Elk

A typical rapid on the Elk River, roadside section.

A typical scene on the Elk River.

This rapid looked like it might be a problem from above, but was rather smooth and enjoyable.

Watauga 800 and falling. Decent level but could have used a bit more to be perfect. Plenty of eddies, lots of wood.

did it at around 500 and it was still very low

josh lerner
there are no mandatory portages and you can run the whole thing and take out in the parking lot at the convergence of elk river and elk creek(make sure you have an suv or something)

Even at low water this is a high intensity run. Four of us ran this stretch on March 20, 2003 when the level was 32' below the put-in bridge beams. I would say this would pretty much be minimum. Keep an eye out for strainers, and undercuts abound. Along the first steep stretch there is a 3-4 foot pourover with a severly undercut rock on left-center and a log across the rest of the drop. Portage on the right or at low enough water you can portage the rock shelf which has the undercut. I call this one 'Lost Lendal Falls' since my Lendal paddle slipped away from me while I was getting out to portage. Tight slots, 6-8 foot drops, and undercuts abound so be careful (did I say that already?). As the river begins a right turn you will see a house on the river right and a bridge over the water. Make your way to river left to scout/portage. This drop contains a class VI sieve on river right between two large boulders and a strainer at the bottom of the entire drop. There is an eddy at the extreme river right by the strainer but it is difficult to catch. Not catching it would bring ugly consequences. This section also contains an absolutely sweet long slide which begins on river left takes a sharp turn to the right then throws you back to the left and into a pool. Nice!

After the bridge a second steep section begins with even better drops. At the sight of an old mill the river drops about 12 feet into a sweet pool. Run left of center and boof a bit...no problem. Further down the river continues through a maze of boulders and drops. There is a severe pinning hazard on very river left where a screw-up can send you into the undercut rock wall which extends out from left. If you run this section make of three things: first, don't pin in the left slot which is made by the shore and a large, flat mushroom shaped rock; second, make sure you can make the slot around the wall because it is severely undercut; third, get ready to immediately take out on river left because a class VI drop is just ahead.

Take your time and scout what you don't know. Boat scouting this one can be difficult as the gradient exceeds 200fpm in a very narrow canyon.

Stay away from the far river left side of this drop. It contains a nasty pin spot leading into one of the worst undercut walls you'll ever see.
The river will make a bend to the right when you see a cabin on the right side and a foot bridge. Get out on river left and scout as shown here.

Just goofing off taking a slot line thru the rocks.
Another cool slide on the elk.
Fun slide with a left and right line. Second run we went with the right line.