Cullasaja
3. Lower - Base of Cullasaja Falls to Peeks Creek Bridge(Lower Cullasaja)
| Difficulty | IV-V(V+) |
| Length | 1.1 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 184 fpm |
| Reach Info Last Updated | January 8, 2021 |
Gauge Description:
Its been scrapped down as low as 3.6, but most like to see a bit over 4.0 to pad things out.
4.6 has been stated as the optiomal level. Pads things out and covers some bad undercuts.
Its been run up to some pretty stupid levels.
The gauge is located at the SR 1620 bridge, near Vanhook Wayside Park and the take-out for the Upper Cullasaja.
There is also a gauge on the RT 1678 (Peeks Creek Road) take-out Bridge. One foot here is close to 4ft on the USGS
RIVER DESCRIPTION
Some of the bigger drops are:
Double Drop
Eclipse
Next time
and Whale Tail.
More Info:
Just getting to the put-in of the Lower Cullasaja is a major workout.
First thing to do is park at the wide spot in the road that is the overlook for Cullasaja Falls. You'll be standing on the side of Highway 64 dodging cars, trucks and tourists. Carefully unload your creek boats (don't even think about a playboat on this one) and set them in a place where they won't get run over by passing vehicles, or slide 200 feet down the cliff to the base of the falls.
Get all of your gear together, and gingerly start your way down the trail to the base of the falls. Its only about a 60 degree slope. With a boat on your shoulder that qualifies as a cliff. Just picture the hike into Tallulah - sans stairs.
Someone always slips on the way down and loses a grip on thier boat. My advice is to quickly get behind the downhill side of a tree when this happens. A fifty pound boat doing about 60 miles an hour bouncing out of control down a hill can do quite a bit of damage. Another thing to be aware of working your way down the hill to the put-in is that most of those vines are poison ivey. Be careful what you grab onto.
With any luck you and your boating friends have made it to the base of the falls!! Check the first three drops for badly placed logs before you put on. Once you hav
...
Go thru a slot over a three foot drop, then take a right over a 6 foot drop that lands on rocks. There is usually a log or two stuck in this one to make it even more interesting.
There are a choice of two lines. The double boof on the left at lower flows. Or the double boof off the right at higher flows. The next rapid 'Eclipse' is immediately below. Everything is undercut in this rapid.
Next time is about 75 feet down from the put-in. Its about a 15 foot waterfall. The right bank is an undercut cave in the landing zone. There is usually wood in the base.
Boof right to left to miss the undercut.
In the photo you can see Eclipse in the background.
Eclipse is the biggest rapid on the lower Cullasaja. What you have here are three big back to back vertical drops, with undercuts & sieves everywhere.
Start top left. Drive right and do the sunshine boof off the river right rock shelf. Don't pin on the shallow rocks at the base. Then boof the next two 8 foot ledges that are back to back. The bottom hole is great for rodeo moves, weather you want to do them or not. There is a nasty cave sieve that boats and boaters have wasked thru between the second and third drops.
Next time is immediately below.
A steep slide with a fin bisecting it. The landing zone is rather manky.
DUE TO RECENT FLOODING TRASH CAN IS NOW A MANDATORY PORTAGE! PORTAGE RIVER RIGHT.
Blind from the top right, Last chance eddy top left. Three tiered drop, don't surf the top hole. Nasty sieve thing bottom right. Big boof off the bottom middle, don't get pushed right.
Nov 18, 2006
Wood Update November 18, 2006 5.5 ft
The middle is go to go but the Lower is a different story, we hiked down to the first 4 drops (down to eclipse) and only one had a clean line, every other drop has horribly placed wood. First falls has a big log in the entrance, and eclipse has an easily removable tree blocking the whole river above first boof. Enjoy
Dec 30, 2004
Tim on his 1st run down lower Cullasaja.
Nov 28, 2004
running the double boof, probably one of the safest
rapids on this river, unless you count the possible
sieves and that it's above the big mama that is
Eclipse
Cook fires up Eclipse after dealing with the screw
up rocks at the top that seem to be new since '04
summer floods. Look for trouble from the entrance
at this level.
If you're a little too eager on the first drop, you'll
rush the padded wall, spin and drop the second
part backwards .... no worries, just enjoy the view
up the rapid instead
A look down the pit of Next Time -- use the lip
visible in this pic to get your nose up. Rock on left
(just underwater), big undercut on right, shallow
landing area even when you're on line.
This is about as good of a paddler's eye view of
Next Time as you'll get w/o hucking it. It lands in a
channel about 4 feet deep, with a barely covered
rock on your left, big undercut on your right.
Here's the full view of Eclipse. There might be a
narrow line for a sneak on far left if you can keep
your nose off a rock at the bottom -- since the
floods in Summer '04, the portage of Eclipse is
easier (but still not easy).
A fast sluice with a drop and funny water in the
middle and another drop right at the end. Don't end
up left at the bottom of final plunge; as of 11
-2004, it washes into a bunch of logs. The old
boat-breaker rock in the landing zone is gone
thanks to the 2004 hurricanes.
