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Playspot: USA, North Carolina, Southeast, Nantahala River, NOC wave.

Update: the wave is now smaller and it is possible to pull a helix. Also it is virtually impossible to throw a flip there. In the hole below you can throw loops also but you won't stay in.

What's it like

This is a great wave that is right at NOC on the Nantahala River. It consists of one really fast, really fun wave and another very small cartwheel pourover. It is flatter on river right and gradually gets steeper towards river left. The wave stands about 4 ft and has a curling shoulder on surfers' right. The peak crashes down on itself and at higher releases it forms a hole. It’s a fast wave that’s good for flat spins, cleans, wave wheels and kickflips. For the latter two, you have to be careful or the shoulder will grab you and reject you on entry if you’re trying to get on it from the river left eddy.

The reason why beginners don't come down here is that it is a pretty tough wave to figure out, and there are rocks just downstream. You have to hit your roll pretty quick if you do not want to hit your head. Also, remember to tuck! The rocks are not that bad, but you can take a few hits if you do not tuck.

This is also a great place to hone your ferries, since the water is moving pretty fast, especially for the Nantahala.

There is one more danger. After the wave, there is an 80 yard long pool. At the bottom of the pool is a class V rapid (class III+ for difficulty, class V for danger, the rocks are jagged because they have been blasted). However, it is really easy to avoid this, swimmers have plenty of time and are usually helped by other kayakers.

The water is a constant 45°F, like all of the Nantahala and runs from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM (sometimes it is 9:00 PM).

How to get there

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Info sources

[mail address protected from spambots with javascript] , Boyd Ruppelt < [mail address protected from spambots with javascript] : "Andrew Bell"

Nearest weather station (°C):