Swannanoa

Hurricane Helene totally changed this run. All of the rapids are different and in different places, made of sharper rock, and of similar difficulty as before the storm. The river is a bit wider and more shallow, and way sunnier and more open. It feels like a bigger river than before, and more water will be better. The whitewater is less good than before the storm, but some time might help.

I got dropped off at Warren Wilson bridge after being surprised (and so disappointed) to find the Farm School Road blocked by a new guard rail. The destructive actions of the Army Corps of Engineers was evident, as I could see where trucks had entered the river, and see where they had cut down mature live trees, cleared vegetation, scraped banks, and scalped cobble bars. Who knows what damage they did to the riverbed. In the Warren Wilson property, where the riverside forest is protected, you can't even tell there was a flood. Downstreams where roads and houses had encroached on the river there were a lot of impacts.

I saw fish, an osprey, a kingfisher catch a fish, a little green heron, and a great blue heron. The native river cane was unfazed by the flood. Livestaked shrubs planted after the storm were growing well. The seedbank was producing lots of new plants. The river is pretty healthy and recovering well.

The destructive forces of the flood are very clear. All houses that had been built in the floodplain, including the handful built in the river channel itself, are entirely gone. A lot of new rock walls were exposed by the flood, and the scenery is very different. Along the roads at the bottom end nearly all the riparian trees are gone, and road reconstruction is evident.

I'm very interested to see how this river continues to recover, and if Buncombe County will ever do right by it.

Due to the low flow (157 CFS) we put-in at the spot off Old Farm School Rd near Bull Creek (35.608096, -82.459028). The parking area is small and super messed up, med-high clearance or careful maneuvering required.

The flow was quite low and we scraped rocks and hit some low spots but nothing was impassable. I was in an two person kayak and my friends in a Canoe. Had to portage one river wide tree.

Made the run clean except the canoe capsized at one of the last rapids that flowed straight into downed tree root-ball/strainer. They managed to pull off to the side and dump the water out of the canoe to finish up.

Took out at the bridge in front of the Anchor Steam Power complex, there's a small parking/pull off east of the bridge (35.580943, -82.473157).

After School Special at low release-see comments for details on this drop
Paddler: John Wood

The Playhole/ wave is no longer there. Some streambank restoration work that wzas donein the area has changed the streamflow in the area and has killed the White Thrash hole. I've been out several times to look with appropriate water levels (800 cfs+) and unfotunately the hole/wave no longer forms..

Matt C.

Great park and huck on the North Fork of the Swannanoa. Slide with two boofs about 20 feet long. Only runs when the reservoir is releasing. From old 70 head north on North Fork road bearing left. Drop is under bridge. Stay left on the main slide as there is a hidden piton rock on the right. Hole is not bad at the bottom. The students at Warren Wilson College just down the road call this drop 'after school special' look for releases after rain when they draw down the resivior, the gauge is useless because it is too far down stream.

New Playspot in East Asheville.... New

Forum: BoaterTalk

Date: Jun 14 2005, 3:11 GMT

From: moheinous

I know i'm not the first to surf it but at today's level on the Swannanoa (about 800 on the boating beta guage) a nice breaking wave hole forms at a small rapid at Owen Park. Seemed decent for cartwheels and some fast back and forth surfing(blunts?) but i'm not much of a playboater to really feel it out. A small clean wave was surfable in the washout just behind the hole.At higher water it even gets bigger and it always has nice eddy service. It's probably not worth skipping a high level on the Ledges but for folks in the Swannanoa/East Asheville area it makes a nice afterwork park and play spot. Warren Wilson students could walk to it.

Directions: Interstate 40 east to Exit 55. Follow signs to Warren Wilson College. Go Past the College to the Owen Factory and turn r at the far end of the plant. Go behind the plant to the park. Walk to the backside of the lake and upstream to where Beetree Creek enters the Swannanoa.