French Broad
9. Barnard to Hot Springs (Section 9)
| Difficulty | III-IV |
| Length | 8.2 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 24 fpm |
| Gauge | French Broad River at Marshall, Nc |
| Flow Rate as of 28 minutes | 676 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | September 9, 2024 |
River Description
Section 9 of the French Broad (known widely as FB9) is one of the primary intermediate whitewater runs in WNC thanks to it being runnable pretty much all the time, its fun rapids, and close proximity to Asheville. Paddlers have the option of a ful run from Barnard to Hot Springs, or the shorter and more common run from Barnard to Stackhouse. From Barnard to Stackhouse the river has fairly evenly dispersed class 2 and 3 rapids with relatively little flatwater. If you paddle below Stackhouse, you paddle 4 miles of mostly flatwater for 2 good rapids: class 3 Kayak Ledge and Class 4 Frank Bell's. Paddlers that are short on water, daylight, or time typically opt for the shorter run.
The river gradually builds in difficulty below the put in with some nice warm up rapids and surfs. Keep an eye out for S-Turn Rapid where there is reportedly a very easily avoided sieve lurking on river left, and for the fun powerful waves in Big Pillow. A big pool signals that its almost time to surf at Sandy Bottoms just downstream, and Ledges Rapid will keep you busy with its namesake small legdges spaced throughout a long rapid. You won't be able to miss the Stackhouse Take-Out on river right, which comes right before the river flattens out.
Past Stackhouse the river spreads out and slowly makes its way down the Windy Flats. There is a distinctive rock spire at the upper end of the island as a marker for Kayak Ledge. If some in your group are not ready for Kayak Ledge or Frank Bell's the left sides of both islands have much easier routes. At Kayak Ledge most of the flow goes to the left of the island. Below Kayak Ledge the river is divided into several channels by smallish islands. After the channels join, the river is in a wide pool above Frank Bell's (where most of the flow goes to the right of the island) You can scout Frank Bell's from near (on) the RR tracks but you won't get a great view.
700 cfs is a good minimum flow since you can run from Barnard to Stackhous
...River Features
Barnard River Access Put-In
The put-in access is on river right immediately upstream of the Barnard Road Bridge. The access is administered by Madison County Parks and Recreation and is open for day use. The site has designated parking sites, ramps with convenient access to the water and a toilet.
Beginning AKA Barnard ledge
AKA Beginer (Class II-): This rapid starts more or less at the put-in. It is an easy rapid and fairly long. There are a couple places to surf at most levels. If you have any trouble with this rapid, it's a really good idea to get out on river right and carry your boat back to the put-in.
Jump Rock
Not a rapid but a popular cliff to jump off of into a pool above Turtle Rock rapid. I have to give it a rating so class 1.
Pillowcase Rapid
Pillowcase Rapid is a small gap in between the rocks leading up to Big Pillow Rapid, it is run as an alternative choice to S-Turn rapid. There is one small hole at the bottom of pillowcase rapid which has two tounges on the left and right sides of the hole.
Sandy Bottom
Most of the water in Sandy Bottom goes to the left of the large relatively flat center rock, creating a long wave train. You can crash through the wave train or ride either shoulder for a tamer run. At levels above 2000 cfs there are easy lines to the right of the center rock. It's a popular surfing spot and the rocks mid river are a good lunch spot.
Ledges
Shortly after the pool below Sandy Bottom, the Ledges start. This rapid is long and frequently split by rock islands. The right sides are almost always good (top one may be marginal at very low flows) and most of the ones in the center and left are good also. When you get to a point where there is a small sandy beach on the right with a large whale shaped rock on the downstream end of the beach the crux ledge is just below you. The normal line is following a wave train about 30 ft off the right bank over the drop. This leads you on a mostly glassy tongue between two holes. At levels above 2,000 cfs another easier line is open about 8-10 ft off the right bank (at levels above 4500 cfs it is nice to know that this alternate line is there. There is a more interesting more technical pair of lines on the left side of this same ledge. Large areas in the center of this ledge are pourover-ish and can be very testy above 3500 cfs. The photo shows a had paddler running the classic line, splitting the wave holes at 1850 cfs. At 4000 cfs these holes are best avoided. There are several good surfing / play spots in this rapid, including a couple just above the pool before Pinball.
Upper Stackhouse Rapid
There are lots of ways to run Stackhouse and if you've made it this far they should seem easy. The most straightforward (easy) is to start left center and after a drop, finish left. It's a tad more fun to start left and after the drop finish anywhere.
Stackhouse Access
Intermediate access point on river right. This is a popular take-out option, particularly at low water. The site was privately owned before being acquired by the Forest Service. Outfitters have use of the upstream area. The public are directed to use the downstream porition of the site. It can get very busy and congested on weekends. The site has a toilet.
Kayakers Ledge
A ~5 foot ledge into a hole with a large eddy (far river right) and a large tounge formation (far river left). This rapid is the first rapid you will see if you go down the river right channel around Mountain Island. At ~7000 cfs Kayakers Ledge creates a terminal hole and commerical rafts will instead run the left channel around Mountain Island which has a smaller rapid called Needle.
Needle Rapid
Needle rapid is on the left channel which goes around Mountain Island and is an alternative to running Kayaker Ledge. Commercial rafts will run this rapid when the flow of the French Broad is high and Kayakers Ledge becomes a terminal hole. At high flows >7000cfs Needle will turn into a very large wave train.
Frank Bells
Frank Bells is the second to last rapid on the French Broad (Section 9). It consists of a broken ledge at the enterance to the rapid and two large holes at the bottom of the rapid. There are many routes a raft can take depending on the water level, below ~1500 cfs there is a line rafts can take called horseshoe which is far river right from the middle of the rapid. Above ~1500 cfs the rocks in the middle of the rapid start to get covered by water allowing a raft to pass through. At lower flows on the French Broad a kayak can usually slide down the chutes created by the rocks at Frank Bells but horseshoe is also an awesome line to take in a kayak.
Surprise Ledge
A small 3-4 foot tall ledge right before the takeout in Hot Springs, NC.
Take Out - Hot Springs
Take Out - Hot Springs
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportA group of outfitters and river managers / advocates paddled Section 9 to assess rapid changes, access needs, and debris clean up needs, with US Forest Service approval. Here is what we learned:
The good news is that the rapids themselves are largely unchanged, especially upstream of Stackhouse. Paddlers will notice more or less water going in certain channels compared with before Hurricane Helene (September 2024), and some additional line options, but all the old lines are still there. The runout of Pit Stop is a bit different but obvious. Windy Flats is a bit rockier here and there. The holes in Frank Bells are a bit steeper and the entrance rockier, but the line is the same.
We saw plastic conduit stuck and trailing downstream in several rapids including Ledges, along the left bank of Sandy Bottom, in the left slot of Pit Stop, and a couple other spots. Other than that the river itself appeared very clean.
The river has a very different visual feel. Many islands have had all the trees and soil sheared off or are gone entirely including much of the island at Frank Bells, the banks are more exposed rock than forest now, there are big beaches and cobble bars, the railroad is much more visible and in need of repairs, and the river generally has a much more open, sunny, look and feel.
The amount of trash on the banks is epic. Silverline plastic's PVC pipe and conduit litters the banks and is wedged in massive debris jams that also includes a lot of lumber and other human debris, and there is plastic trash hanging from nearly every tree along the bank. Water quality seemed very clear but surely had high bacteria content.
Barnard and Stackhouse access areas are both damaged and closed, but appear to be fixable with a moderate amount of effort. For now, while the river itself is good-to-go for the most part, access remains the limiting factor to getting back on FB9 and paddling here is not recommended yet. Repairing these sites will be a high priority to get people back on the water.
American Whitewater staff and board were in Brevard for our annual board meeting. After the meeting several of us got out for a fun morning on the French Broad. Flow was low but we had a good time. We had a 14' raft along that got stuck a couple times.
Photos of Pitstop and Kayakers Ledge
French Broad River following the heavy rains of May 2018
Right Side of PillowCase OPEN but Use caution. Approaching the right side line in Pillowcase, above Big Pillow. On weekend of May 13-14/2017, there was a log across the entry chute at 2700 right at water level. Put there by flows of 11,500 the week before As of 5/26 that log has been removed - pulled over to river right side. Currently the chute on right side at PillowCase is OPEN, but use caution if flows go over 10,000 again - there are several large trees in the river in the first two miles of Section 9 that could wash into that gap.
Susan S. taking the main line and punching the small holes at 1500cfs.
Larry A. Running Rebar rapid. Just upstream from his position is a modes (2 ft) drop with a couple of diagonal holes which can be punched or avoided.
Rich at Big Pillow - Flow was 1640cfs (med-low) The rock for which the rapid is named is approximately in the center of the photo. A little of the top of it is out of the water.
Marlow D. surfing the top wave at Sandy bottom.