Tar
1. Old NC 75 to Hwy 15
| Difficulty | I-II |
| Length | 4.1 mi |
| Avg Gradient | n/a |
| Gauge | Tar River Near Tar River, Nc |
| Flow Rate as of 55 minutes | 5 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | February 16, 2025 |
River Description
This is a great beginner/novice run and would still be fun for intermediate level paddlers. It has more rapids and overall gradient than the more popular downstream section, but is less difficult than a couple of rapids there. Although the rapids are not difficult, it is a narrow stream with several sections with multiple channels, so be cautious of wood throughout. Paul Ferguson has this as section 1 in Paddling Eastern North Carolina, starting at Gooch's Mill Rd, but if you manage to find parking along Old 75, this is where you'll want to start for rapids. There is a heavier rapid just as you pass Belltown Rd and again under I-85, but nothing goes over class II. We ran this with 7 ft on the USGS gage at Tar River and didn't feel like it would be too much for a novice challenge wise, so it's a great option for those who would otherwise be waiting for the more popular rivers to drop after a heavy rain. Any surfing needs to be caught on the fly as there are not many eddies other than a busted dam with a mellow drop about 3/4 of the way through the run.
River Features
Old NC 75 Bridge Put-in
Access at the Old North Carolina 75 Bridge.
US Highway 15 Bridge
Access at the US Highway 15 Bridge
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportWe actually started on Cattail Creek, a micro feeder just above Belltown Rd. The micro creek isn't the greatest unless you were to have very heavy rain, but it wasn't too miserable (one portage for a downed tree) and overal the gradient is pretty significant before joining the Tar with some small drops and creeky lines along the way. Most would want to start at Old 75 if you can find a place to park. At our level, there was no scraping and the waves were easy fun and splashy with the largest being right before Belltown Rd. We followed the main flow throughout the river, but there were several drops where it looked like if we took a different channel there would have been a more interesting drop. The only decent surfing was found catching an eddy where a busted dam was, but there were spots throughout to catch a wave on the fly.
Also, there are more rapids even further upstream between Hobgood Rd and Hwy 158. You'd want at least 6 ft on the gage with 7 ft probably being perfect for there. Mostly class I-II with a spot above Hwy 158 maybe reaching class II+. I haven't run further down from there, but it looks interesting on the map all the way up to Culbreth Rd. Someone should explore these sections too since I think the river has more to offer than people may think.