Excellent Weekend Color Cruise in The SE!
Fred Cerutti
Sit right down and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a.....Well, you know
the ditty. It all started with C&K magazine's "61 Top Paddling
Destinations" article. C&K recomended Lake Calderwood in North
Carolina as one of it's Hit Parade. I couldn't even find it on a map.
One phone call to TVA and two emails to fellow r.b.p'ers later
(thanks, Chris and Bob!) and I had the beginings of a plan.
I picked this past weekend as the best shot at peak color and I don't
think I missed by much. Factor in perfect, cool weather and nearly
cloudless blue skies and - Bingo!
Calderwood is a smallish lake, about 8 miles long and maybe .5 to .75
mile across tops. But size isn't everything. This little gem is
totally surrounded by wooded peaks rising sharply to heights of 1500
to 2000 feet. Peaks that absolutely blaze with Fall color! The lake is
formed by the damming of the Little Tennessee river and so it winds,
snakelike through the hills revealing itself slowly as you paddle
along unmolested by powerboats. Motorized craft are allowed, but the
size of the lake and the UNBELIEVABLE road leading up to it conspire
to keep the big boats away. I camped Friday, Saturday and Sunday and
saw only a handful of flat bottom aluminum boats with small outboards
and even trolling motors. As a matter of fact, I was the *only* person
camped on the lake all weekend! I barely showed my face at work Friday
before heading up to NC, fearing the water would be alive with others
who had the same idea, but I saw not a single paddler!
There is only one put in\ take out on the whole lake. No roads come
anywhere near it except at put in. The lake is completely within
National Forest land and Great Smokey Mtn. NP land. All this adds up
to an unsullied wilderness paddle. The campsite I chose was about 3.5
miles from the put in and as choice a spot as there is on Earth. No
dayhikers can make it here. The night sky is a freakin' planetarium.
Dawn brings a mist so thick on the lake that you cannot see ten feet
of your bow. You seem to float in the mist. Silence, broken only by
birdcall, is the rule. Daytime was warm yellow sunlight playing over
untold millions of trees each striving to be more breathtaking than
the next--and seemingly arrranged for maximum viewing! Where were the
other paddlers? Not even a canoeist, for crying out loud.
There is one gorgeous but short hike up slickrock creek. You'll likely
get enough hiking in while collecting firewood against the brisk night
temperatures. The gradient runs from steep to very steep most
everywhere. Because of the scarcity of level ground, you may be
tempted to camp at slickrock creek, if you wisely take my advice and
head for Calderwood. I suggest you hold out for a couple of more miles
where you will be rewarded with the Ritz-Carlton of campsites. If you
think you might be going email me and I'll point the way. There is
even a spring bubbling happily away just within earshot at this site.
It's the goods.
For the Southeast US, it doesn't get much better than this. I give the
whole experience a 9.5. Just thought I'd share it with you folks.
Fred Cerutti
Chris Bell
In article <54gkfs$9...@camel2.mindspring.com>,
FCer...@mindspring.com (Fred Cerutti) wrote:
>Calderwood is a smallish lake, about 8 miles long and maybe .5 to .75
>mile across tops. But size isn't everything. This little gem is
>totally surrounded by wooded peaks rising sharply to heights of 1500
>to 2000 feet. Peaks that absolutely blaze with Fall color! The lake is
>formed by the damming of the Little Tennessee river and so it winds,
>snakelike through the hills revealing itself slowly as you paddle
>along unmolested by powerboats. Motorized craft are allowed, but the
>size of the lake and the UNBELIEVABLE road leading up to it conspire
>to keep the big boats away. I camped Friday, Saturday and Sunday and
>saw only a handful of flat bottom aluminum boats with small outboards
>and even trolling motors. As a matter of fact, I was the *only* person
>camped on the lake all weekend! I barely showed my face at work Friday
>before heading up to NC, fearing the water would be alive with others
>who had the same idea, but I saw not a single paddler!
Those of you headed to the NOC's GAF this weekend might
want to consider a trip to Calderwood -- it's maybe an
hour or so from Wesser. To get there, drive west past
Robbinsville on NC 129 until you cross the Little
Tennessee. The road to the put-in will be on your
left just after you cross the bridge and before you
head up the mountain. You'll know you're in the right
place by the large dam on your right as you cross the
bridge. Calderwood is the body of water starting below
the dam. Calderwood easily wins my vote as the nicest
lake in this part of the SE.
-- Chris
dgsh...@aol.com
Atlanta Sea Kayakers,
This month’s paddle will be on Lake Allatoona on Saturday, Nov. 23. Since
the weather is cooling down and there is not much boat traffic, lets plan
to meet at 9:00 am at the launch site. The location is at the Knox Bridge
boat ramp off of Rt. 20 near Canton. From north I-575, take Exit #7 (Hwy
5), turn left and head across the bridge, at the first stop-light turn
left onto Butterworth Rd. Stay on Butterworth Rd. for a couple miles
until you hit Rt. 20. Turn left onto Rt. 20 and proceed about 2-3 miles,
after you cross the bridge over the lake the boat ramp is on the left.
As usual, each person is responsible for his or her own safety. Hope to
see you there!
David Shively
------------------
David G. Shively, PhD dgsh...@aol.com
Shively Engineering --- Research & Development - Consulting Services
http://members.aol.com/dgshively/