Yadkin River 4th- Reedy Creek to Hwy 64

We had 16 paddlers in our group on the 4th of July Reedy Creek to Hwy 64 run. Somehow 8 am launches seem to always start around 9 am, no matter how early you meet in the morning.

This wasn't a typical HRL Paddle Excursion. Terry put together this invitation only outing with a group of his friends. Terry, Dana, Fran and myself were the only HRL members. Fran and I where there to support and act as leaders and sweepers along the way. We had a great time and it's wonderful to see the excitement in a first time kayaker's face. We made a lot of new friends, but still missed some of regulars from HRL Paddlers. On a positive note we have 12 new members in our HRL Paddler Club.

Our HRL Group made this same run on June 21. It was amazing to see how much a few more inches of water makes. The CFS(cubic feet per sec) water flow was greater and the water level was actually higher. It was a fun run, but the rapids weren't as defined like it was two weeks ago. Several of the beaches we played on the previous 2 weeks were no longer there. Even the our launch area was more like a Jungle now and the take out at Hwy 64 was actually more difficult. The water might have been 8-12 inches higher than it was on June 21st and it was amazing to see how it changed the landscape of what we were paddling.

I took more video of the run this time around. I hope you take a few minutes to listen to the excitement and laughter of the group in the video below. Sam and Ella(Salmonella, their friends call them), are the two girls you see going down the Class 1 Rapid a couple of times, with just PFD's. These high school freshman had a lot of fun. This was a great tune up for their youth group paddling retreat next weekend.