Cartoogechaye
Mount Hope Church to Louisa Chapel Road
| Difficulty | II(III) |
| Length | 2.9 mi |
| Avg Gradient | 30 fpm |
| Gauge | Cartoogechaye Creek Near Franklin, Nc |
| Flow Rate as of 2607 days | 2.79 ftstale data |
| Reach Info Last Updated | November 5, 2020 |
River Description
This is a short run consisting of only a coupe rock gardens and a 4ft dam that the town of Franklin gets it's water from. The dam has to be run, there's no sneak around it. Watch out for wood below the dam through the rock gardens.
Pretty fun for the locals and that's about it.
From the put-in below the bridge behind Mt Hope Church you will paddle over some small ledges (1-2ft). This is a really calm stretch good practice for beginners in eddy turning and peeling out. The stream meanders through roderdendren and residental areas before it gets to the Macon County Industrial Park.
From here start to be on the look out for the Franklin Water Plant on the left and the 4ft dam. The dam as rocks put in place on the left side to divert all of the water over the dam. Get up some speed and go a little right of center where it's the deepest. There is concrete poured below that blows everything out so it's not like most dams. Below the dam there is a nice rock garden that begins under the Rock Quarry bridge. Don't flip though cause it's really shallow and the rocks are sharp. If you do flip you won't be able to roll up so just swim, much easier on your body.
There is another technical rock garden .25 miles above the take-out that's much the same as the one at the Rock Quarry. Don't swim!
As with all small streams be on the look out for wood. There was at least one tree that crossed the entire river, but at below 2.5ft you should be able to get under it, no problem. Also, the stream is very shallow, and mostly sand with a few rocks scattered about, so it's pretty user friendly for the beginner. Ie. push off the bottom if you're upside down and can't roll.
River Features
Put In
Four Foot Dam
Pretty straight foward drop of about 4 feet into a deep pool. Run down center or a little right. There is concrete poured below that pushes everything out. There's a good surf wave at the bottom of the dam.
Rock Quarry
Starts right under the bridge at the Rock Quarry. Pretty tight at lower levels, really fast at higher levels. It's very shallow through-out so if you flip you better tuck tight and get ready to take a beating. Best thing to do is just suck it up and swim, this is the least painful physically.
Rock Garden
This one is really technical at lower levels and really sticky at higher levels. Like Rock Quarry, if you flip tuck tight or save yourself some pain and just swim.
Take Out
Trip Reports
Log in to add a reportPaddled this yesterday. Had i known how low it really was, i probably wouldn't have gone, but i'm glad i did. Last time, it was a little higher and no bump and scoot, with no scouting. This time, there was a bit of bump and scoot near the put in, and i had to get out to scout at the dam and the bridge rapid. Both were running, but at the minimum you would want to paddle this creek. There is a log just above the dam that kills all of your speed, but as long as you don't hit it sideways or backwards, you'll be fine. I hit the concrete at the bottom, but it wasnt bad. The bridge rapid however, was interesting. It is a tight left line with a tree in the far left bank. The boulder in the middle of the top protrudes just enough to make the right line impassable, as well as a rock at the bottom right side of the rapid that you do not want to hit. There's also a fairly hidden rock middle/left after the bottom hole. It is runnable at this level, but stay left and be ready to brace. Portaging on river right or left is also an option. The other two rapids towards the end of the run channelized well and i didnt really hit any rocks to my surprise. I didnt notice the gauge on the louisa chapel bridge, but it read .78 when i finished my run. I wouldnt recommend running this at any lower of a level. No river wide strainers this go around. As always, maintain a low profile when running rivers with put ins/take outs on private property.
ran this last week. river wide tree before 'Rock Quarry' just before the bridge. lots of thorns. if it's still there when i run it again, i'll end up moving it if i can
Run right and don't flip.