Amicalola Creek,

Lower (Highway 53 to Kelly Bridge/Etowah River)

Usual Difficulty	III-IV (may vary with level)
Length	9.75 Miles
Avg. Gradient	29 fpm
Max Gradient	70 fpm

Gauge Information

Name	Range	Difficulty	Updated	Level
AMICALOLA CREEK NEAR DAWSONVILLE, GA.
usgs-02390000	1.00 - 5.00 ft	III-IV	01h09m	1.26 ft (rc= 0.1 )

River Description

All the major rapids on this run take place in the first 2.5 miles and are interspaced by an assortment of II-III ledges, slots, and smaller wave trains. The run is capped off by about six miles of flat water that moves slow even at flood. The gradient of the white water section averages 52 FPM.

Note that the most up-to-date Topo map of the area is 30 years old. A large majority of the roads and trails in the area, including both takout roads, do not appear on the maps.

Kelly Bridge Take-out Directions.

Go west on GA53 for one mile and make a left on Cowart Rd at the Quickie Mart. At the stop sign, make a left on Kelly Bridge Road. Go 3.4 miles to the take-out. Shuttle round trip is about 15 miles.

Alternate take-out directions.

An alternate take-out point exists at river mile 3.5.

Go to the top of the hill where the little "raft guide" place is--with the totem pole out front. Go south on Sweetwater-Church/Juno Rd. It's a left on GA53 west, a right on GA53 east.

Take this road for about 3/4 of a mile and it will turn into a dirt road.

Keep going on the dirt road for another 2 miles and it will turn back into blacktop at a GA Forestry Service sign.

Go about 3 miles on the blacktop, ignore all the turn offs- just go straight.

The Black top will run out at the site of a pretty current logging operation. A dirt road bares off to the left. Take it.

Go about 1/4 mile and take the first right. Go 100 yards and park at the gate. DO NOT BLOCK THE GATE!

If you want to walk down to the take out-- Go down the road about a 100yds and bare left over the hill on an old jeep trail. The road goes down and bares around to the right a little. Take a left at the "T" in the road and the take out is about 50yards-can't miss it.

Directions on the river.

About one mile after Roostertail the river will bare around to the left a little. You'll see a little flat area on river left that has a makeshift campsite and a table set up between some trees. The banks get pretty high after this and about 50 yards further down you'll see a cut in both banks where there use to be an old ford. There's a set of very old stone bridge supports, one on each side of the river. Take out on river left.

The walk out is 1/2 mile and while not steep, it is up hill. Be prepared to sweat a little. If you own a set of backpack straps, you might want to throw them in your dry bag.

Multi-use Area

95%+ of the navigable portion of the Amicalola lies within the Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area. This is a multi-recreational 25,000-acre tract of land administered and managed by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. Depending on the time of year, the forest is utilized by a wide variety of individuals including: boaters, fishermen, hunters, hikers, equestrians, and DNR personnel engaging in forestry management (controlled burns and logging operations). Please remember to be respectful of these individual’s right to access and use this area.

Amicalola and Etowah Access Opened (GA)

Access Reopened

Good news! In January 2002, the landowner at the Etowah take-out called American Whitewater to announce their reopening of the Etowah take-out. The owner is asking for $2 per person on the honor system, envelopes are provided at the site. There is a gate to the parking area that is unlocked during the day. The owner asks that visitors close the gate whenever entering or leaving the site.

While it is disappointing that the State failed to renew their lease on the site, we are excited by the owner's continued interest in providing public access to the Etowah!