Ocoee
Upper Ocoee - Ocoee #3 to Ocoee #2 Dam(Upper Whitewater Section and Olympic Course)
| Difficulty | III-IV |
| Length | 4.3 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 50 fpm |
| Reach Info Last Updated | April 30, 2025 |
River Description
River Description:
A lot of people just PnP at the Olympic Section. This is a description of the full river.
The first stretch of the Upper Ocoee is primarily Class II tree dodging, but it's one of the prettiest sections on the river. Putting on kind of feels like going through a jungle. Much of the riverbed is cluttered with low-lying bushes and dimunitive trees, forming a maze of sorts. After a little less than a mile, you will reach the first named rapid below the put-in. The left channel is often called David's Pride, and features a double-drop into a pool. The right channel is called Tombstone and is recognizable by the large tombstone-shaped rock on the left side side of this channel. Either way, be sure to catch Dee Dee's Secret, the popular playspot with a marvelous surfing wave and two ledge-holes found directly below Tombstone. Dee Dee's Secret can be difficult to find, especially if you run David's Pride -- you will have to weave your way through the bushes on the right in order to find it. There is a challenging ferry some people like to do from a river right eddy roughly adjacent to Tombstone rock, across most of the length of the channel to the left of the rock. Be mindful of how shallow it is just above and to the left of the rock, and avoid ending up sideways in the pourover next to it.
On and off Class II-III continues downstream. There are a lot of technical eddy moves, stern squirt spots, and some catch-on-the-fly waves. There will be a brief lull with a huge round rock to the left that is great for rock splats if no strainers are caught in it. The river subtly channelizes at this point, signaling the first major rapid(s) on the run. By following the flow, you'll be set up for the left of these channels, a drop called Alien Boof. It's the most popular route for kayakers because the boof is so satisfying an p
...River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportA watercolor painting of Marty Vaughn on the Upper Ocoee at Alien Boof at the Carolina Canoe Club Week of Rivers.
Saturday my son Jesse, Dave Beckner and myself removed all the wood from Alien Boof. We ran Alien on Saturday but the strainer did make it harder to run since it was right where we normally run Alien. There was quit a bit of wood piled up on the drop some pieces were 12 inches in diameter an 8 feet long. I will post some pictures of the wood before we removed it.
Photo taken by U.S. Forest Service Staff at the White Water Center. This is the Olympic competition channel after the sluice waters receded.
On Monday, January 5, 2009, the Division of Water Pollution Control, Chattanooga Field Office received a complaint from the U.S. Forest Service, Cherokee National Forest, and the Ocoee River White Water Center reporting that starting at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, January 4, 2009, the Olympic Reach of the Ocoee River was suddenly overwhelmed by muddy-sludge that was black and smelled terrible. As a result, the Forest Service reported that sludge/sediment/ooze was deposited throughout the Olympic Reach of the Ocoee River and in some places up to 3.5 feet in depth (see Photograph 1).
Chattanooga Field Office staff visited the White Water Center reach of the Ocoee River on Tuesday, January 6, 2009, to document what had occurred. Driving up the Ocoee River Gorge, staff noted that the Ocoee River was flowing but that the water was very turbid. Upon reaching the Olympic reach of the Ocoee River, it was noted that the turbidity had increased and the Olympic competition channel portion of the Olympic reach was approximately ВЅ full (see Photograph 2). In addition, Forest Service employees were walking the stream bank picking up what dead fish they could find. Due to the magnitude of the mud/sludge/ooze release, fish were killed and washed down stream or killed and buried in the mud/sludge/ooze. Consequently, a count of dead fish was not possible. No live fish were seen.
It was learned from a telephone discussion on January 6, 2009, with Mr. Charles L. Bach, General Manager, River Scheduling, that the source of the mud/sludge/ooze was TVA Ocoee Dam #3. TVA had opened the bottom sluice gates at Ocoee Dam #3 to draw the water level behind the dam down to elevation 1420 in preparations for repair work on Ocoee #2 Dam. As explained by Mr. Bach, the drawdown was needed to protect workers as they worked to repair a leaking Dam #2. There had been no inquiries regarding permit requirements or coordination with TDEC concerning these special operations of the Ocoee series of dams and powerhouses. Link to official document: http://media.timesfreepress.com/docs/2009/01/TVA-Ocoee-Dam.doc
Sucking it up
Kieth was rippin' it up today
Theres plenty white here to share.
View upstream from bridge, river w/o water
View upsteam from bridge with water.
Down stream from bridge w/o water
Downstream from bridge with water
As a result of the the accident that occurred last weekend on Alien ledge, I think it is crucial that the streamkeeper add a warning about the terminal seive in order to prevent future tragedy. For more information, read the posts on boater talk or email me riekhof_b@acadmn.mercer.edu
-Ben
We'll always remember you, Stan.
Real Fun
This was our clean run, for that our camera died before the carnage run through the Olympic section. The next run, the puma surfed smiley's and we had to chase the boat on past the Olympic bridge while two of our people had some nasty swims. Park and Huck special.
The last stroke
The landing after a nice mid-air adjustment turning 90* to the right! So sweet!
Scott runs the alternate line at Alien
Signing day at the Ocoee Olympic Whitewater Center for an agreement that will bring 54 days per year of recreational releases in the Upper Ocoee for the next 15 years!