Annual Club Paddle
Saluda River by Rock Garrick
Fifteen paddlers assembled in the parking lot at Riverbanks Zoo at 6:30 PM in anticipation of paddling on one of the hottest Tuesday evenings in July. After a very brief meeting conducted by our president, Dennis Catoe and I separated the paddlers into two groups...one group that preferred whitewater and the other group that wanted to experience a less frothy paddle...more about this group later....
As we shuttled out vehicles to the take-out at the West Columbia Amphitheater, the skies were darkening and the thunder was roaring on the West Columbia side of the river...we were all hoping that the thunderstorm kept moving south away from the river....
The Saluda paddle from the Zoo to Gervais Street was enjoyed by six paddlers...Kyle Altman and I paddled the only whitewater boats...the four other paddlers were all in recreational solo boats. After putting in at the "Zoo Beach", I started down river in my Corsica S, with Kyle in his C-1 as the Sweep.
We scouted Shandon Rapid and everyone commented that nothing appeared on the river, the same as it looked from the river bank. Since it was Tuesday, there was no sighting of the RAC (Rent-A-Cop) from The Reserve (the high dollar estate property above Shandon Rapid). One of the paddlers, Moon, had traveled all the way from Spartanburg to join in the fun...he actually had a great run at Shandon Rapid without scouting.
Kyle paddled to an eddy about half way down the run, as I ran past him to set up a safety rope at the river right beach. I bumped a big rock on my way down, but only suffered a boat half full of water (I wasn't wearing my spray skirt). Jon found the same rock on his run...the two other new "whitewater" paddlers did a great job on their Shandon Run....We had no swimmers in our group even though it was the first time for the four. I made a practice rope throw, just to demonstrate to the newbies that I was there for them in case they had taken the big plunge on their first attempt.
I dumped the water from my boat and then we were on our way...the small standing waves at Whitehouse Rapid shared some more river water with my boat (next time I'll be sure to wear my skirt). As we passed the outcrop of Rocky Shoal Spider Lilys, I took on some more water from the waves...it was all refreshing on such a hot day.
Picking a route through the rock garden was tricky...three boats got hung up on the rocks for a bit, but everyone took it in stride. Our arrival at the take-out was greeted by Mike Hollis...we were on the river approximately 1.25 hours and arrived just as darkness was ascending on Columbia's Treasure, the wonderful 3 Rivers.
The other nine club members in the group that was paddling on the Broad River from the Diversion Dam to Gervais Street had told us to wait no longer than fifteen minutes for them to arrive...after an hour we began to worry, but knowing they were in the competent guidance of Dennis, we felt sure they would be along soon. As we were devouring some traditional "after paddle" wings, Dennis called to let us know they had gotten off the river at 10:30 PM (Another torch light paddle).
Broad River by Dennis Catoe
Date: July 29, 2008 est 7:30pm start of paddle
Water Flow: appox. 52.6 gauge (this is too low to recommend).
Put-in: Diversion dam on south end of River Front Park. Access is first left off Broad River Road as you cross bridge over Broad River and Canal. Follow dirt road to parking area. Carry boats across dam gates to gravel ramp below diversion dam on Broad River. Equipped with restrooms.
Take-out: Gervais Street Bridge at West Columbia River Front Park
Paddlers: Trip leader: Dennis Catoe. 8 paddlers including several new members and prospective members. A sign-up sheet was not available. (I would ask all those who paddled to e-mail me so that I can list their names. You deserve recognition for you efforts.)
Best Conditions: River level was at 52.6 foot gauge which is not an acceptable level. Best time is in spring with some spill over dam.
Potential Hazards: Moving water with possible strainers under bridges. Numerous rocks and pull-overs.
Trip Description: This trip starts on Broad River at diversion dam and crosses to Saluda River at Whitehouse rapids and turns into Congaree River before take-out at Gervais Street Bridge. The paddle takes 2 hours normally but due to low water this trip took over 3 hours. This trip is long slow flatwater in the middle section but has rapids (class I ) at the beginning near the dam and at the last section from Whitehouse rapids to Gervais Street bridge. During the flat water section the head wind was strong enough that you would be pushed back upstream if you didn't paddle. There even were waves with water caps from the wind. Very unusual conditions which I think was caused by a nearby storm that just passed South of our location and the extreme low water conditions. There were several pull-overs due to abundance of large rocks and lack of water. Poor conditions slowed down normal paddle speed and once dark came at 9 pm then all visibility was gone. No moon. You could see 20 feet at best. Hard to find open routes. I would take a route merely to hit a dead-end and double back to take better route. There were numerous small rapids more like sliding down a washboard. I would take point and then get out and stand to mark the spot for the paddlers. Due to the darkness, conditions, and experience of the paddlers, all these situations had to be negotiated one paddler at a time. I would get each paddler through before I would get back to paddle to next situation. This took much more time to get down river.
Beware danger of sweepers along banks near River Front park on Columbia side. It is especially dangerous under I-126 bridge. I approached 2nd arch from Columbia side as it appeared to be only arch with running water. Within 15 foot I realized there was a large tree trapped sideways causing a dam blockage with extreme suction strainer. I jumped on a boulder and waived everyone away and had them pull over boulders to the right of the strainer. This was a very dangerous situation that could have been avoided if visibility was better. It is recommended that you pass under I-126 bridge as far right near islands as possible. It may require pull–overs but is only safe route. This trip is not recommended as a night paddle as there are too many obstructions and water dangers.
We then worked our way across toward West Columbia side through the islands. We reached the Saluda River above Whitehouse rapids and had to pass through the rapids in darkness which made for excitement. At least we now had water. We reached take-out at 10:30 pm, 90 minutes later than planned. At last count we only had 2 or 3 spills during trip.
A special notation: The paddlers on this trip signed up for flatwater and got more whitewater. These were bad conditions even for experienced paddlers and yet almost all these paddlers were novice paddlers. Still there were no complaints or whining. They did what they had to do and no one panicked and we stuck together. I am very proud of all these paddlers and know they had a lot of experience gained all in one night.
Recommendations: Trip leaders need to double the estimated paddle time if there are numerous paddlers or novice paddlers or if water and weather conditions are very poor. You can only go the speed of the slowest paddler. There should be at least one experience paddler for every four paddlers. I also failed to have proper lighting for all paddlers. If late afternoon paddles are planned, I would always require lighting as delays can occur.
Broad River by Kathy Sheppard
An evening paddle on the river is a beautiful experience. And if a little whitewater experience is what you're after, be sure to take the Broad River "flatwater" option on the July Paddle.
Our intrepid nine in two canoes, four appropriately-sized kayaks, and one honking way-too-long-for-these-conditions kayak (mine) departed the dam area around 7:45 p.m. The water was nice and flat at the put in and for the first fifty feet or so we paddled eagerly forward...and then the fun started. The first challenge was the tricky little drop plus sharp turn just offshore. Dennis scouted the route and eased everyone through without incident. Then onward for a few peaceful moments...until the next tricky little drop and sharp turn. After that the river deepened and lived up to its name for a while...until the NEXT tricky little drop....
The evening sounds on the river are magical. There's the gentle splash of whitecaps against your prow as you paddle into a stiff breeze. The musical chant of frogs rising from both banks as the sunlight recedes. The startled cry of nesting birds suddenly awakened. The scraping of plastic on rock. The calls from the deepening gloom on all sides: "Wait up, we're stuck here..." and excitingly, the sound of water rushing and falling – that's right, falling – over boulders ahead in the darkness.
Even very low water moves pretty fast between rock outcroppings. Some of those drops were downright exhilerating, though none could rightly be called rapids. Everyone did well at every challenge under our leader's expert guidance, and there were few swimmers.
The refreshingly cold Saluda met us as we cleared the interstate overpass, and we knew we would soon be in sight of our goal. Actually it was hard to see much of anything by that point and paddlers were reaching for headlamps. Some regretted leaving theirs behind with the spare batteries, but the several little beams of light were comforting and helpful in the gloom.
We speculated whether the whitewater group had finished up and were at this moment tucking into a hot dinner and cold beer. And then, just as some of us were beginning to wonder: Why didn't I take the BLUE pill? the bright tower of an apartment building on Highway 1 appeared over the trees, and we knew we were nearing our goal.
Things got downright exciting as the Gervais Street bridge came into view. We clustered tightly, following Dennis' passage through the rocks and into the swift current flowing under the arches and on into shore below the New Orleans restaurant. Some of us, that is. Others, whose extra-long boat got pinned on a rock within spitting distance of the takeout, flipped and took a refreshing late-night bath in the chilly Congaree.
Without Dennis' encouragement and expertise, as beginners we might have been in a bit of trouble on this trip. There was never a sense of real danger with the water as shallow as it is, however, and it will be fun to do this trip again sometime when the river is up. And if there were E. coli swimming alongside us in the water, we never noticed. Overall, it was a great learning experience, an energetic workout and as always, a good time on the river.
