeing Association's (GCA) paddling event called the Fall Gala. The Fall Gala is an annual whitewater paddling event that the club sponsors usually in October. Traditionally, this weekend of paddling is done near Bryson City, NC. In recent years, the event has based camp in a campground nestled in the North Carolina mountains called Smokey Mountain Meadows.

Most paddlers get into camp on Friday night and paddle a variety of rivers from class I/II to Class IV-V rivers. They usually paddle the Nantahala, Tuckasegee, Ocoee and depending on the group they might tackle bigger water such as the Cheoah. This year they even had a group paddling Fontana Lake. In the evening, paddlers will hang around the campfire and share paddling tales.

Georgia Canoeing Association-2010 Fall Gala (Episode 1) from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

In Episode 1 of the GCA Fall Gala video, I joined the group that paddled the Class I/II Tuckasegee River in Dillsboro, NC. The put in for the Tuck is located in the heart of Dillsboro and the City has built a nice put in area and just up the street are public restrooms.

The Tuck is a splendid mountain river and is a favorite river for instructors to train newbies. Many a whitewater paddler took their first trip in whitewater down the Tuck during a basic whitewater kayaking or canoeing class. In fact, my first foray into whitewater was down the Tuck. I will never forget the feeling of accomplishment and awe of the power of the river during the trip. The Tuck opened the world of paddling to me and my love for rivers and paddling has never diminished.

The Tuck has recreational releases most weekends between Memorial Day Weekend and Labor Day Weekend. Unfortunately, we didn't have releases for the day we were paddling. When there are releases the Tuck has several nice Class II rapids, but even without releases the river can be easily navigated and there are still some nice rapids. Regardless of water level, the Tuck remains beautiful and pristine with little development along its shores.

Perhaps one of the most unusual features of the river is the abandoned train ruins along the banks of the rivers. Within the first mile or so along river left you will see remnants of a train. These ruins are the left over props from the Harrison Ford film "The Fugitive". The dramatic train wreck scene was filmed along the banks of the Tuck and train ruins remain behind to add interest to the river.

There a couple of outfitters in the area, but we usually use the Tuckasegee Outfitters: http://www.tuckfloat.com/.

Despite the lower flows, I think all of us had a wonderful time and enjoyed the splendor of the river and the company of fellow river rats.

Also, included in this episode is an interview with local paddling author Will Leverette who gave a presentation about the history of whitewater paddling in Western North Carolina. Will's book, "Waterwise: A History of Paddling in Western North Carolina", is highly entertaining and educational. Photos from the book are featured in the video.

Stay tuned for Episode 2 of the GCA Fall Gala. In the next episode, we paddle down the classic Nantahala River.

Jamie "Queen Rat"

Ocmulgee Paddling Weekend October 2010

In October 2010, the Georgia Canoeing Association went back down to Hawkinsville, GA to paddle the lovely Ocmulgee River. In an effort to support the community of Hawkinsville/Pulaski County's initiative to create a blueway, the GCA has held two paddling weekend trips in Hawkinsville (to include a previous trip in May). The Community of Hawkinsville has really done a stellar job of working toward establishing this blueway. They have worked with the National Park Service and have created a very nice campground in the heart of Hawkinsville. The campground is complete with fire rings, picnic tables, two pavilions with lights and electricity and an extremely nice bathhouse. In fact, we were the first folks to use the bathhouse because they had just completed it the day that we arrived.

Although the Ocmulgee was a foot or more lower than in April, it was still extremely peaceful and beautiful. I love the shoreline and how the river's edge is bordered by grand cypress and tupelo trees that sweep the river with Spanish moss. The limestone banks of the river are also extremely interesting and reflect the ancient heritage of the river that carves its way through a prehistoric sea bed.

The Ocmulgee is naturally muddy and the chocolate brown waters feel clean not polluted. The farmers in the area seem to respect the river and leave a nice buffer of trees and vegetation so that the paddler never really sees the crops beyond the thicket of trees.

In this video, I played around with light and shadow and I think I've created some really nice effects. Of course, the video never really does the river justice, but I hope the beauty of the Ocmulgee comes through the video.

Ocmulgee October 2010 Paddling Weekend from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

I hope you enjoy it!

Jamie

"Queen Rat"

Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! (Episode 3)

This is the third and final installment of the Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! Video series.

High Definition Video (best viewed in full screen):

Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! (Episode 3-High Def) from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

Standard Definition (best viewed in full screen):

Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! Episode 3 Standard Def from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

Mountain Biking Adventure Section of the Olympic Discovery Trail:

In this episode, Kate Wilkerson, Karla Vinnacombe and myself mountain bike the Adventure Section of the Olympic Discovery Trails bike path that will eventually extend over 100 miles from Port Townsend to the Pacific Coast . There are several sections of trail that are complete. Most of the trail is suitable for road bikes, but we decided to mountain bike along the Adventure Trail Section. We took a mountain bike tour with Adventures through Kayaking (http://www.atkayaking.com/). We had to rent bikes and it wasn’t much more money to take a tour. What the video doesn’t show is the strenuous 7% uphill climb along the State Forest service roads. Originally, we had planned to bike 5 miles to the top of the ridge, but the climb was extremely tough. At the slow rate we were going, we would have gone over our allotted time for the tour. Our guide was gracious enough to recommend a short cut that would eliminate most of the climbing on forest service roads, and maximize the single track downhill. At that point, I really liked the sound of the word “DOWNHILL”!

It was so much fun blasting down through towering hemlocks and spruce trees. I had a hoot! The trails were smooth and fast…just like I like them! We only biked about 7 miles or so, but it was really a lot of fun.

Hiking Lake Crescent :

After mountain biking and grabbing lunch at Kiwi West, we decided to take a short, flat hike along Lake Crescent . Lake Crescent was formed by glaciers and is an iconic feature of Olympic National Park. It’s about 5 miles long and the water of the lake is an uncanny blue. It almost looks dyed like something you would see at Disney. We hiked along the Spruce Railroad Trail, which was built during World War I by the Spruce Railroad Division of the US Army. They were trying to build the rail road to transport spruce and other logged trees to Seattle for production of fighter planes. Apparently, the spruce was the best material for manufacturing of the planes. Although they completed in only 18 months, the war ended before they could really use it. After WW I, logging companies did use the railroad to transport logs to Seattle.

The rail road bed has been abandoned for a number of years and a few of the old tunnels still remain. There are plans in the work to make the Spruce Railroad Trail part of the Olympic Discovery Trail and they plan to pave the path to make it suitable for road bikes and handicap accessible.

Hiking Hurricane Hill:

On our final day at Olympic, we decided to visit Hurricane Ridge and hike Hurricane Hill. To get to the Hurricane Ridge Visitors Center, you have to drive 17 miles uphill along a winding road that gives way to breathtaking views of the mountains. The drive alone was spectacular, but the views from Hurricane Ridge and Hurricane Hill were unbeatable. At every vantage point, the immenseness of the Olympic mountain range was seen and felt spell bounding.

We decided to hike to the top of Hurricane Hill, which was about a 3 mile round trip. The last mile of the trip was STEEP, but Karla and I took a few breaks while Kate charged up the mountain with a purpose. Despite being in the height of summer, there was still snow left on the ground. The views atop of Hurricane Hill were gorgeous and I tried my hand at capturing the view in a 350 degree panorama from my wide angle HD Go Pro helmet camera.

There were warnings all over the place about a rouge mountain goat that has chased hikers in the vicinity of Hurricane Hill. Sadly, just months after our visit a hiker was killed by the mountain goat and local authorities killed the goat. I’m sure a tragedy like this is very rare, but it was sobering and reminded us to never let your guard down even in a highly used area like Hurricane Hill.

The following morning we used the ferry and headed back to Seattle for our early morning flight on Saturday. Despite the fact that I missed my pets, friends and home, I was a bit sad leaving Olympic. Olympic is just so beautiful and unique. I know it will be hard to find a place as beautiful, and I know we’ll be back to visit again. Karla, Kate and I plan to make our next epic River Rat vacation to Yellowstone National Park …so stay tuned for more adventures. I hoped you enjoyed the videos and blog.

I also want to thank Karla and Kate again. They not only are great traveling companions, but they put up with me constantly shoving a camera in their face. Plus, they really help make the videos interesting and entertaining!

Jamie "Queen Rat" Higgins

Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! (Episode 2)

This is Episode 2 of the Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! series. On the third day of the trip, we rafted the Hoh River and hiked the Hoh Rainforest and on day four, we paddled the Quileute River and hiked around Rialto Beach in La Push.

High Definition:

Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! (Episode 2-HD) from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

Standard Definition:

Olympic National Park: A River Rat Vacation! (Episode 2-Standard Def) from Jamie Higgins on Vimeo.

Rafting Hoh River:

The blue gray Hoh River is a glacially fed river that is born from the Hoh glacier high upon Mount Olympic. The Hoh River was also fed by several other glaciers and runs through the temperate Hoh Rainforest.

We used Rainforest Paddlers (http://www.rainforestpaddlers.com/) for this trip. For insurance liability reasons, neither Adventure through Kayaking nor the Rainforest Paddlers rented kayaks or inflatable boats without taking a tour. Originally, we planned to take a guided one man inflatable kayak (aka duckie) tour, which was led by the owner. Unfortunately, he had a death in the family and was unable to lead the trip so we had to pile into a raft. As whitewater paddlers, the Hoh would have easily been within our skill level so we were a bit disappointed that we couldn't paddle our own kayaks.

The section of the Hoh that we paddled had one class 2 (maybe 2+) rapid and the rest of the river was easy class I. The outfitter required that we wear helmets (that didn't fit) and bulky rafting PFDs. There were a few scary strainers on the Hoh, but the guide skillfully negotiated around them. The strainers on the Hoh are huge spruce trees so they are massive bottlenecks, but for the most part they looked easily portaged or negotiated.

From the Hoh, you can see both the Hoh rainforest and views of the mountain. It really was an awesome paddle and even though we were in a raft, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Hiking Hoh Rainforest:

After rafting the Hoh, we hiked two short trails (Hall of Mosses .8 mi and the Spruce Nature 1.2 mi) through the Hoh Rainforest. The Hoh is a temperate rainforest and was both beautiful and interesting. The Hoh is one of the finest and one of the few remaining temperate rainforest in the Pacific Northwest. As a biologist, I felt like I was in an ecology lab. When I was a student in college, I learned about the various stages of the development of a forest and the Hoh was a great example of a mature forest.

The towering spruce trees were draped with a moss similar to Spanish moss and intertwined through the forest were these super clear creeks, ponds and bogs. The entire rainforest seemed to be a green, enchanted paradise and I was really captivated. Toward the end of the hike, the trail skirted the Hoh River and we were treated to spectacular views of the river and the mountains. I was in ecology heaven and I really didn't want to leave.

Kayaking Quileute River:

On the fourth day, we joined the Rainforest Paddlers again to kayak the Quileute River. This time we paddled sea kayaks. As with the Hoh, the Quileute is a glacially fed river and is the ancestral home of the Quileute Indians. They continue to have a small reservation adjacent to the river in La Push. The Quileute is an estuary river and joins the Pacific Ocean at La Push, which is where we took out.

Perhaps of all the video segments I have done on the Olympic National Park video, the Quileute segment is my favorite. The music in this segment really reflects the soulful feeling I experienced while paddling the Quileute.

We witnessed and I videoed an eagle eating a fish and a mated pair of eagles peacefully sitting on an old spruce stump. The entire paddling trip was so tremendously special that words will never accurately express how I felt, but the music and video come close.

Rialto Beach

After paddling the Quileute, we ate lunch and hiked a bit at Rialto Beach at the mouth of the Quileute River. Olympic National Park encompasses 70+ miles of coast along the most northwestern portion of Washington state. The beach consisted of pebbles weathered by the constant beating of the waves and is littered with dead spruce trees. The sea battles the forest, which results in spruce and other trees scattered along the shore like skeletons.

I wanted to hike to Hole in the Wall, which is a unique geologic formation. Unfortunately, my injured knee was acting up walking in the pebble strewn beach so Karla and I only hiked a bit. Kate did go to Hole in the Wall and said it was really cool. I should have given her the camcorder and got her to record some video.

As we were heading away from the Rialto Beach and back toward Kiwi West, Kate spotted a herd of Roosevelt Elk crossing the Quileute river and I feel privileged that I was able to video them. The elk crossing the river was like a wonderful cherry placed on our already scrumptious dessert of a day.

Next week I'll post Episode 3 and the conclusion to the Olympic National Park series. I hope you enjoy them!

Jamie "Queen Rat" Higgins