Congaree River Overnight - CANCELLED
Submitted by PP Admin on March 5, 2007 - 9:00am.
Posted 3-7-2007 9:15 am
Congaree Overnight March 10 & 11 is CANCELLED
I am CANCELING the Congaree overnight trip due to the flooding of the park, the slow decrease of the water level at the Gadsden river gauge, and the likely miserable camping conditions trying to camp on very recently flooded (if not still flooded!) floodplain . It appears questionable at this point if the access road to the Congaree River will be passable by Friday and the weather forecast is predicting chance of rain Friday night through Sunday, which will not improve camping conditions or the river level. I also noticed that the water discharge rate on both the Saluda and Broad rivers was exceptionally high and this water has to go downstream to the CNP.
Ed Brown
This overnight trip is down the section of the Congaree river that borders Congaree National Park and covers approximately 25 river miles over 2 days. This section of the river is remote and includes the Congaree Bluffs. Many of the parks largest trees are along this section which does not have hiking trails, which makes paddling the best way to access this area. On last years trip the swamp wildflowers were blooming and we spotted bald eagles, osprey and a turkey. A park biologist will be joining us this year as an added bonus. We will camp overnight by the river in the park which will be primitive camping with no facilities so you need to bring enough food, drink, and supplies for 2 days. Be prepared for possible inclement weather such as rain. High-cut boots are recommended since areas of the park can be muddy. We will also do some (optional) hiking in the park. This section of the river is generally free of obstructions and therefore the paddling is non-technical. The trip report from last year's trip (March 18-19, 2006) is still on the website if you want to check it out. We will meet at the Congaree National Park Visitors Center at 9am on saturday. After obtaining our (free) backcountry camping permits we will shuttle our boats to the put-in and then park our vehicles at the overnight parking lot outside the park entrance road gate. The take-out will be at the Hwy. 601 bridge late sunday afternoon. E-mail me (DocEdB@aol.com) if you plan on coming on the trip or if you have any questions. Photos from last year's trip are here.
03/10/2007 - 9:00am
03/11/2007 - 5:00pm
Ed Brown
Posted 3-7-2007 9:15 am
Congaree Overnight March 10 & 11 is CANCELLED
I am CANCELING the Congaree overnight trip due to the flooding of the park, the slow decrease of the water level at the Gadsden river gauge, and the likely miserable camping conditions trying to camp on very recently flooded (if not still flooded!) floodplain . It appears questionable at this point if the access road to the Congaree River will be passable by Friday and the weather forecast is predicting chance of rain Friday night through Sunday, which will not improve camping conditions or the river level. I also noticed that the water discharge rate on both the Saluda and Broad rivers was exceptionally high and this water has to go downstream to the CNP.
Ed Brown
This overnight trip is down the section of the Congaree river that borders Congaree National Park and covers approximately 25 river miles over 2 days. This section of the river is remote and includes the Congaree Bluffs. Many of the parks largest trees are along this section which does not have hiking trails, which makes paddling the best way to access this area. On last years trip the swamp wildflowers were blooming and we spotted bald eagles, osprey and a turkey. A park biologist will be joining us this year as an added bonus. We will camp overnight by the river in the park which will be primitive camping with no facilities so you need to bring enough food, drink, and supplies for 2 days. Be prepared for possible inclement weather such as rain. High-cut boots are recommended since areas of the park can be muddy. We will also do some (optional) hiking in the park. This section of the river is generally free of obstructions and therefore the paddling is non-technical. The trip report from last year's trip (March 18-19, 2006) is still on the website if you want to check it out. We will meet at the Congaree National Park Visitors Center at 9am on saturday. After obtaining our (free) backcountry camping permits we will shuttle our boats to the put-in and then park our vehicles at the overnight parking lot outside the park entrance road gate. The take-out will be at the Hwy. 601 bridge late sunday afternoon. E-mail me (DocEdB@aol.com) if you plan on coming on the trip or if you have any questions. Photos from last year's trip are here.
