TTA Tennessee River Float

On Sunday June 7 ten kayakers from the Murfreesboro, Highland Rim, Nashville and Soddy-Daisy Chapters paddled about twelve miles up and down the Tennessee River Gorge.  The kayakers were Sara Pollard, Joan Hartvigsen, Lora and Craig McBride, Chuck and Patty Deen, Paulo Smith, Cathy Conley, Kim Meeks, and Joni Perrine.  We put in at TVA Raccoon Mountain Ramp and paddled upstream about four miles to Pot Point.  We enjoyed our lunch on a shady gravel bar on river left and went for a swim.  We then headed back down river, stopping a long the way to swim at several points. We took out at Sullivans Boat Ramp.  Our journey took us through Prentice Cooper State Forest, where we paddled under four occupied Osprey nests.  We also saw Great Blue Herons, King Fishers, turtles  and Loons.  Craig saw a couple of snakes swimming along the shoreline.  Through out our river journey we were surrounded by cliffs and beautiful Tennessee mountains.

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TTA Float - TN River Gorge

We got to participate in a river trip with the Murfreesboro and Highland Rim Chapters of the TTA.  The CTC Volunteers also joined in for the fun.  Don Deakins, Jan Agee, Brandy Selman, Denise Shepard, Judy Varner, Bob DeHart, Ava Navin, Renee Grace, Tim Grace, Sara Pollard, Craig and Lora McBride, Joan and Tom Hartvigsen, Cynthia, Cindy Watson, Gary Kimbrell.

15 Kayaks and one canoe headed out from the Suck Creek road boat ramp heading nine miles for the Raccoon Mt. boat ramp.  The weather was great, but the wind became a good challenge as progressed down the river. We did a lunch break at Pot's Point where we got to meet a Marion County Sheriff who was notifying us that this was private property.  He was there about a complaint on a car parked in the road.

After we got all the boats out of the river, Lora and I loaded up the canoe and spent the night on the river side.  We camped across and down the lake from the Raccoon Mt. boat ramp.  We had a quiet night seeing lots of different birds, a deer, and a River Otter.  That night we got to listen to some very very loud bull frogs and an owl in the distance.

The next morning we got up and enjoyed breakfast until we heard thunder.  We packed up camp and made it in the canoe before the bottom dropped out.  We held out under a tree until it lightened up and then made a mad paddle for the ramp.

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