Primary River: French Broad Section 9, Barnard to Stackhouse NC

Point of contact: Kim Abney

Required gear: Coast guard approved PFD, whitewater canoe or kayak with floatation, skirt for your kayak, water sports helmet, paddle, appropriate clothing for the water’s temperature, closed toes shoes (no water sandals), a water bottle that clips into your boat.

Optional gear: Lunch, first aid kit

This is a class III run. You need to be confident & comfortable running rapids similar in difficulty to Nantahala Falls before paddling this section of river. We will meet at Stackhouse. Try to carpool since there is limited parking. Time will be sent out by email/messenger. See discussion for details. https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/view/river-detail/1074/main

Experience necessary to determine suitability: The section we are running is the upper section from Barnard to Stackhouse. This is more difficult than the Nantahala (including running the falls), but it is slightly less difficult than the upper Pigeon River gorge. This is not a training trip, although we will be doing some fun and challenging moves for those who wish to work on skills. It is a challenge-by-choice environment where you can do as much, or as little, as you want to attempt. Where there are optional lines (easiest/moderate/hard), we will discuss those and will scout as needed to give those who don't know this section of river options to choose the best line for them, or to portage if you choose.

RIVER BETA NOTE: We will NOT be running the lower section that contains the two largest rapids (Kayaker's Ledge - Class 3+ & Frank Bells - Class 4) that you will see listed on the AW page describing this run.

RIVER LEVELS: This trip will go at river levels up to 4,500 cfs, but be aware that if it is higher level than around 2,000 cfs, boaters that are unsure of their abilities should opt out and wait for a more reasonable level. Higher water levels can result in very long swims on this larger size river.

ACCEPTABLE WATERCRAFT: ONLY bring a legitimate whitewater craft (whitewater kayak with float bags, whitewater canoe with float bags, whitewater I.K., etc. NO REC BOATS or other craft not purpose-built for at least Class 3 whitewater.

SHUTTLE PLAN: We are meeting at the Stackhouse takeout. From there, we will consolidate into as few vehicles as possible to transport people/boats/gear to the Barnard put-in. After the trip, we'll coordinate to get those who shuttled to the put-in back up to Barnard with their gear to their vehicles. The shuttle drive takes about 15-20 minutes.

Registration opens the Saturday prior to the paddling date, and closes Thursday at 10pm. You are welcome to email the trip leader, connect with them via Facebook Messenger, or email the Club for more information about the river.

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