Really good trip report. Looks like a beautiful area. Thanks for sharing!
Really good trip report. Looks like a beautiful area. Thanks for sharing!
//Frans
Dad, marketeer, eventmaker, Wordpress buff, ciderist, baconar and happy hanger.
For all projects in life, the odds of success are directly proportional to the quality of the duct tape that holds it together.
That is how it is done folks! Look's like a great time. Wondering how to fishing was?
I have been fooled by the title, imagining some trek involving yaks… :-)
Sounds like you had a beautiful trip.
Wow! Looks like y'all had a nice trip. Rapids and calm water. Nice pics! Curious like MM on how the yaks took to the rapids.
Nice trip! Thanks for the pics and showing us what it was like.
I've used Trough General Store twice now -- and they've been great. Here's a link: http://www.wvcanoerentals.com/Originally Posted by nittanylion74
Both this year and last year we did the 24 mile trip, leaving vehicles at Trough General Store and being shuttled to Petersburg. The Trough itself is the last six miles of that trip.
I was worried about that. My buddy was in a Dagger Zydeco and I was in a Tsunami 125. I have a spray skirt; he did not. The whitewater pic I showed (first few shots) was the heaviest whitewater we did, probably Class II, found on the first stretch between Petersburg and Moorefield. I did the run through the worst of it, my buddy went around the worst of it. Without the skirt, I'd have been sunk -- it was a wild ride and the Tsunami doesn't like to make quick turns.
A few other sections of Class I/II on the Petersburg to Trough section that we did run (me without the skirt by then), standing waves tended to partially swamp us. The Smoke Hole Canyon is rated Class II/III, but we did avoided the Class III section (floating the five miles from Shreves Store to Big Bend Campground -- here's the GPS track: http://goo.gl/maps/yyVG). We had lower water levels -- in fact, the guy at Eagle's Nest Outfitters who does shuttles to Smoke Hole told us water was too low and we'd damage our boats. At the water level we faced it so wasn't so tough -- we both went without skirts and both only swamped once (picture of confluence of two flows, with a boulder at the bottom of the one we chose).
Overall, my assessment (and I'm not an experienced whitewater guy, mostly slow moving rivers to Class I) is that the Tsunami can handle Class II if you have a spray skirt. If not, you'll quickly swamp. Class III -- I don't think I'd try it.
Last edited by drchip; 05-29-2012 at 11:59. Reason: Addition of GPS track link
Fishing was fast and furious for smallmouth, although not much size. We didn't fish a ton -- just here and there at the end of riffles on our first day. Everything on 3" white Gulp minnow grubs. Much of the area we fished was C&R only, although I doubt I'd have kept a smallmouth to eat anyhow.
Since there seemed to be some interest, a few more pictures...
We camped at the Trough General Store before our early morning shuttle. We hung hammocks from the posts in the pavillion.
The standing waves in places between Petersburg and The Trough partially swamped the kayaks when we didn't have spray skirts on.
Dave pumping out his kayak after going through the standing waves in the photo above. These rapids were about 100 yards prior to entering The Trough.
The cicadas were everywhere at Big Bend Campground -- including on my leg!
Thanks for all the comments -- glad you enjoyed the post!
chip
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