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Chattooga Headwaters Section 0 , or a step down from 00.

Chattooga Headwaters Section 0 , or a step down from 00.

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4,6936

    Apr 24, 2014#1

    Back in the droughty summer of '93, exploring the Chattooga Headwaters, then forbidden to paddlers.

    Our first wade in the water was about 4 miles, from Slot Falls just above Green Creek, down to Bullpen Bridge. This is known as Chattooga Section 00, or the Chattooga Cliffs section.

    http://www.songofthepaddle.co.uk/forum/ ... oga+cliffs

    http://tinyurl.com/lmsml88

    And there was the Chattooga sampler, covering the lower 25 miles that have long been open to paddlers.

    http://www.songofthepaddle.co.uk/forum/ ... ga-Sampler

    Of course, I didn't explore section 00 all in a day. Probably it took 5 trips, two with my wife along. Some sections I covered twice. This had partly to do with the rocky complication of the Chattooga 00 streambed and surround.

    The next step down the Headwaters, Chattooga 0 or the Ellicott Rock section, is about seven miles along, ending at Burrells Ford Bridge.

    There is no trail along the river for the first two miles. At that point the river reaches Ellicott Rock, an old survey marker for the Georgia-South Carolina-North Carolina border intersection. There, three hiking trails converge, one from the NE, another from the NW, and the Chattooga River Trail coming up from Burrells Ford on the east bank.






    I explored Chattooga 0 in two separate assaults. In the first, I waded down two miles from Bullpen Bridge to Ellicott Rock, and then returned upstream. We'll look at those pictures first.

    Here's Bullpen Falls below the bridge.

    chatz1 by ezwater, on Flickr

    Alum Creek enters from the west.

    chatz2 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Looking downstream. In 1993, I had not found any written accounts of Chattooga 0, and I did not know what to expect. In this shot, the river appears to be dropping away.

    chatz4 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Looking back from near the lip of the drop, and then from around the pool below. I'd guess it's about a 6 foot drop.

    chatz5 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz60 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz6 by ezwater, on Flickr


    The river turned left, eastward, and right away appeared another ledge, lower but more complex.

    chatz7 by ezwater, on Flickr


    The river continued ESE, with frequent rock jams.

    chatz8 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz9 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz10 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz11 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz13 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Just a detail that intrigued me. Why the brick like fractures? You can see my carpet soled canvas wading shoes in the lower right.

    chatz55 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz15 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz14 by ezwater, on Flickr


    The gradient was increasing.

    chatz14.1 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Two shots, taken at different visits, of the same slope falling away. In the second, Ellie, rock hopping, supplies some visual scale.

    chatz19 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz19.1 by ezwater, on Flickr


    And then, as with one of our Toto toilets, the big flush.

    chatz18 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz17.1 by ezwater, on Flickr



    This class 5 rapid has since been named "SuperCorkscrew", a sadly missed opportunity for being original. Corkscrew is a major rapid on Section 4 of the Chattooga, and is not much like this one at all.


    chatz20 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Supercork from below. Again I've used shots from more than one visit, and some show enough water in the rapid to give some idea of what it would be like to run it. Paddlers who portage use the river right bank, but we found a sinuous but easier route through the rocks on river left.

    chatz21 by ezwater, on Flickr


    chatz21.3 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz22.1 by ezwater, on Flickr

    Going downstream from SuperCork.

    chatz23 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz24 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz25 by ezwater, on Flickr

    Scotsman Creek comes in from the east, and the river turns somewhat southward.

    chatz26 by ezwater, on Flickr

    The junction of Scotsman and the river. That's Joe Pye Weed blooming on the left.

    Project5 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Difficult photography conditions.

    chatz31 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz32 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz34 by ezwater, on Flickr


    And just as the sun comes out, water drops on the lens cover.

    chatz36 by ezwater, on Flickr


    A sloping drop, maybe 5-6 feet high.

    chatz37 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz38 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Pools here and there, but mostly a rocky mess.

    chatz39.5 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz54 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz40 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz41 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Got murky again, drizzling a bit.

    chatz42 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Fowler Creek enters from the east. Trails approach from east and west at around this point.

    chatz47 by ezwater, on Flickr

    chatz49 by ezwater, on Flickr


    Near the trail junction and Ellicott Rock, the river gentled down a good bit. An easy, rather level trail comes up along the east bank of the river from Burrells Ford, and fishermen and hikers can get near Ellicott Rock with little difficulty, some to camp overnight. Going farther upstream to Bullpen Bridge is not possible, except by wading as I would do to return to my car.

    Next, while you shake the sand out of your shoes and let your shorts dry a bit, I'll load and post the pictures for the 5 miles down to Burrells Ford.

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      Apr 24, 2014#2

      Great looking river!
      All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.

      27K3,045
      Contributing Member
      27K3,045

        Apr 24, 2014#3

        So many rivers, so little time!
        SMopencanoePaddler,blogger,camper,pyromaniac:

        Blog: Wilderness is a State of Mind

        Paddle Points - where to paddle

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          Chattooga Headwaters, Ellicot Rock to Burrells Ford

          Apr 25, 2014#4

          For the remaining ~5 miles of Chattooga Headwaters Section 0, it made the most sense for me to drive one summer weekend to Burrells Ford Bridge, and follow the Chattooga River Trail upstream to Ellicot Rock at the Georgia/North Carolina/South Carolina border.

          Then I would wade into the river and proceed downstream as usual, taking pictures.

          Here's the map.

          Copy of SpliceChatt0map by ezwater, on Flickr

          The surroundings continue to be rugged, mountainous, though the river gradient is decreasing. Note Bad Creek and the East Fork of the Chattooga entering from the east. The Burrells Ford Bridge and road are hard to discern, but trust the asterisk. The actual risk is quite acceptable.

          This splice, taken near Ellicot Rock, shows how low the water was for my summer wading explorations.

          Project1 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz70 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz74 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz75 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz76 by ezwater, on Flickr


          Sometimes the gradient increased, and rocky junk indicated that even more water would be needed to get a boat through.

          chatz80 by ezwater, on Flickr

          A shallow channel to one side of an island.

          chatz82 by ezwater, on Flickr


          You can see the small volume of water in this mountain river, in a dry summer.

          chatz86 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz88 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz90 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz99 by ezwater, on Flickr


          I spliced a picture of a shady zone with one of a sunny zone to get this sort-of-satisfactory result.

          Project10 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz119 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz126 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz128 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz133 by ezwater, on Flickr


          Look carefully in the center distance, and you can see the bridge over the East Fork of the Chattooga. The East Fork is probably not ever going to be a safe paddling run, but there is a trail down the East Fork, from the trout hatchery to the Chattooga.

          chatz134 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz135 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz137 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz142 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz143 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz150 by ezwater, on Flickr


          What is that, a *fisherperson* in the distance?

          chatz155 by ezwater, on Flickr

          Another one! How can they be cluttering up the river, when so many whitewater paddlers are waiting to descend, unimpeded?!?!

          chatz156 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz157 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz159 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz163 by ezwater, on Flickr


          A side creek enters between rock layers.

          chatz174 by ezwater, on Flickr

          chatz177 by ezwater, on Flickr


          So Section 0 of the Headwaters starts with two very difficult miles, but after crossing the south border of North Carolina, it eases to be a class 2+ run with a few class 3 bits. Section 0 would draw more paddlers if there were a way to get past those first two miles. There isn't.