Tallulah

Adam Huyck on Paddlesnake

Photo of Jason by Matt

The final boofs of the Tallulah before you hit the lake

The main line is to boof over the ledge to their left (be sure to take a right boof stroke to counteract the currents at the bottom.

The preferred line is to be a little to the right of this kayaker with a right boof stroke

This is the rock that gets many

Mike Winchester boofs Tanner's

A watercolor painting of Mike Huggins on Tallulah Gorge at Bridal Veil Rapid, on a rainy, misty day.

Dennis Huntley at Tallulah Gorge going down Oceanna on a Sunday, Fall of 2012.

Dwight Nalbone running Bridal Veil

Dwight 'whiting out' in Oceana Rapid

Matt and Dwight watching the Boof show

Dwight Boofing Tanner's

Tugaloo

I love the launching pad.

Anyone have any advice about flows here? what are good levels? Is it damn fed or do you just have to time it with the rain?

FYI... Not sure if the Streamteam is aware, but the Ken Stricklen link doesn't go to a photo anymore, and the History link is a dead end.

Dennis Huntley in his Cascade C1 running Oceanna on Tallulah Gorge. Note the canoe paddle sticking out just to the left of The Thing, and just a tiny bit of the stern of the canoe showing. The view is from the overlook about 800 ft above by Ginny Huntley.

Believe it or not he did not fall off. Very cool stuff!

What a Gutt Check!!
Who woulda thunk't it. A Submarine on the Tallulah.

He was trying to pull kieth yells paddle out of the keeper hole, good thing his shoes grip well.
Keith took the middle line, surfed 'THE THING' all the way to the top in about half a second, and was thrown out of his boat. His first swim in 4 years, glad i could be there to photo it (he he he). Notice the paddler and paddles stuck in the hole at the bottom of the pic.
Shooting thruogh the keeper hole at the bottom of Oceana
Jeremy is fixing to enter the dead zone where you can't hear or see anything. You know your through when you hit the hole at the bottom and it feels like hitting a brick wall.

This is the tree on the left hand side of the road leaving the take out.

What happens when you flip right above the last ledge on Last Step. Required a trip to the hospital, 14 stitches, and a CAT scan. Maybe Last Step should be renamed 'Tom's Face Buster' in his honor.

Chrsting (Punky) runs Oceana. A pretty good run with a nice surf at the Thing for a couple of seconds. It was kind of strange this day, a lot of folks were getting up high in front of the Thing.
Knox looks really relaxed on his first middle-line run of Oceana, maybe a little bit too relaxed? :o). He ended up going right of The Thing, not something you see all that often on a Saturday release.

Oceana as art...

This photo is one of three
This is the second of three
This photo is three of three
This photo is two of three
This photo is one of three

Some farmer's first shot down the Big O.

This is the final step in a staircase of around 625 steps. You launch off this platform across a class II current into a big eddy behind a large rock. It gets harder after that.
This big eddy is all the warm-up you get before plunging into the raging waters of the Tallulah gorge.
Another shot of the end of the staircase and the beginning of the run.

In September 2004, Hurricane Ivan flooded the gorge and did a little remodeling at Bridal Veil. Ivan left two boulders blocking the normally run left line. The center 'Hero' line was still open. However, most paddlers prefered to portage instead of risk an extended stay in the bottom hole. Well, that is except for one padder who just didn't get the word about the boulders. He ran the left line, petoned the boulder hard, and both padder and boulder made a nice line into the bottom hole. Thanks to him, the line is now clear!
In September 2004, Hurricane Ivan flooded the gorge and did a little remodeling at Bridal Veil. Ivan left two boulders blocking the normally run left line. The center 'Hero' line was still open. However, most paddlers prefered to portage instead of risk an extended stay in the bottom hole. Well, that is except for one padder who just didn't get the word about the boulders. He ran the left line, petoned the boulder hard, and both padder and boulder made a nice line into the bottom hole. Thanks to him, the line is now clear!

Flipped at tom's recieved 18 stitches on the forehead.

The view from the river right portage trail as someone is accelerating to warp 9.
The Thing won this contest. Geology leads to a broken boat and a broken ankle.

From the parking lot to the lake is about 650 vertical feet. Parking lot is 1550ish and the lake is 900.

Jeremy Perry runs Oceana Rapid on the Tallulah River at 500cfs Spring 2002.
Adam Thomas running the Oceana Rapid Spring 2002, at 500cfs.
Omer Hall running the Oceana Rapid on the Tallulah River, Spring 2002 at 500cfs.
The Tallulah Park Officials,who were nice enough to pose for this picture. They were very helpful and made a great experience even better. Thanks guys, and gal.
Adam is telling Gordon, 'see I told you it wouldn't kill you, just maybe break some bones'.
Adam Thomas running the Bridal Veil Rapid on the Tallulah River in Georgia.
Omer Hall at Bridal Veil Rapid on the Tallulah River, Spring 2002, 500cfs.
Jeremy Perry running the Tallulah River at the Oceana Rapid, Spring 2002 at 500cfs.
Gordon Byrd running the Bridal Veil Rapid on the Tallulah River Gorge, Spring 2002 at 500cfs.

Gordon hitting the bottom of Oceana Rapid.
Gordon is stuck in the hole.
Adam is pulled back into the hole at the bottom of Oceana
Good friends at the Tallulah.
Looking down past Bridal Veil into the start of the next rapid.
Good Friends at the Tallulah.

Helmet Cam view of me running Oceana.
The launch rock...
Splitting the rocks in entrance rapid.
Following Dale down Groove Tube.
Doing the last drop in Lynch's.. Ampitheater is just ahead.
Matt running Bridal Veil Falls.
Matt running Bridal Veil Falls.
Running the lower part of Toms...

Don Kinser passes the point of no return at the top of Oceana Falls running the left line. From here on it's just a roll of the dice with the Thing!
So far so good, but here comes the thing.
First there's the Thing then there's the big hole at the bottom!

This backup is about two thirds the way down the stairs, just past the Hurricane falls overlook. The boater on the left is Chris Hipgrave.

This paddler is on line hitting the first boof. On the landing you want to stay between the two visible rocks. Just after that is a 4 foot pourover hole with a major jet of current pushing right to left. The pourover is between the boater and the cleft in the cliff wall. Lots of carnage occurs here.

Middle line, bad brace, roll, face splat the Thing, roll up after face splat, only God knows how, hit the meat of the hole, window shade 5 times, swim, unscathed! Not even a scratch. Again, only God knows how! Though it may sound exciting, I would not personally recommend this line.

This is the top move.

Boaters enjoying the playhole below paddlesnake ledge. Mark Hicks in the colorful boat.

This boater has just dropped down the middle line at Oceana and is about to surf across the thing on a low Saturday release level. On Sundays at 700 cfs the wave is much much bigger.
After the first boof, this convoluted ledge hole thing is waiting for you. Most people grab an eddy on river right after this move, then set up for the final third of the rapid.

Will Reeves rolling up after getting munched in the top drop of Amplitheatre. The top drop is a riverwide ledge hole. At the bottom of the rapid are two very nice play waves, hence the crowd in the eddy. As the river bends to the left the river right wall cliffs out.

Will Reeves running the left line thru the middles of Lynchs, just above Amplitheatre in Tallulah Gorge.

Most people tend to run down river right.

The big rock on river left is very undercut but easy to avoid.
The top boof at Lynchs. This drop has seen quite a bit of carnage, and has resulted in a number of boats and boaters going thier seperate ways.

Had to wear goggles due to the wave at the thing pealing my eyelids back and loosing my contacts. This was my third Cascade, I think.

This very narrow channel is a bit of fun. Optionally, one can stay with the main course of the river and not catch this channel at all. But I like the channel.

What happened to me with the middle line at Oceana

That's the ledge that creates The Thing at release levels. And it's what tags who-knows-how-many elbows on release weekends.

Paddlesnake

She looks like she is havin fun!
This one is a lot of fun!
Hit with a few degrees down from parallel to the pillow, lean downstream, but address body away from pllow to prevent shoulder injuries. Upon impact, tuck into forward stroke on downstream side.

$400 down the tubes!!!!

My first run of Oceana.

Andy had his chill factor goin as he styled oceana's left line.
Smooooothin it

Gordon Byrd running Oceana rapid. Eyes closed, teeth gritted, butthole sucking the bottom out of kayak, paddle at right angle, this sounds like a plan.

My brother and I use to hike Tallulah Gorge back in the 80's. One of our favorite spots to stop and play was in Oceana's pot hole. This is a photo of my brother in the pot hole. The hole is about 3 feet wide and 8 feet deep. Look to the upper right of the photo, you'll see the 3 foot high rock wall that creates the 'Thing'.

Peter looking pretty at Tanner's Boof
This cliff gives Amplitheater rapid its name.
Amplitheater Rapid is at the base of a very impressive 600 foot smooth rock cliff. Look closely and you'll see two boaters taking the left and right lines through Amplitheater AND a boater below playing the best wave in the gorge. (Just for the record, thats Jason Banks taking the left line.)
There are several fun lines though Around The Corner. This is the right line.
This is the infamous Georgia Soft Wood tree made famous in the 'Paddlesnake' video.
One of the busiest sections of water on the river.
The Gauntlet is a 1/4 mile of pure fun!
Lake Tugaloo Dam was constructed on top of a rapid called 'Arrowhead'. You can see what's left of it at the base of the dam. And just to add insult to injury; 'Sweet 16', a 16 foot waterfall, is somewhere under the lake as you paddle out. (sigh)
Tallulah Gorge gets serious right away. There is no warm up. You go right into a class 4 rapid that slams into an undercut wall. If you swim here, you should hike back up the stairs. Note the put-in platform on the right.
This is the last rapid on the run. Probably the best named rapid in Tallulah Gorge if you ask me!
Should have called it 'Southern Fried Creekin Ledge', or 'Vertical Addiction Ledge', or even 'Green Summer Ledge'....
Powerhouse Rapid is home to one of the nastiest holes on the river. It has been the home of many an unintentional rodeo. The hole is on river right, so stay center or left.
Near the bottom of Road To Aintry lies a deep powerful hole. Next time you see Kevin, thank him for pointing it out to us.
Road to Aintry can be run right, left or center. The right side tends to be shallow and scrapy. Left is creeky and you'll have to punch the side of the large hole at the bottom before ferrying back to river center. The center line gives you the option of punching the hole's left or right corner as well as landing dead center for an extended rodeo.
Tallulah Gorge Dam releasing 500 cfs.
Tat can be run left, right or center. If you run left, you'll have to avoid a nasty undercut rock. The right line sports a sticky hole. The center is a simple slide. Lucky for us I had two volunteers pose for this shot to demonstrat the center line and the sticky hole.
I love this shot.
Joe Day taking the boof line
This is a fun line to take first timers down. When you enter the notch, it looks like you are going to get hammered, but its actually just fluffy fun.
Tit is a slot that leads into Tat
Nice line at Tom's Brain Buster
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!
This shot was taken from the lip of the Tallula Gorge at Overlook #1. Look closely and you'll see a group who portaged Oceanna on the upper right and a couple paddlers considering a throw-of-the-dice on the lower left. Not to mention the paddler running the dicey left line.
This is a shot of the Gauntlet taken from the lip of Tallulah Gorge from overlook #1. If you look closely you can see a paddler in the first bend.
Here's Robert Bone wondering how so many people dislocate their shoulders on Oceanna. After all, its never happened to him and he paddles like this!
Ted Hayes reconsidering his choice in boats. This shot was taken from the lip of Tallulah Gorge at Overlook #1.
This shot was taken from the lip of Tallulah Gorge at Overlook #1. Look closely at Oceanna and you will see a paddler running the center line.

This is an example of a picture that I think is too big. It's 1200 pixels in the horizontal dimension.

The put in for Tallulah Gorge from across the river.

Paddler getting ready for a middle line ride down Oceana
paddler hitting the pillow on the middle line at Oceana...now it's just an easy ferry in front of The Thing!

looks like it's about to get real dark