All river fishing trip.

Took an all day river fishing trip with my brother, what a rough day it was. I loaded up my 15'6 tandom canoe and met my brother for breakfast at 5 am in a little town at the foothills of the smokey mtns. We left his vehicle at the take out and drove 8 miles up stream to put in. There is a power generating dam several miles up in North Carolina that normally generate power which results in large water releases, but they weren't generating yesterday. I thought I was happy about them not dumping water down, but was I wrong. We ended up dragging the canoe over half the time for the first mile, and the slippery rocks were treacherous if not dangerous. We rolled one time when we slid up on a submerged bolder. After 1 mile and 3 hours enough was enough. Battered and sore, we decided on an exit plan. My brother would walk the mile back to the vehicle and I would plow the canoe down stream on my own to meet him a mile below at a bridge. I waited till he made the crossing back up stream, tightened my life jacket, got on my sore knees in the middle of the canoe and took off. I got hung on a rock and took this picture. Then as I worked it lose, the canoe swung around and I went backward down these rapids We worked on salvaging the rest of the day fishing at the take out area and had another canoe flipping event when my brother stepped out when it was to deep for him.

Well, he wanted to know more about canoeing, and it was a learning experience for me. I am waiting for the swelling to go down, so I can see what color my knee is going to turn.

 

Never having worked a canoe, I have no idea what you went through. Sounds like some pain was involved. I don't mean to take anything away from the experience, but, your description still rings of an overwhelming romance. I more than likely wouldn't have made it a quarter of a mile, but you guys still make it sound absolutely grand. The pictures you post only enhance the desire I feel within. This must speak to my lack of intelligence, I just can't help it. I'd try this in a heart beat with someone who knew what they were doing. Killeroy, you paint an extremely wonderful picture.

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@killeroy154

I posted my comment then ran off to dinner. As I was sitting comfortable in my dining room feeding my face, I got to thinking about how insensitive I was towards your feelings. You planned a day out with your brother and things didn't turn out very well. I'm sorry for that. I get so caught up in the pictures and the 'romance,' along with what I see of your trip in my own minds eye that I forget to be a human that can show some empathy. I apologize for that as well. When days off work come few and seemingly far in between, the last thing anyone wants is a planned trip turned nasty. I apologize for both my ignorance and your "bad" trip. I hope the next one is better for all involved.
Bibs

 

Thanks Bibs, no offence taken here. It was a learning experience to say the least. It is a nice river that has gotten cleaned up in the past 10 years. I don't get on that one much. My brother did catch a walleye before we left, I think it was the first one he ever caught in Tn. I can handle a canoe pretty well by my self or with my wife, but I realy struggled with my brother in it. It was the constant uneasy movements I felt? He hasn't been in a canoe but maybe a couple of times in his life, and I have never been in one with someone that had experience.

We always make the best of it and then look back at it and laugh.

 

...but I do - I mean appreciate "what @killeroy154" went through. Though one must understand that each one has a specific personal experience that might not be totally the same as another.

And without stealing the thunder - We did the Grand River Crawl on one occasion and a Slippin and A Slidin on Grey River. Both times it was really rough and nothing one could do but do it and get it over with. Now let me see, what was that tip again? Oh ya, check the water levels before you head out.



The Grand at it's lowest and its regular height.



The Grand Flood in the 70's. Yep - one of our finest on duty.




killeroy154 you might be interested to know that the Authority just released 25,000 trout into the water a week ago.

 

That part about meeting up early for breakfast before going out. That sounds like so much fun! Especially at the foothills of the Smokes. If any of you wonder what the heck I'm talking about when I say the word 'romantic' there it is, breakfast at the foothills of the Smokes...enough to make a man grin or smile inside of one's self.

Going down the rapids backwards is not one of those times I use the "R" word! It sounds like your canoe came out of all this in good shape, I'm hoping so anyway. I'm glad you and your brother were able to make the best of it, must have been easier with that romantic breakfast earlier! I'M KIDDING, I'M KIDDING!

 

Holy Cow what a difference! That would be awful with a loaded canoe. I need to buy some felt sole wading shoes, incase I decide to take a trip to a place I don't know well. Them slippery rocks can get a person hurt.

Hey Bibs, we never lost our breakfast. The mountains were very grand to look at, but I figured the further I got from them the deeper the water would get.

 

Look at this last picture...That is just stunning. You live and play in an exquisite place Killeroy. So beautiful it makes my heart ache for more!

 

Wow, those are great pictures. And it's a real adventure with the canoe.

What I had in mind is a river fishing together with camping by the river bank. There is a place here like that in a nearby province where we go on family camping trips. The river bank is sandy like a beach that is ideal for pitching tents. I remember one time when our clan held the reunion there, we were more than 50 who attended. And although they brought cooked food but the main fare is the fish that we caught from the river that is later broiled and some are cooked in sour broth. It's just sad that the river is now shallow although my cousins there said that there are still fishes in the river but not a lot like before.

 

Though this Continent is blessed with an abundance of fresh water humans in their arrogance and ignorance have destroyed a lot of natural resources. It just isn't our issue it is a world issue with our global population passing 9 billion.

Do you have anything like this where you live?





The Great Lakes contain 6 quadrillion gallons of fresh water or about 1/5 of the world's supply. There's a whole lot of good fishing in them there lakes.

 

I sometimes miss living in Idaho where we had a lot of rivers and lakes to go fishing in. My favorite fish is a trout, and they can only be found in colder , running water, and not in the warmer lakes and ponds in the south. There might be trout in the Tennessee River; but I have only fished there a couple of times and didn't catch anything either time.
We had Kamloop trout in Lake Pend Orielle, and they can get huge and are kind of a landlocked salmon, usually with pink meat similar to a salmon. There are fishing contests for kamloops each year; but you have to have a big powerboat and special fishing tackle to go out on the lake and fish for the Kamloops.

 

Well this just immediately makes me miss my last home. We were about ten miles away from a wonderful river that was perfect for fishing trips and canoe trips, but sure enough we had to move a few years back and now are far away from anything of the sort. I love the pictures though.