Etowah River-Dawson Forest Paddling Trip

On April 3rd, 2010, I participated in a Georgia Canoeing Association led trip down the Dawson Forest section of the Etowah River.

To view the video go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h75mNUr_AWU
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The day was warm and there were about 8 of us. Buddy Goolsby had just bought a cross over, hybrid kayak and was taking it on its maiden journey. Buddy normally paddles canoe, but his knees are starting to give him problems so he has decided to come over to the dark side of kayak paddling.

We also had a paddle boarder named Steve Combs join us. I’d only read about paddling boarding on the internet and in paddling magazines so I was excited to see someone paddle one. Steve made it look so easy and it looked like a lot of fun.

The Dawson Forest section of the Etowah is considered the jewel of the Etowah. Dawson Forest is really Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area. Dawson Forest is used by many recreationists from paddlers, hikers, horseback riders, hunters and fishermen. Currently, the City of Atlanta owns the property, but leases it to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

I had heard that the site was once used for military nuclear radiation experiments so I decided to do a little internet research. I found that the property was once owned by the US Air Force and was the site of the Georgia Nuclear Aircraft Laboratory (GNAL). The mission of GNAL was to conduct research to determine the feasibility of nuclear propelled aircraft. The site was operated from the early 50s to the early 70s. Old abandoned bridges, spooky bunkers and rusty railroad bridges can be seen while paddling the peaceful Etowah. There are some old buildings that are totally off limits from the public due to high levels of radiation, but for the most part there are no radiation threats. The Georgia Environmental Protection Division routinely monitors the site to ensure the property is safe for recreational users.

Another interesting aspect of the upper Etowah River (above Allatoona Lake) is that it is considered one of the most ecologically diverse rivers for its relatively small watershed size. 33 species of fish and intvertebrates are considered imperiled and three species of fish and five species of mussels are on the Federal Endangered Species list. Also, four species of fish (Etowah Darter, Cherokee Darter and two species of Holiday Darter) are endemic meaning they can be found no where else in the world. At one time, the Etowah was home to 91 species of fish and 51 species of mussels, but deforestation, poor farming practices and the 1800's gold mining practices has damaged the Etowah.

The Upper Etowah is truly unique and the Dawson Forest section of the Etowah is probably one of the most secluded rivers in North Georgia. Because it is a wildlife management area, there is no development on most of the 9 miles of river between the put in at Hwy 9 and the take out at Kelly Bridge Road.

The river is mostly flat with a few lower class I riffles. We had a nice strong current pushing us past beautiful rock outcrops and cliff walls. We did have to portage a river-wide strainer, but it was an easy portage. As you can see by the you tube video, we all had a great time and it was another awesome day on the river!