Well it started with Eric R. posting about interest in doing the Pigeon this Saturday earlier in the week. Lack of rain was starting to leave a lot of rivers low, so with Pigeon-Waterville released started for the season, serveral of us worked up a day trip run. Eric R., Robbie G., Karol G., and myself Paddlin-ed all piled in the car with our kayaks and head out for Waterville at the Tenn.- NC line of I-40W for a day on the Pigeon. There we where joined by two other paddlers, Jack in OC-1, and a newcomer to the Pigeon Don A. in K-1.
Once shuttle was set the 6 of us set off downstream for a really nice day on the river. It was Sunny with blue skies and a few whipy white clouds here and there. The water was cool up not uncomfortable, quite nice with Temps in the high 80’s in fact. We played the entrance down the left catching eddies then a hard ferry across for the rolling bottom have full of holes, run after we caught the eddies along the right band just above the bottom run.d down through the surf spots and small rapids along the way, playing here and there and stopping to surf or squirt at times. Below the bridge we caught an eddy high along the right bank to explain the run below to our Pigeon newbie Don A., then headed down from the right bank runing left toward center, then back right below to catch eddies among the rocks far right. Off from here down through the boogie water through the bend above “Snapdragon”. After a brief stop to explain Snapdragon and the rapids below we where off, I ran first down left of center headed back left to the bank eddy at the top surf hole, then Karol came down and hit and eddy just below me. Most of the other ran left to right and caught a eddy area river center below Snapdragon ledge. From there we played the rapid down to the bend below running to the right throught the bend.
Below we worked and played the boogie water and then rapids, ledges, and holes below. Just above “Lost Guide” rapid we pulled in behind the rock ledges on river right. Eric decided to take Don A. being new to the Pigeon down the scout “Lost Guide”. I decided to get on down to have safety below and lead off followed by Jack. My run went well but I hit the hole at the turn back left off the right bank high to try to keep from being pushed downstream on my ferry out to river center into the rock outcrop/ledge below but clipped the end of the ledge and had to hang brace for a bit till the current let me right and paddle out throught the hole at bottom and into the eddy. Jack, had a bit of a altercation with something at or just above the bottom hole so I ended helping him after waiting just long enough see that Karol and Robbie now coming down where through the main run and on a clean line out the bottom. After helping Jack get to the left band downstream, I worked my way back up before Eric R. and Don A. came down.
Eric went center, after getting Don A. over the the left bank to walk the main drop. Eric dropped the middle of the main ledge and held in a pool just below on river left, and waited for our 1st timer. Then with Eric leading they ran a straight through line through the bottom, left of center.
We all paddled down to “Roller-Coster” or what is left of it after it washed a couple of years ago. Robbie and I dropped down 1st and got the high eddy on the left, ferried the wave hole below the drop back to river right. The rest ran center or right and joined us. From there we ran the boogie water down to the long entrance above “Double-reactionary”, which is a rapid that doesn’t look that big but has mean attitude with all kinds of diagonals, serious nasty holes, etc. and strong currents and waves going everywhere. We stopped at the top of this run long enough to let raft traffic get by and downstream - not a place to be in with a raft.
After fielding some question about lines and which way I was going, plus discussion on what was below, I lead off running from far right diagonally across to the main flow then down the left side, weaving hydralics, holes and pourovers of the long entrance. Down below this I found the 1st of serveral angled tougues of flow through a maze of current and holes, then headed across and down it in an upstream ferry from left to right. Then back left to find the next slot coming off this tougue down its right side so as not to be driven into the bad bad hole to the left below and catching the backwash to the right just enough to move agressivly right to boof the main ledge right of center and slam through the reactionary hydralics below. Robbie follow close behind with Karol following a bit further left but clear of the super nasty hole just left of center. Then Jack, followed by Eric with Don just behind him. Everyone came down clean and into the either the high right eddy where I was or one just below.
After Eric and I both took a turn or two at a hydralic wave hole just below for a surf, we headed down Accelerator, after briefing on the line. Robbie lead off, I came just behind, with both of us eddying out just below to the right to set up for safety. Karol came next, then Jack. Then Don A. entered good but ran with not quite enough left angle and clipped over a rock at the bottom of the main line, spun and hit the hole from the pour over the rock, flipped, but set up and rolled imediately to our cheers.
From there we all paddled out the bottom of accelerator and down through the last boogie water rapid below, and around the bend to the take-out. We had a nice day and paddle on the river. We dressed, loaded, said our good by to the two that joined us and Robbie, Karol, Eric, and I head for dinner in Asheville and home.
Good day for all!!! Congradulations to our 1st timer Don A. for a good run and a successful and very timely roll in accelerator.
SYOR - Paddlin- Ed
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