| Difficulty | II-III+(IV) |
| Length | 12 mi |
| Avg Gradient | n/a |
| Permit | Do it yourself permits. At access points fill out the permit. Put one copy in the box at the access and take one with you down the river. |
| Gauge | Chattooga River Near Clayton, Ga |
| Flow Rate as of 46 minutes | 1.59 ftlow runnable |
| Reach Info Last Updated | December 9, 2024 |
Section 3 is a beautiful section of river. Since the Chattooga is a National Wild and Scenic River the river corridor is protected by a 1/4 to 1/2 mile buffer zone where developement is not allowed. There are few permanent signs of humans from the route 28 bridge to route 76 bridge. You may see tents and a campsite or two but no roads, houses, convenience stores, or fast food restaurants. The access points (other than those at the bridges) are set back 1/4 mile or further from the river so that you will have to carry your boat for a while. There is a self-permit system (no fee), where you fill out the form, drop a copy at the box near the put-in and carry the other copy with you down the river.
Back in the early days (circa 1970) when this author first paddled the Chattooga, almost everyone paddled either Section 2 (rte 28 to Earl's Ford), Section 3 (Earl's Ford to rte 76 bridge) or Section 4 (76 bridge to the lake). There were reasons for this; most boaters did not know where the other access points were and the roads to them were often 'rough'. Now it seems that a minority paddle the 'old ' section 3 of Earl's Ford to 76 bridge. The access points for section 3 are from upstream, Earl's Ford, Sandy Ford, Falls Creek, Thrift's Ferry, 76 bridge, and I will add Woodall Shoals (technically on section 4 but these days more a part of section 3).
Earls Ford is the takeout for Section 2 and the put-in for a couple of reasonable runs on Section 3. It is not terribly steep so the carry works in both directions. The Sandy Ford access is also not too steep or long and works OK both as a put-in or take-out. Falls Creek is long and steep, it is at best fair as a put-in but I can't imagine anyone wanting to carry a boat up that trail - you'd have to be heavily into self-flagellation. It would serve as an emergency access. Thrifts Ferry is fairly good (and popular) as a put-in, it's a bit harder as a take-out as it's fairly uphill. Route 76 Bridge serves as the n
...Run the right side of the island.
About a quarter mile above Dicks Creek ledge is a short but exciting rapid with a rock that bisects the river flow. Most boaters take the left channel.
One of the more technical rapids on the upper stretch. Many options for routes. Above 4.5 feet this rapid turns into a nasty riverwide hole.
Pretty easy at lower levels. But rather interesting at high water. When 5 falls is too high for mere mortals, lots of boaters end up doing high water runs of section 3. Above 4.5 feet Sandy Ford hides the biggest hole on section 3. Three of my friends tell about a simultaneous cartwheel session in this hole at high flows. 2 of them swam out. The boats ran the narrows without them. Getting the boaters back with the boats got kinda epic.
Just below the rapid on river left is an access point.
Whetstone Creek enters the Chattooga here right below Sandy Ford and boaters can hike their boats up this creek for some waterfalls.
The longest individual rapid on Section 3. The river will bend to the left, and the Narrows will show itself. The most important move is the first wave train/hole, where the river funnels to the middle, next to a couple undercut rocks. If you swim, stay in the middle of the river until you clear the undercuts.
The second half of the Narrows can be trickier than the first half. There are boils before the last Narrows rapid, that can get squirly at high water, and slow down your momentum. As for the last rapid, you can usually take either river right, or river left. At higher water, river right can create a curler off the rock in the middle, that can stern squirt you if you hit it. If you don't have a roll, it could be a long swim. Overall, it's an amazing section of river.
A 6 foot tall ledge. This is where many southeastern boaters learned to boof. At moderate flows there is a good wave below the ledge. Portage left. The line is usually about 3-6 feet off the overhanging tree on the left bank.
Easy at low flows, but grows some large waves above 2 feet. Stay off the big rock in the middle. It's called painted rock for a reason. River left at low levels is a potential pin issue.
Access point on river left. Just below the thrifts ferry trail is a sweet rapid with a great wave. Nice eddy on river left. Great for spud boats above 1.7 feet.
Not too big of a rapid, but it is fun to launch into the eddy on the far right side.
Very large double drop rapid full of potholes and undercuts. During the summer the locals will swim into a cave under the main flow then hang out and watch you boat over them. AW standard rated class 4+ from 1.8 to 2.3. Its easier lower, and harder higher. You can eddy out river left if you are coming from up river.
Boofing Decapitation Rock
(Click on image for fullsize photo.)
When the Chattooga gets huge boaters still run the Sluice.
