Chestnut Creek
Galax (VA 721) to Byllesby Dam on New River
| Difficulty | I-III |
| Length | 13 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 13 fpm |
| Gauge | Chestnut Creek at Galax, Va |
| Flow Rate as of 59 minutes | 30 cfsbelow recommended |
| Reach Info Last Updated | December 29, 2024 |
River Description
William Gilbert wrote, in Nov. 2000:
Chestnut is a nice creek to run -- beginners can run it with no problems. If you make the run down to the river then you will have to get out and scout one fall (Chestnut Falls); its about an 8-ft drop. Run river right and you will flow down a chute. When the water is up you can go a few diferent ways, but only rarely does the water get that high
May everyone have a safe float,
William Gilbert scvgilbert@hotmail.com
slide show from 10/04/15 run of last 2.5 miles (793 to Byllesby boat ramp), featuring SUP
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rlg4vVu9hlc (7 min)
See Also:
Classic Virginia Rivers, Ed Grove (1992 ed), p. 294.
Virginia Whitewater, Roger Corbett (2000 ed.), p. 449.
Exploring Virginia's Waterways, Ed Gertler (2022 ed.), p. 328.
River Features
Put In
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportWhoever wrote the gauges was either a class 6 boater (where everything is a class 1-3) or doesn't understand cf levels...Based on my runs below 793 to the New River, Chestnut Creek is: 200-400 cfs=low (class 3-)
400-600 cfs or 3-4 ft (=medium (class 3)
600-800 cfs=high or 4-6 ft (class 3+)
800-1000=very high (class 4)
There are a number of technical ledges, holes and drops on this two-mile+ run.
Southwest Virginia river guru
Jeff, sizing up his line.
Ice flows on the New River in March after they had broken up and melted.
We ran Chestnut Creek yesterday, led by Galax veteran paddler Tom Peddy. We put in by the church on highway 793 to run the bottom two and a half miles of the creek and two miles of lake paddling on the New. There are few pure class 3 paddles out there. This run is one. Chestnut Falls is not on this section. Our level was 2.4 on the USGS gauge and 1.4 on the bridge gauge making for a solid class 3 run. I believe at the minimum of 2.0 and 0, this run would be a low class 3. There are several creek wide ledges that at higher levels would be class 4 due to the hydraulics they would generate. The New River Trail is beisde the creek making for easy portages and scouts. The tunnel is currently closed for repairs. Due to the large quantity of pasture land in its watershed, Chestnut Creek goes up and down fairly quickly. That is unfortunate, for this creek is a fun and senic run. The lake paddle is also a deterrent. Yesterday, the New was running high and the 'lake' had a healthy flow most of the way.
Nice line. Would you like a cold one.
The right line at around 250-300cfs.
It's a little tough to get lined up due to the lack of features leading to the drop, but the water is slack enough at this level to give you plenty of time to adjust. The slot at the top gets tight at the bottom and ends with a hole that doesn't look all that friendly. The rapid is blasted so the rock is a tad on the sharp side. All in all a surprisingly fun drop!
The right line at around 250-300cfs.
It's a little tough to get lined up due to the lack of features leading to the drop, but the water is slack enough at this level to give you plenty of time to adjust. The slot at the top gets tight at the bottom and ends with a hole that doesn't look all that friendly. The rapid is blasted so the rock is a tad on the sharp side. All in all a surprisingly fun drop!