Date & Time

We are leaving Friday late morning/early afternoon. We will stop and eat at NOC Rivers End Restaurant. We may even do a half Nanny trip if we leave early enough. We will arrive Friday evening at the motel. Sometimes we have had rafters come up for just one or two days. We just need 3 or 4 minimum, but prefer 5 per raft, so we can accommodate some fluctuation in the number of people.

Location

West of Ducktown Tennessee on Hwy 64 / 74. Driving time from Columbia is about 5 and one half hours. Link below has maps and directions.
http://ocoee.com/maps/maps.asp

Meet

We meet each morning at the Hardees Restaurant and proceed as a group to the put-in and set shuttle. Details depend on the number of cars and rafters. Most eat and talk for a while at Hardees. Call me (Lee Olson) at the motel when you arrive. See motel number below. Note that cell phones do not work very well in the Ducktown area. They typically work outside on hills and in the lower Ocoee parking lot. They do not work on the river.

General Description

This is a very exciting trip and is my favorite river for reasons of beauty, excitement, safety and predictability. This is rafting trip with pretty steady supply of whitewater in the class 3/4 level. There are 2 sections, known as the "Upper" and the "lower". The Upper was the site of the Olympics a few years back and now the site of the "Olympic Section", a continuous heart pounding quarter mile or so of big wave whitewater. We will be doing both sections on Saturday and Sunday. On Monday we will either do the Lower (as the Upper dies not run on Monday) or we will go to the Nantahala for a easy trip. This decision will be made Sunday evening/Monday morning depending on the wishes of the paddlers. In previous years we have done one or the other & both are fun.

We have 2 rafts with several, but not all of the paddling spots filled. There are some people who will be paddling their own boats as well.

Trip Qualifications

You must be a fun loving, adventurous person in very good physical condition. River skills are required. Whitewater experience is preferred. Natural athletes in good condition get extra points and can have less river skills. Highly skilled whitewater people get extra points and can be in a lesser physical condition. We usually paddle in the lake above the lower to gain coordination and do the lower first to be functioning as a team before doing the upper.

Accommodations

I will be staying at the Ducktown Copper Inn. See below for directions & contact. They will give you a discount if you tell them you are rafting with Lee Olson. I think the discount price is $69 plus tax. There are 2 double beds per room. This Motel will likely fill up Friday night, may be full Saturday night and will not be full Sunday night.

There are several camping facilities in the area. Most boaters stay at Thunder Rock Campground (see below for directions). I do not think they take reservations. This campground is right on the Ocoee with some sites right at the last drop on the Upper.

Food

We eat breakfast in campground, motel or Hardees. Eat lunch at the Ocoee between trips as there are no restaurants within about 10 miles of the river. Bring sandwiches & cold drinks. I usually bring a little extra food for those in my raft. No alcohol at the river or on the river. No glass containers on the river. We eat in restaurants in the evenings in Coppertown/McKaysville sp?).

GEAR

I provide helmets, lifejackets, paddles and a few dry bags. Bring your own if you like. Bring: sunscreen, water bottles, paddling jacket/pants if you chill easily or if weather cools (it happens). I prefer to wear long sleeves to protect from the sun and rubber booties to protect my feet and a swimsuit. Please no sharp objects which might damage the raft including eyelets on shoes. For the sake of clarity, there is no cost for use of any gear, but we do expect rafters to help with shuttles by driving their cars. Bring large plastic bags and towels to ensure your car remains dry. I will have extra plastic bags.

SAFETY

We want to have a lot of fun, but safety is our primary concern. The spot that you have been down a hundred times may be the spot that will hurt you if you become cavalier about safety. We do a safety talk even if you have heard it a hundred times, practice rescue and everyone looks out for everyone else. Everyone must sign the palmetto Paddlers trip waiver. The guides have experience and training and the crew will have general skills and athletic ability. However, rafting is an inherently dangerous sport and it is impossible to remove all risk from the sport.

Directions to Ducktown Copper Inn

This is the fastest and most scenic way to get there.
PHONE: 423-496-5541
I-26 west to Asheville
I-40 East to Exit 27? Clyde.
Turn Left onto Hwy 19 & 23 & 74
Continue 74 South past Bryson City (Hwy 23 will have gone bye bye)
Left on Hwy 19 & 74 through Nantahala gorge
You will pass Nantahala Outdoor Center and the River's End Restaurant
Pass Topton, Andrews, Murphy, Hwy 19 goes bye bye after Murphy
Continue on Hwy 64 & 74
Pass Ranger
Cross into Tennessee
Go about 6 miles and exit North (right) on 68
Motel will be your immediate left as you get fully on to 68.

Hardees

On south side of HYW 64/74 on opposite side from Ducktown Copper Inn, grocery store & Exxon Gas station. About 2 city blocks west of Hwy 68.

THUNDER ROCK Campground

For information call. 423-338-5201
42 campsites on upper Ocoee River upstream from put-in point for whitewater rafting. Facilities are drinking water, vault toilets, picnic tables, and grills. Open year-round. From Cleveland TN, take US 64 East about 28 miles to Ocoee Number 3 Powerhouse. Turn right and go across the concrete bridge. Follow road around powerhouse and take the first right into the campground. This is a USFS campground and doe not take reservations.

CONTACT

Please call Lee Olson, Trip Leader and raft Guide, to go on this trip. I will have my cell on during the whole trip: (803)463-5547. You may also call Rebecca Connelly, Raft Guide (803)513-3770.