American Whitewater and Duke Power implemented a successful controlled whitewater flow study on the cascades and upper Nantahala on September 26th and 27th. Nearly 50 volunteers paddled either section of the river up to 4 times at 4 different flows; 175cfs, 250cfs, 350cfs and 500cfs. This study was a critical step towards establishing a regular schedule of releases on the class 4/5 Cascades and class 3 Upper Nantahala in Western North Carolina.
The success of the flow study would not have been possible without the help of the study participants and the respect of the paddlers who came to take advantage of the releases. The folks who came to paddle waited until the study groups were finished before they put on. This was greatly appreciated by American Whitewater and Duke Power, and allowed us to continue the study without risking the process. We thank those of you who participated, and those of you who recognized the long-term importance of the study and acted accordingly.
We wish everyone that wanted to could be involved in these studies but the logistics and increased risk simply don’t allow us to open it to all of our members and supporters. We design these flow studies to get representative data and to occur safely and smoothly. This is the best recipe for getting water in the river for all of us to enjoy for years to come.
The Process of securing whitewater releases through dam relicensing is not a short one. American Whitewater will continue to advocate for flows in the upper reaches of the Nantahala over the next few years until a license is issued in 2006. The basis of our work will be the controlled whitewater flow study and the many other ecological and recreational studies being done on the Nantahala. Again, a big thanks to all of our supporters that helped us pull it off!