3 SE Classics

Due to a lack of posting I've decided to spotlight some of our local run of the mill classics. They are not necessarily destination creeks, they are destination rivers. One of the closet members of team swain has just rehabilitated one of his shoulders and is back in the game. Having started Team Unknown, which is broken into pieces ranging from Malibu to who knows whatever other awful places. He is who I started to kayak with back in the Ozarks which is... well, it is what it is, lets leave it at that. He showed me the promise land and I haven't looked back. His name, Jason "The Freaky Stick" McClure.

After a period of disciplined physical therapy "the stick" was ready to get back back out there and feel the flow. Off to my personal low water descent of Section IV of the Chatooga River. Below, Stick executing a rock pivot off the left bank where apparently there is an eddy at more normal levels (Corkscrew Rapid).Next up Soc-em-dog rapid. This is one of my faves on the run. It is the conclusion as well.Upper 2 photo credits, Kevin Mitchell

Next up the Little River in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Driving into the Park this late in the year is often a gamble. A gamble we have lost before and will lose again, and lost this day. It was snowing when we crossed Newfound Gap which makes people from Florida absolutely flip out behind the wheel. They close the road, it really does get quite dangerous, and added at least an hour onto our trip home.Sometimes the put-in for the Little resembles a circus as tourist falls is just downstream. If you can take a gander while boofing about 50 cell phones can be seen pointed directly at you. The energy is weird on this one, but the action is chill and super scenic. Tourist falls is also known as the sinks. The next photo is of me punishing the sinks, without remorse.Upper credit, Jason McClure

And lastly the Tellico River. No river strikes fear into the imagination of open boaters as does the Tellico. The river is super scenic and a classic for making the progression of running rivers to dropping the steeps. We left this river after a day of some pretty brutal stomping of the rapids. I bet she hadn't been treated like that in a while Stick said. The next photo is of me at baby falls.Upper credit, Kara Miller

This is the rapid where my nickname was born. I was new to paddling, nervous, and out in front on this thing I had never seen or really knew anything about. Except, that there was a 14 footer on the run. When I was above the drop I jumped out as my buddies where yelling just go. I was informed 'you don't scout baby falls' so the name scout was hatched. That's all for now.

-scout