The day dawned rainy and gloomy Sunday as nine TVCCers headed over to the mountains of North Carolina for some free-flowing paddling. The rain eventually stopped before we got to the meeting point and by the time we launched the sky was lightening. The fall colors were magnificent, nearing peak in those high foothills of the Smokies and the sky cleared off to give us sun, blue, and white fluffy clouds for most of the afternoon.

The level was on the low side of medium, but still runnable. Most rapids could be run by picking a careful line. The Little Tennessee is in a beautiful gorge, part of the run is road-side but eventually it winds back into the forested mountains and no sign of habitation is visible for miles. I saw only two houses the entire time. We looked up and down the valley at the blazing autumn colors and watched the leaves float down to the river surface. There are times when I wish Autumn would last for about 6 months.

Most of the rapids on the Little T are class I or I+ but there were a few class II rapids, and the last rapid before we reached the lake was a very long series of class II ledges that shed at least 6 or 8 feet before you got to the bottom. I suspect that we still missed the best rapid, a reputed class III wave train that is still under the lake at the end of the run. I may go back in the Winter to get that one!

We had one flatwater swim. It had something to do with a backdeck roll, a popped skirt, and rescuing a kitten??? Not sure what that was about. Mythological, hypothetical kittens make good excuses. We're all baffled. The same paddler claimed to have a frog in his boat at some point. Said paddler seemed a bit confused about the why or wherefore and so forth. Otherwise he seemed sober.

Clouds fleeted, winds ruffled gold and red trees, and sun reflected off the beautiful surface of the Little Tennessee on this Sunday afternoon. Afterward, everyone headed to the restaurant at Nantahala Village, and the food and service were good. We'll be going back again.

Another new river under the belt! I enjoy exploring even the easy ones. There is a certain irreplacable excitement to exploring something new when you have a personal first descent. The excitement is racheted up that much more when you get a lengthy complex rapid to run and nobody really knows the line. With the arrival of the Fall and Winter rains, I'm hoping more of you will join me on these less-frequently run streams . . . I've got a list of destinations. All I need is some rain and a few friends willing to join in the fun.

SYOTR

Paddlers:
Betsy Westerfield
Lois Newton (guide)
Katie Larue
Jim Ledbetter
Vicky Miller
Steve Givens
Anne Robinson
Caroline Rand
Allen Pogue (author)