Big Panther Creek, |
|
This one doesn't run very much due to a small drainage. It takes a lot of water and falls
quickly. Usually flashes if the Chattooga is well over three feet.
Best gauge for this is the small white pipe directly upstream of the small bridge entering the
put in parking lot. About 8" below the pipe should be considered minimum and 4" below is very
fun. Higher water will make things more fun downstream but make for some pushy water in places
filled with logjams and strainers. Be careful at high water on this one, especially in the upper
stretch that has the most wood.
River Description:
On June 7, 2003, Alex Harvey organized a trip down Big Panther that included Will Van De Berg,
John (Crusty) McRae, and Drew Dekle. The following is a brief report of what we found.
This is a great (but chockfull of wood and rhodo) run that is surprisingly different in character
than the nearby Tallulah Gorge. The upper section of the run, which is basically above the small
bridge on the hiking trail, is very tight and low volume with endless strainers, logjams and
heavy rhododenron coverage. You will do a bunch of hard charging through rhodo clumps while
running class 3 and 4 rapids in this stretch of water. There is one multi part class 5 rapid in
this upper stretch that needs logs removed from the first section to make it runnable (last run
on 6/7/03 and it was jammed up with logs), but the bottom section of the rapid was runnable by
catching eddy on far river left at bottom and ferrying out in front of a small log infested
undercut. This drop is recognized by the distinct horizon line that will come up. Scout on river
left. The rapid involves a bony drop over about 8' onto a rock shelf, then carves around a right
turn and down into what is currently a log across the river buttressed by a serious log
pincushion on far right and a riverwide log 6' or so below that. Yeeesh! If it is clear, then run
it, if not, then carry and put in on river left immediately downstream of the log at the bottom
and run the second section of the rapid.
After running past the bridge, another creek comes in from left and adds to the volume and the
creek broadens out a bit, in time for a series of drops (III+/IV-) at the site of some large
boulders on river left and right. Run this either down the center or river left. Further down,
you will need to get out (on right) at the VERY distinct horizon line and look at Big Panther
Falls. The upper section of the falls looks runnable, but feeds dangerously into the main drop of
about 50'. We walked the whole lot out of prudence the upper is definitely runnable and perhaps
depending on water level, the big drop might be doable too. Heath Miller has now run the falls.
Beneath the big drop, the bottom of the creek drops out for several miles and gives up great
class 5 and 4+ rapids, with slides, boofs and multi-staged drops abounding, with one drop giving
up 25-30' of elevation over a short stretch and then another drop immediately beneath it that
drops another 15' or more. Further down, an awesome 10' boof awaits; Run that dead center for
nice air time. Several slildes follow.
This is a very fun creek but it requires a good deal of threading your way through the wood in a
many places. Give yourself more time than you think you would need for a 5.3 mile run to allow
for many bushwhacking portages around hazards. Without the wood, this would be a great run for
someone not yet up to the Narrows of the Green but who has done Tallulah and other easier steep
stuff. The lines are all straightforward and good to go, but the constant threat of trees in the
water make for more intensity than the rapids would normally call for.
PUT-IN/TAKE-OUT DIRECTIONS:
Put in at the parking area on Old Hwy 441. Paddle under the small bridge, under the road's
overpass and into the run. Beware strainers that come up soon afterwards.
Take-out: From Toccoa, take Prather Bridge Road, then Yonah Dam Road until a dirt road heads up
the creek. (There is a small white sign with "Church" on it at the turn for the dirt road.) Park
where the road deadends at the creek. There is a trail that can be hiked upstream from here to
look at the bottom of the run.
| When | River/Gauge | Subject | Level | Reporter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Panther CreekOld Hwy 441 to dirt road off Yonah Lake Road [ ] |
|
n/a | boof or die | |
| 6y156d06h40m | Big Panther Creek [GA] |
John Mcrae in AFTP
|
n/a | Alex Harvey |
| 6y156d06h40m | Big Panther Creek [GA] |
The put-in for BPC.
|
n/a | Alex Harvey |
No guide books for this stream. If you know of a book that describes this stream please contact and advise the StreamTeam member for this run. No rapids entered. If you know names, and locations of the rapids please contact and advise the StreamTeam member for this run. River Alert
State News
River Links
NWRI - Big Panther Creek Old Hwy 441 to dirt road off Yonah Lake Road (mobile)
User Comments
http://www.AutoBoofProductions.com
http://filebox.vt.edu/users/cdgorman/index.html
right. In short, its the culvert downstream of the "white pvc pipe" most people have been using to
gage the creek.
You'll have to pull into the Big Panther Creek trail parking lot and walk down to the culvert to
see the painted gage.
3.5" BELOW the white pvc pipe is 7" on the painted gage. This is a good minimum for the run. 8"
BELOW the white pvc pipe, as stated above, would be a dry creek bed. I strongly advise against
running it this low.
(4" below the white pvc pipe is 6" on the painted gage.)
From time to time, the 441 Old Historic Hwy culvert might have a channel blocked by logs. This has
only a minimal effect on the painted gage. One blocked channel raises the water by an inch or two
around the painted gage. So its still a very accurate gage for the creek.
disagree with Robert's: I would consider 12" on the painted gauge a minimum (this would correspond
to a level about even with the above-mentioned PVC pipe). You're going to be battling alot of wood
(portages and sketchy limbo maneuvers) and rhododendron in the first 2 miles, and to make that
worth your time you'll want enough water on the few rapids downstream. Otherwise, it's class II -
III shoals the whole way (frustratingly shallow). The slides are fun, but the big boof needed more
water and the boulder gardens would definitely benefit from the reduced pinning potential afforded
by more water. Have fun, and let us all know what you think.
night before. It was about 2 inches under the PVC pipe when we put on. It was super-fun. Here are
some details. First, the shuttle is truly around-the-world. You'll spend at least 45 minutes one
way. This run is truly best if you have a bunny to help. Thanks to some Athens boaters, there is
now a beeline through the trees from the parking area all the way down to where the river clears
out at the footbridge. It's not very wide, but it will do with some prudent ducking of rhodo. Also,
the big drop under the cliff wall will hopefully be cleaned out soon -- making it the best rapid on
the river -- 10 foot total double boof thing into a long around the corner slide under a cliff wall
into a big hole and two good ledges immediately below. I cant wait to run this thing. Almost did
even with the wood, but a mistake at the bottom would have been costly. The river opens up at the
campground on the left and the footbridge. After that, you reach the first rapid, a long slide with
an obvious horizon line. It's good to go, just dont go too far left and end up in the trees or too
far right and end up in the undercut. Left center all the way down will be fine. After that, you'll
get some creeky rapids down to the falls. You will see a narrowing of the river through a 15-foot
slot with a major horizon line below. That's the falls. Start the portage before the entrance slide
to be safe. Carry right. After the falls, you'll see some more great little creeky rapids until you
reach the boof. 5-6 foot steep but not vertical slide into a small moving pool and right down the
pipe over a perfectly clean 10-footer. Super fun. After that you'll see another horizon line. This
is Automatic for the People. You should probably scout left to check out the tree situation, though
the scout trail (or lack thereof) sucks. Go left of center with a little right angle down over the
double boof and boogie right at the bottom to avoid the tree in the washout. Until it's gone, might
consider placing a buddy down there on the tree just in case. The rapid is fine, looks a lot
tougher than it actually is (and a lot easier than the portage trail). The next rapid immediately
downstream is a fun slide with a tricky entrance and a major piton rock at the bottom right waiting
for any stray boaters. Boof left with some good lefthand momentum to be sure to clear the ugly
piton rock at the bottom right. If you hit it right, it's a really smooth ride. The rest is creeky
Class II and III washout until it drops down to Class I-II washout. Takeout at the steel bridge.
It's a pretty long run and if you get on late, it's possible to get stuck in the bottom run-out
after dark. Taking out at the bridge is the best guarantee you'll find your car after dark. I know
this from experience. Overall, I would call BPC a high-quality Class IV-IV+ creek with
Automatic-and slide immediately below sequence and the rapid under the cliff deserving a V.
Obviously, I'm not counting the falls. I think it perfectly fills the elusive in-between Tallulah
and Green territory if you can catch it with good water and it should definitely be run much more
often. As for water levels, I could stand even a little more water. I'd probably run it up to about
two inches over the pipe and down to about six below. I ran it once at 12" below the pipe and had a
miserable day. Six below should be considered the reasonable minimum. While it is still definitely
a high-water paddle this when everything else is blown out kind of run, I am betting that it runs
more often than we think but with a pretty small window of opportunity. Definitely worth the quick
driveby if you are heading to Clayton or Tallulah and there has been a heavy recent downpour. The
only problem with getting on and off in a hurry is the shuttle. Overall, it's a beautiful
wilderness run that rivals even Overflow in scenery in some places. Highly recommend - with good
water, that is.
Automatic is really called Bootcamp and that the 10-footer preceded by a small slide is called
Combat. He said that Bootcamp was one continuous drop at the level they ran it. I forgot to ask if
the falls had been run yet.
rising at about 3 inches a min. So this stream can come up in a hurry even if the Chattooga is less
than 4 feet.
Recently the Chattooga went over 4 feet, Upper tallulah hit 1000 cfs, and overflow hit 2.9 - but
panther was still low. To quote one person who has run it "panther takes a butt load of
water"
. Seems that Will and the boys did get a run of it in.
put-in.