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Flat - State Forest Rd. (Route 1614) to Lake Michie
Flat, North Carolina, US |
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State Forest Rd. (Route 1614) to Lake Michie
| Usual Difficulty | I-III (for normal flows) |
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| Length | 4 Miles |
The Big Wave
The Big Wave
Photo of Craig MacKinnon by John Grimes @ 7.4
Gauge Information
| Name | Range | Difficulty | Updated | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FLAT RIVER AT BAHAMA, NC | ||||
| usgs-02085500 | 2.00 - 7.00 ft | I-III | 00h53m | 1.7 ft (too low) |
River Description
User CommentsA pretty little run with lots of little rapids and some III's thrown in. Even at lower volumes the water keeps moving nicely until you reach the small broken out dam. From that point on, it slows considerably and becomes flat (pun intended) as you near the mouth and enter Lake Michie.
Robert Martin 10-16-2000 12:38:04
Minimum 2' Maximum (none). This is a beautiful paddle through NCSU forest land. At levels of 3'usgs and up there is a great surfing wave 2/3 through the run. Best play level is between 3' and 4'(IMHO)
Directions to Take Out
From Rt. 70 Bypass / Rt. 85 in Durham, take Exit 176B and go north on Duke St. about 2 1/2 miles to where it merges and becomes Roxboro St. Continue on Roxboro St. for about another 6 1/2 miles (9 miles all together). Turn right onto Bahama Rd. (watch for signs for the town of Bahama and Lake Michie and a traffic light at intersection). Go east on Bahama Rd. 3.3 miles, cross over the lake and turn right into Lake Michie Boat House area (there is parking on the left after the bridge up Wilkins Rd., but I've seen signs there saying they want all boat launches from the Boat House).
Directions from Take Out to Put In
Turn left out of Boat House area and go 1.4 miles west on Bahama Rd. Turn right onto Quail Roost Rd. Go about 2 1/2 miles to it's end at Highway 501(Roxboro Rd.). Turn right onto Highway 501 and take first right onto Moore's Mill Rd. Go 1/10 mile to State Forest Rd. (first road on right - after dirt driveway). Turn right onto State Forest Rd. (immediately turns to gravel). State Forest Rd. is not marked, but there is a hand stenciled sign saying "Hill Forest" on the corner. There is a wooden 1-lane bridge crossing the Flat River about a mile down the road. The road is very narrow and there are no real shoulders. Parking is best on the far side of the bridge where the road widens a bit. The surrounding land is the property of NC State University and they have several access gates just off the road. Make sure you do not block these gates when you park. Access to the river is easy from either side of the bridge.
StreamTeam Status: Not Verified
Last Updated: 2006-11-04 12:30:00
Editors
Rapid Descriptions
No rapids entered. If you know names, and locations of the rapids please contact and advise the StreamTeam member for this run. Do more than just check gauges; join over 5,000 AW members today.
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State Forest Rd. (Route 1614) to Lake Michie, Flat North Carolina, US (mobile)
User Comments
with huge wave trains and a great surfing wave (aka Craig's Bunny hole) mid ways down. Below this
is the island that is washed through at 7 feet USGS. There is a smaller ledge below the bunny hole.
If you flush off the hole, hit the eddy fast or you have to get out of your boat and climb over a
rock to get back up. Definitely worth the trip if the level is good! I paddled this one other time
at 3.4 USGS on a sunny day. Lots of flat water paddling with a few rapids. The sun is low in
Novemeber when I did this and I found myself going through several of the rapids not being able to
see anything, so bring some sunglasses!
washed over. <br />
<br />
At the bottom of this rapid, which I shall officially name "Fluffy" for Craig McKinnon's
description of the hole at 7' as a "Fluffy Bunny Hole", is an island which can be a
hazard at high water. You just have to be aware of the basically river wide strainer. There are
lots of slots through it, but you could be in trouble if you miss the slots. <br />
<br />
Also at 8'+, there are plenty of giant waves and deep holes scattered about, and bank eddys are
scarce, making this a class IV run (imho). <br />
<br />
OK from 5-7' and just gets better the higher the water goes. There is perfect eddy service on river
left of the hole, with a large flat rock to spectate/video/spot logs from. If you want to avoid
some of the logs, go when the river level is past peak and dropping. Otherwise, have someone
standing on the bank spotting and yelling "LOG!" like we did.
7 feet on this gauge. Very friendly and retentive enough to spin. At this level you will need to
watch out for logs coming downstream.