James

The Reedy Creek put-in is in a the James River Park and is accessed from a parking lot at the intersection of Riverside Dr. & Hillcrest Rd.  Drop boats in the parking lot near the fence gate, but do not drive across railroad tracks.  From the parking lot, walk the road across the tracks and through the fence gate on the other side.  Continue across the gravel road that parallels the fence and follow a gravel path through the meadow and to the boat ramp.

From the put-in paddle out and ferry across the slower current to a narrower channel which opens to the main body of the James. The James is a very broad river and has many different lines that run parallel to each other. Typically during a run, you choose which rapids to run or carry back up and run different lines. The rapid descriptions are not necessarily in the order of which they are run.

The first feature is a low head dam (Hollywood Dam) that makes an L shape from the far left side of the river to Belle Isle. There are four breaks or lines through the dam (from river right to left): First Break, Variation, Grumman and Hollywood Dam Drop.

The rapid ratings listed herein are for levels between 5 and 7 ft on the Westham gauge. The difficulty of these rapids increase with additional flow.

Once you get out to the main body of the James, the most common line is to run First Break. Follow the main current to Belle Isle. First Break is to the river left of Belle Isle and is run right of the remaining dam. There are some of the taller standing waves here and between 5ft and 6.5ft offers endless front surfing and wave wheels. Just below the break is a play spot suitable for looping called Jaws that comes in at levels between 6ft and 7.5ft. Great eddy service with access for both play spots on river left behind the dam.

Variation is located about 400 ft to the river left of First Break. This feature offers some of the best play on the river from 5.5 ft and up.  The feature ranges from a spinning hole at levels up to 6.5 ft and turns into a beautiful green surf / play wave at 7.5 ft and above.  This spot has great eddy service on river right and is great for blunts around 8 ft.

Located on the middle left side of the Hollywood Dam. Ferry to the far side (river left) of the river after coming out of the Reedy Creek channel. Look for some exposed rocks just in front of the dam and the downriver current. There is a 30 foot wide break in the dam that drops about five feet over the course of the slide. At High water (above 8 feet) the damn creates a keeper hole and Grumans is not a recommended line. Grumman has a good 360 hole and is best between 5.5ft and 8.5ft. Be careful this is a very shallow spot and the rocks are sharp.

Corner is downstream of First Break as the James makes a right turn around Belle Isle. Corner offers a couple of play opportunities: Corner Pocket is river right just below some big rocks and river left are some front surfing wave and a 360 hole at lower water. Get the bow up when running the last ledge on the left line as it is backed up by a submerged, parallel ledge.

After Corner Rapid is Hollywood. Named for Hollywood Cemetery which overlooks this area from the north. This rapid is the best known rapid and is often debated for classification. At higher water there are large keeper holes, lower levels increase the chance of hitting rocks if upside-down.

To scout Hollywood get out at the Grateful Dead Rock on the right about 100ft below the bottom ledge of Corner rapid. This is the best place to scout, with easy access to the pathway on Belle Isle.

There are three parts of Hollywood, Entrance, Hollywood drop, and the runout.

To run Hollywood’s entrance, ferry out to the main current and look for the line between two holes named Flipper and another named Stripper.  On the right there is a good 360 hole that is best at 5.6, be careful, if you flip the feature is very rocky and you do not want to swim over Hollywood drop.

After entrance Paddle back to the right. Follow current and look for a tall standing wave and go straight for the peak. Use a left angle and continue paddling left to avoid Washing Machine, a meaty hole in front of the large rock on the bottom right of the initial drop. Continue working left in the runout. Depending on the level, there may be a large standing wave after the first drop or smaller ledges broken with small pour-overs. The runout is fast-moving water, but there is a recovery eddy on the left to set up for your options below.

At high water (above 7) The moves between striper flipper and Hollywood become very big and pushy. Swims at these levels are very long and dangerous. At these levels, boaters must have a bombproof roll as well as experience on big water.

Below Hollywood

The runoff below Hollywood is class II+ boogie water at normal levels. Above 7ft there is a nice boof rock on the right/center side, called Launch Rock / 747 / Bradshaw's Rock. Again, get the bow up because the pour-over boof rock is backed up by a submerged rock. At levels below 5ft, a river wide pipe becomes visible and presents a hazard just before the flat water and is best run toward river right over the concrete pipe supports. At higher water, many holes develop in this area.

After Hollywood rapid, there is a bit of flatwater and the river floats under the Lee Bridge. The Lee Bridge (Hwy 1/301) is the main walkway for pedestrians/kayak fans to cross the James to Belle Isle. We like to use the first pylon to splat and there is a nice eddy line for squirts off an old, stone railroad bridge support.

After the Lee Bridge, there are three options to run the Vepco Levee (potential lethal hydraulic). The most popular is the Fish Ladder on river left just under Ashland City Limits sign. The second option is called pincushion which is 6 slots to the left of the fish ladder and lastly, you can run the X's and is river right of center.

This is an alternative put-in or take-out. Often used during high water if only running cemetery or at low water when rafters only do Fish Ladder and Pipeline. There is a long flatwater section here that is great for flatwater training.

Run under the Ashland City Limits sign and watch out for rebar around the pylons. There is a low head dam feature from far river left to center left, but should not be a problem if you go straight downstream from the sign.  At levels below 5ft, there is a slot in the dam on the left that offers a little water boof practice.  Ferry toward river left after passing under the sign and look for a dry, round rock about 15ft in front of the horizon line noting the slight droop in the horizon directly downstream. Pass the left side of rock and get the bow up heading to the right to avoid some rocks below the landing zone.

Lower half, after running Fish Ladder or Second Break, there are more than six different lines that can be run. Unfortunately the lines all use the same gradient and you only get to run one line unless you carry the boat back to the top and ferry to the next line. The rapid descriptions that follow start from river right and then go to river right.

Pin Cushion is an alternative line to 'Fish Ladder' or 'x's'. Its entrance is 6 slots to the right of the blue sign. 'Pincushion' is a small tongue into a pillowed rock. The Pin Cushion line is to bonce of the pillow going to the right of the rock, however, you can also run an easier line by going straight and to the left of the rock. Pin Cushion is in at most normal flow. Watch for wood especially after floods. After Pin Cushion, You can either go hard left and run the last part of 'Fish Ladder' or you can run '8 Ball or 'Second Break'

Second Break is the southside (river right) opening in the low head dam that runs diagonally downstream from river left at Fishladder to river right above Southside rapids. If you run the X's, this will be your safe exit from the low head dam just downstream. After passing through the 2nd opening between the Manchester bridge supports from river right, continue straight downstream. Look for a wavetrain below the horizon line of the dam. This is Second Break. Enter center left with slight left angle in order to catch an eddy on the left just upstream of the tree that the runout is heading directly towards.

Pipeline is the farthest left and most popular line on this section of gradient. This rapid is named for a pipe that runs under the railroad bridge on river left. The rapid is about 200 yds long and constricts as it approaches the largest ledge. There are many eddies to catch as you pick your way down. Enter the rapid near river left and over a 1ft broken ledge. At levels above 5ft, there are two main lines for the 3-4ft ledge about 40yds downstream. An S-turn move via a channel to center right and ledge boof via a channel to center left. At higher levels, many will opt for the center left line straight over the ledge which usually forms a large standing wave. About 100 yards down, look for some large rocks on the river right side, this is the largest drop of the rapid. Run center to right and follow the main current to punch the waves/holes. At 9 ft and above, a keeper hole develops on the left just above the main ledge and the water pushes significantly toward and under the pipe on the left (IV+ at these levels). This drop is also a good play spot, particularly at levels below 6ft (see picture).

If you drive right after 'Secret Boof' you will reach 'Deception' a drop in which there is a slide on the right and a boof on the left. there are several eddies to boat scout however the drop is mostly blind. Optimal flows above 7 feet.

Mooseknuckle is an auto-boof at high water (~9'+) that allows one to do Pipeline through second drop, without having to go through the pushiness of third drop. Coordinates: 37.532579, -77.437527

Directions to Southside (river right) Takeout:

From I-95, take Maury St. exit 73. Turn right onto Maury St. Take the 2nd left onto East 2nd St. Turn right onto Hull St (14th St) at light, go 50ft and turn left into parking lot. Walk north on sidewalk until just inside floodwall to see paved access path down to river where you will takeout amidst the rip-rap rocks.

GPS Coordinates to parking lot: 37.526449, -77.435898

There are two primary takeouts depending on which rapids you took in the bottom half. From Pipeline, Powerline, Powerdunk or Lulu, the takeout is the 14th St. Takeout. From Deception, Triple Drop or Southside, the takeout will most likely be Southside (river right), though it is possible at lower levels to paddle around Mayo island and upstream to the 14th St. takeout on river left.

Directions to 14th St (Northside / river left) Takeout:

From I-95, take Maury St. exit 73. Turn right onto Maury St. Take the 2nd left onto East 2nd St. Turn right onto Hull St (14th St). Cross Mayo bridge. Look for a small brown 'Whitewater Takeout' sign on the right in front of the concrete flood wall. Turn right onto the narrow road running parallel and on the river side of the flood wall. Park in the gravel lot at the end of the paved access road or in the grass along access road by the floodwall.

GPS Coordinates to parking lot: 37.531365, -77.431793