Coosa River at Wetumpka, AL-my favorite place to paddle

[OwenM]

Posted a thread about this place a couple of years ago, and have been putting pics in the sticky thread up top, but I've made three trips in the last three, edit: uh, four weeks(8/15, 8/25, 9/6), and thought I'd put them up here, plus add some more from yesterday that I hadn't posted yet.
I love this place, and even though it's not really close, I can still get home in time to get a few hours sleep before heading in on my night shift. That means I can do it on work days, and save my weekends for hiking:thumbup:

Flow is controlled by dam release. The run is 7 miles long, with shoals spread throughout.

Copied that map from a flyfishing article on alabamariverfishing.net. If you are anywhere near here, and interested in the fishing...http://www.alabamariverfishing.net/Descriptions/Coosa/Coosa.htm
I use Coosa River Adventures for shuttles. http://www.coosariveradventures.com/
"Pipeline Falls" is actually three separate sets of ledges in the river, each with it's own rock formations, and multiple sets of twisting rapids. Lots of fun!
The River Falls section nearest the dam is not as scenic, so I rarely take pics there.

From 8/15, 2353cfs

Some moron jumped out too far, and is about to get his butt bruised landing right on the ledge that water is running over!

Below Moccasin Island:

Middle of Moccasin Gap at 2353cfs:

Kayaker's on the "B" side of Moccasin Island:

Bottom of Moccasin Gap:

B side from a distance, and the swimming hole below the island:

Entering Corn Creek:

From 8/25, ~6000cfs later, but probably still below 3000 in the pics. Moccasin Gap is alot more exciting at higher flows, though. Sometimes they crank it up to 8-10k on weekends.
Had some problems, and didn't get many pics, but I liked this one:

From 9/6, ~2400cfs. Playtime with the new P&S camera!
Looking across Moccasin Island:

Above Moccasin Gap:

 

[OwenM]

There's lots of rocks just under the surface of the water at low flow rates:

Pics are from the Pipeline Falls section, including Corn Creek.

Almost stepped in this when dragging my boat up on the rocks:

Approaching Corn Creek, after which it's almost all flatwater to the takeout:

 

[hepclass]

Thanks Owen, great pics again!!!

 

[HikingMano]

Awesome! :thumbup: Thank you for the map, that really helps in visualization as you take us through. Again, great pictures! I've always did like those action shots with the folks on the river.

 

[OwenM]

Thanks guys, it's one of my favorite getaways!

 

[22-rimfire]

How safe is this trip for total novices? I love your pictures and you really show the scenic stuff. I feel sure the Jordan Dam release rates dramatically impact the safety from a skill level. Please elaborate. Looks like a good trip to Montgomery AL where I wouldn have never thought about white water or a river trip.

 

[OwenM]

How safe is this trip for total novices? I love your pictures and you really show the scenic stuff. I feel sure the Jordan Dam release rates dramatically impact the safety from a skill level. Please elaborate.

I have talked to several people about this, and the main reason it's a point of concern is that there ARE a lot of total novices who kayak this river, and sometimes it can look a little scary because of the rocks everywhere. For that matter, the first time I did it was the second time I'd ever paddled a kayak, and I was the only one on the river.
Overall, it's safe, as long as you pay attention to the safety talk you will get from the outfitter about how slippery the rocks can be, and avoiding foot entrapment. You can get bruised up, potentially, but the vast majority of the time there is not a whole lot of risk, even at low flow.
The real danger is foot entrapment from people flipping in the rapids, and trying to immediately get back into their boats. You can look at those rock formations, and imagine what is under the water.
If you flip, just put your feet downstream, and keep them up, and float until you're out of the strong current before attempting to flip your boat over and get back in. The water is always deeper/safer just below the rapids. All you have to do is keep your head for a few seconds, and hold on to your paddle. Basically, just don't be stupid, and you're ok. This is a big river, and at high flow some of the narrow spots can look intimidating, but in most cases it's actually safer then, because the water is deeper, and all you really have to do is steer.
If you know the river, you can make almost the whole trip really tame. Stay on the far left from just before Moccasin Island, and the rest of the way down(also true of the River Falls section if you're on the right fork of the river-see map, the river is split). That bypasses the "worst"(or best, depending on how you look at it) of the rapids, putting you in wider, shallower loops that hug the left bank, but it can be hard to get back to the islands to play around as you come out just below them. edit: there's even a place you can get around what I called the "B" side of Moccasin Gap during whitewater release levels, but it is impassable at the daily standard flow. That couple on the tandem kayak that I got a pic of in the rapid tried to go around there first, but said it was too shallow.

 

[lambertiana]

Nothing like water flowing over lots of rock to get me going.

I like the pothole, too. I see a lot of those in the Sierras. You can get a lot of perfectly rounded rocks in the bottom of those.

 

[HikingMano]

Great info Owen. I've never done anything on white water before, so it's nice to pick up new tidbits of knowledge.

 

[22-rimfire]

It is a great thread topic. Anyone who kayaks or canoes at least occasionally is looking for a new place to go. The outfitters make the whole process fairly painless in terms of drop off or pick up. The water looks great and it appears to me that for the most part you can pick your poison depending on water levels and so forth. I had great intentions of using my SOT yak a lot when I got it, but find that for the most part, I'm the only person who wants to try something new from my extended family which is why I asked about the novice issue.

 

[bladz]

Too cool Owen! I've paddled there many times including a few times in the Coosa River Challenge.

A fun thing we do on the other side of Moccasin Gap is to jump in the shoot with feet headng down the river and ride the rapid about 100 feet and then swim like mad back right under the island as not to be taken down the river. We do that over and over again!

 

[OwenM]

Hey, I was just reading about the challenge today! They described the course, but listed no distances. How long are the run and MTB courses? I've got an injury that keeps me from running, but if I discover I can do it with a back support on or something, I'd like to do that next year. Oh, and where is the rappel?
I thought about hopping in on the left side-you do that at 8-10k? Didn't know if I'd be getting into any rocks below the surface there. That wave train below the chute is really fast when the flow is up! I've gone through the Gap at 9800cfs, but the left side has always been more fun to me. At 8k it's like your kayak is a rock being skipped across the water. It's usually in the 2000s when I go during the week, though.

 

[bladz]

It is around 12 miles MTB and maybe 3 running. The run is broken up. There is a mile or 2 run at the beginning to break up the field a bit before hitting the Swayback Trail on MTB. You then run down to the water approx. a mile or so. The rappel is there at that rock wall where the outfitters will put you in. Off to the left. It looks similar to that rock wall in your first pic which may be it. There are several stops along the paddle where you can do anything from archery to wall climbs to short swims. It ends with a 1/4-1/2 mile run.

I'm not sure if it is at 8-10k, but I believe it is on the opposite side fo the island at Moccasin Gap. I don't know if I would do it at 9800cfs, but I have done it somewhere in the middle and it's a struggle to get back to the island.