Tuckasegee

I paddle this section regularly and I have a couple of comments concerning the gauge and the release schedule described in an earlier comment.

First of all, the number used by AW in their river levels page for this section is not the most accurate depiction of water in the gorge. They use the numbers from the Bryson City gauge which is almost always higher than the actual CFS in the gorge. HOWEVER, it appears that their MINIMUM level is based on the levels near Bryson City, so I guess it’s all relative.

For accurate flow levels in the gorge, check the USGS gauge for Tuckasegee R at Barkers Creek (This is the take out). Below is the link directly to the Gauge page.

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nc/nwis/uv/?site\_no=03510577&PARAmeter\_cd=00065,00060

I would say a nice minimum on the Barkers Creek gauge would be around 500 with a BARE minimum of 400-450.

As the water rises, this turns into a solid Class II run with decent sized holes and wave trains that are a small step down from most of what you find on the Nantahala. At around 2000 on the Bryson City gauge, the Tuck becomes one of the best novice runs in the mountains. It can be used to prepare you well for the Nantahala if you are interested in running that frozen river without swimming on you FIRST attempt.