Whitewater outfitters on the Nolichucky River are facing an uncertain future after Hurricane Helene devastated this scenic spot on the North Carolina-Tennessee border. Some outfitters lost buildings and equipment. Guides lost their homes. Some lost friends. The river itself changed dramatically.
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But with the spring season set to open next month, the biggest problem outfitters are facing is silence from the U.S. Forest Service, which manages the river corridor and issues their permits to operate. A damaged bus used for transporting whitewater rafters is seen Friday, Nov. 22, 2024, in Erwin, Tenn.
A lawsuit filed in November by the nonprofit groups American Whitewater and American Rivers accuses federal regulators of failing to enforce the Clean Water Act and other laws, and failing to monitor the work that is being done. In the meantime, boaters have taken it on themselves to document the destruction, kayaking through the gorge in frigid winter conditions to shoot photos and videos from spots not visible from any road or trail.
A Jan. 21 letter from Hunter to the Corps suggests that CSX’s plan to use material from the Nolichucky gorge as reconstruction material, rather than trucking it in from a quarry, will have “significant consequences for scenery, water quality, wildlife habitat, protected species, flood risk, recreation, and the navigability of the river.”
“The whitewater has gotten better,” said Brannon Schmidt, of Blue Ridge Paddling. He is considering raising the age limit on trips “because it has stepped up a bit in adventure.”
North Carolina Hurricanes And Typhoons Waterways Brannon Schmidt Hurricane Helene General News NC State Wire Hurricanes TN State Wire Patrick Hunter Matt Moses Joe Hinrichs Sheila Holifield U.S. News Patrick Mannion
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