There's a certain excitement and sense of exploration in the air when the boats are lined up at the put-in of a run that nobody in the group has ever run before.


A view of Johnson Mills. The total drop is about 17 feet. Some remains of the old flume can be seen in the lower right. This is not a dam but a natural drop that the mill took advantage of. It's the biggest drop I've ever run, although I probably have run more difficult rapids in the technical sense.


A better view of the cliffs above Johnson Mills.


Kenny Warwick halfway down Johnson Mills. It was little too low and we all had to fight with the rocks.


Kenny Warwick boofing the living snark out of the last ledge at Johnson Mills.


The Roaring River is true creeking with a brushy streambed between rock walls.


An ominous class III horizon line a short distance below Johnson Mills. There was at least some wood in all of the significant rapids of the Roaring River. Some can be seen on the right here. There was more downstream in the runout on river left.


A slightly different view of the same drop showing the rock garden nature of the rapid. I was in a cool eddy next to a rock wall on river left when I took this one.


A poor picture I took from 'neath the Hemlocks on river right. You can make out some of the boulders that had to be avoided when running the rapid. Hal and Kenny took a bunch of time scouting this one but I just spotted a potential line that would avoid all of the obvious wood and ran it.


Creeky rapids beneath a high bluff.


Hal Tutor in front of more scenic cliffs. Trivia: Hal is paddling Eric Jackson's 2004 freestyle world championship boat. It was a gift.


Kenny Warwick "riding in the back seat" in his Pyranha Ammo in the class I-II portion of the Roaring River.


Yahoos cruising in class I on the lower Roaring River.



Typical bluffs above the Roaring.

We saw a LOT of beaver sign on the Roaring River, including this felled tree in the lower section.