Tellico
3. Bridge below Jared's Knee to Ranger Station(Middle Tellico)
| Difficulty | II-III |
| Length | 5.3 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 50 fpm |
| Gauge | Tellico River at Tellico Plains, Tn |
| Flow Rate as of 1 hour | 1.24 ftbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | July 8, 2025 |
River Description
For much of 2023 through June 2025 the Tellico was closed due to bridge construction at Bald River Falls. This new bridge is wider, has improved parking, and provides safer pedestrian movement but paddlers should be aware that this section of the road is still highly congested and boaters should politely slow down and cruise through so as to illustrate the best qualities of our community.
Logistics: From Tellico Plains head east on Highway 165 out of town and at mile 5.3 you will come to the Oosterneck Day Use Area that is generally used as the take-out for this reach due to the ample off-road parking. Continue on up the road another 0.1 mile and turn right on FR 210. The Ranger Station access is at mile 0.4 but there are numerous roadside pullouts and any of the ones in the first two miles make good alternative take outs particularly for those who are continuing from the ledge run that starts above this one. The great thing about this run is you can pick your access point depending on how much time you have and what you want to run. The traditional put-in for this middle reach is at the bridge at FR 210 mile 5.3. Put-in on upstream river left where you will find a good pullout. If you want to run 2 miles of quality class IV you can check out the next run upstream that includes Baby Falls and several fun ledge drops.
Description: The Middle Tellico provides paddlers with a unique opportunity to choose from one of several different possible runs by selecting from multiple access points. Those looking for more of a challenge start their runs further upstream, while those who don’t want to get things started right away with challenging class III drops can find an access a short distance downstream. The convenient roadside access makes it easy for folks to join the group wherever they feel most comfortable. The gradient over the 5 miles of this run averages 50 fpm but gradually ramps down in the one mile segments as follows: 80, 53, 45, 40, and 32.
...River Features
Put-in
The put-in eddy is just below the parking area. This is also the take-out for the upper run.
Bridge Rapid
Easy Class 3 that is usually run down the river right side.
The Ledges
At normal flows run down the left.
Bounce off Boulder
Run down the right, then ride the curler off the large sloping rock on the left. The hole at the bottom is good for enders, and the occasionally flushy cartwheel.
Turkey Creek
A popular access point. A large creek comes in on river left. Carry up under the bridge on the downstream side and up to the cars.
Reeders Rock
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportThe section from the bridge below Jared's Knee to the Pylon rapid is a fun, pool-drop, easy intro to creeking run and is one of my favorites. This section has class III drops sprinkled amidst many class II and III-. I would call the section as a whole class III-, not class II-III, but that's me. The rapids are all forgiving, but be on the lookout for wood. I park a take-out vehicle at Pylon, or at Wonderwoman rapid just above Pylon. At lower flows the river past Pylon to Oosterneck can be a slog. Parking where I mentioned also takes the hassle/worry of Reeder's Rock out of the picture if you have newbies along. I've heard tales of an OCA canoe disappearing under Reeder's for a few days, so I give it a wide berth.
I've run this section as low as 1.4, but 1.8 is fine, 2.3 is better, and 3.0 is a hoot.
3/15/14 Tellico was great. We put on at about 3.5ft we did the bridge below Jared's knee to the ranger station. Mini me, maxi me, and safety kayak. Everything was great for rafts, maybe to big for George in the canoe.
Reeders Rock at low water.
Reeders Rock looking downstream at low water. On river left is a cave area large enough for a canoe to enter but the cave narrows a few feet downstream with no exit for a boat.
For good class 4 boaters the lower tellico is a great time at flows when the upper starts to get really scary. On those days when the rock in diaper wiper is kicking up a 10 foot roostertail and Jarrods knees is three riverwide holes....but you don't have time to drive over to citico (or citico is dry) then move on down to the lower. One area to pay close attention is the hole under the put-in bridge. The river right side starts to get evil about 1200 cfs and generally keeps getting more nasty.
My experience runs out at about 3000 cfs, but at that level most of the run was still boat scoutable.
As low as I would ever consider paddling it, not too scrapy, very technical. Worth it when nothing else is running!
Pat had a nice dry line through the steep and narrow slots in this boulder garden.
Kevin Thomas runs the first rapid below the Put-In.
This is a cool Ender spot. If you take out from the ledges section at turkey creek you run this.