Forney Creek
Trailside
| Difficulty | III-IV |
| Length | 3.8 mi |
| Avg Gradient | n/a |
| Gauge | Oconaluftee River at Birdtown, Nc |
| Flow Rate as of 1 hour | 398 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | November 30, 2020 |
The final three miles or so of Forney Creek offers remote, scenic, and continuous class III/IV whitewater. Expect some class III boogie, a few more challenging sequences, a bit of wood (2019), and a fast descent. The creek is generally trailside so portaging and scouting are a breeze. More adventure surely lies upstream. The creek can be accessed by paddling 3 miles across Fontana Lake or by hiking in 2-3 miles from the end of the Road to Nowhere. Forney is a step up in difficulty from nearby Deep Creek, and more continuous than Hazel Creek. All are ideal packrafting runs if you have the appropriate skills.
Lat/longitude coords are a rough guide, to get you into the ballpark. Scout, explore, enjoy.
Jan 7, 2019
Hiking up from the confluence of Forney Creek with Fontana Lake.
Note that the river splits and the flow at the confluence is less than what you find upstream
Jan 6, 2019
A great hike-in adventure starting at the end of the Road to Nowhere.
Jul 10, 2006
we ran forney creek about four or five years back. If your looking for a long lake paddle in and a three to four mile hike up stream, for class three+ action then Forney is for you... It's a pretty remote area of the park with limited acess... whatch for wood and YELLOW JACKETS!!!! I think you may could hike down from the dome but not really sure how long that would take,not to mention the super long shuttle that would be involved..
