Week of Rivers 2004 – Chuck Hunley

River:	Other
Skill:	All
Trip Date:	07/01/2004

Written by: amyraefox, Posted: March 20, 2011

WOW! We had a huge turn out for Week of Rivers 2004. I don't have the exact count from the campground yet, but we are all in agreement that considerably more folks attended this year. The staked off areas of the field filled quickly and spilled over into other areas of the open field.

While we did not get the deluge of a tropical storm like last year, we did have enough localized rain to wet our appetite for natural flow rivers. Folks had the opportunity to paddle Big Creek, Spring Creek, Big Laurel Creek, the Middle Prong of the Little Pigeon, the Little of the Smokies, Nolichucky, Chattooga, and the Middle Tellico, to name a few. The extra rain also treated some us to high water runs on the Pigeon with big waves and awesome surfing.

Week of Rivers is about meeting new paddling friends, reconnecting with old ones, trying new rivers, and taking a step to the next level. Judging by the scraps, bruises, black eyes, swollen cheeks, and fat lips this year was no exception. To relieve the aches and pains we had two massage therapists on hand mid week. Thanks to Laura Evans for arranging this much needed service.

This year's entertainment was provided by NOC Adventure Travel, Endless River Adventures, and the popular "Day of Boating" with "Wayner" Dickert from NOC. And let's not forget the "Carnage" Video night narrated by Joe Greiner.

Like every other Week of Rivers, none of it could happen with out folks stepping up to help out. Thanks to all who helped raise the tent (twice), and for packing it up. Thanks to Joe Greiner again for helping out with river levels. Most importantly, we all need to thank those who spoke up each morning to take us paddling. This year we rewarded a "trip coordinator" each morning with a drawing for a gift certificate to NOC and Endless River Adventures. The winners are:

Joe Greiner (on behalf of Nancy), Robert Weddle, Joe Berry, Ken Dubel, Leslie Cope, George Hendricks, Andy Malanowski, Tom Snider, Jim Mead

Week of Rivers 2004 was bitter sweet for me. It was the 3rd I've organized and also the last. It's time for me to take a break and to pass the Cruise Chair torch on to the next capable soul. In closing I'll borrow a few appropriate lines from the song "Where the River Flows" from one of my favorite bands: Collective Soul.

"Off upon my journey I must go
To where the river flows…"

SSOYOTR (See some of you on the river)

Chuck

Week of Rivers 2004 "First Timers"

Bryson Condrey – 1st time on Nantahala with Dad in TupoDuo, 1st Stern Squirt at Nantahala Falls in TupoDuo

Jan Bolen – 1st WOR (actually the first time I have ever camped!), First runs of Tellico (OC2), Nantahala (OC2), Tuckasegee (OC1) (in that order), I am certain I had the best ever WOR, especially as a beginner. Thanks to everyone who encourages and teaches newbies who "beg" to get better!

Gary Mason – Ocoee (OC1)

Mike McKay – First runs of Ocoee, Nolichucky, Pigeon, Chattooga

Hamish Hopkins – Ocoee (Olympic & Middle), Nolichucky, Pigeon, Chattooga

John Grimes – First runs of Nantahala, Tuckasegee, “Kinder Gentler Ocoee”, French Broad 9

Carl & Mandy Loid – Tuckasegee, French Broad

Hank Stroup – First run of Chattooga

Joe Slater – First runs of French Broad 9, Tuckasegee, Pigeon, First River Safety Course, First time to have the club tent collapse on me moments after being told that if it did, I couldn't sue due to the injury release form I had just signed, First time to meet someone from Florida who had gone to the same school as me far from where either of us now live

Kathy Cusick – First runs of Upper Pigeon @ 3k+, Chattooga 3.5 (Ran Bull Sluice & Woodall)

George & Anna Ploghoft – First runs of French Broad, "Kinder Gentler Ocoee"

Kurt McKissick – 1st Mystery Move (Pigeon) (Kurt every move you make is a mystery to me!), First run of Spring Creek (low and scrappy), First hands roll – entrance rapid of Ocoee, First time trip leader for WOR, First clean Chattooga IV run.

Rich Ruhlen – 1st 32 person trip on Lower Little River

Ray Dalton – First runs of Cartecay, Chattahoochee

Betty Dalton – First run of Chattahoochee

Dave Ramsey – First runs of Tuckasegee, Cartecay, French Broad, Nantahala, Chattahoochee, Hiawassee

Doug Willenberg – Lower Little River, Toe

Jill Dinsdale & Jeff Matonis – Rescued injured Golden Eagle from road near Ocoee

Jill Dinsdale – 1st Flat spin in Hell Hole on Ocoee, First runs of Little River (Sinks to Elbow), Spring Creek, Big Creek (probed)

Greg Joyner – 1st Front Loop, 1st back loop (Ocoee), Pigeon trip leader

Woody O'Brian – First runs of Big Creek, Middle Prong of Little Pigeon, Sprint Creek, saw two baby deer

Michele Pagnotta – First runs of Middle Prong of Little Pigeon, Spring Creek, Chattooga IV

John & Anna Olden – First run of Cartecay – Many thanks to Lynn & Brenda Featherstone for leading

Tyler Graf – First time in a whitewater kayak, First runs of Tuckasegee, French Broad 9, Little Tennessee, First partial ender on Tuck.

Terri Phoenix – First runs of Chattooga IV, Big Creek, Spring Creek, Big Laurel

Lori Finch – First runs of Chattooga IV, Pigeon Release

Adam Eckhardt – First runs of Big Creek, Spring Creek, Big Laurel, Little (Sinks to Elbow), Chattooga IV

Holly Zimmerman – 1st current roll, 1st combat roll, First runs of Tuckasegee, Nantahala

Grant Howard – First run of Pigeon

Liz Schaller – 1st River (Tuckasegee), 1st Broach (Tuck), , 1st 1/2 Combat Roll, 82% Style Points

Willy Young – 1st time leading a trip (Oconaluftee) – one guy grinned all the way down the river, Had to buy new shoes because of Donna, Paddled 9 straight days

Phillip & Pamela Jackson – First runs of Little Tennessee, Lower Pigeon, 1st attempt at “Hands of God”(Phillip)

David Barnard – First run of Middle Tellico

Joe Greiner – 1st time "Rocadile" move on Section IV @ 1.35 – FAILED – SWAM. Don't Feed the Rocadiles!

Eric Owensby – First runs of Pigeon, Tuckasegee, Ocoee, 1st time in Hell Hole (Ocoee)

Greg Owensby – First runs of Ocoee, Tuckasegee, 1st time in Hell Hole(Ocoee)

Mike Watson – 1st WOR, First runs of Upper Ocoee, Middle Ocoee., 1st time getting stuck under a raft!

Larry Ausley & Nancy Guthrie – First runs of Tellico, Oconaluftee, Little (from the Elbow to Y), Cartecay

John Andrews, Kipp Van Loamen, Arwyen Hood, Eric Jansson, Robert Hildreth – First overnight trip down Chattooga Section III & IV, same afternoon, evening, night, and the next morning, First runs of French Broad 9, Pigeon, Big Creek, Nantahala, Ocoee

John McDonald – First run of Chattooga 3.5

Jeffery Hatcher – First run of Nantahala Falls (thanks to Chuck Hunley), First stern squirt

Christy Clevenger – First combat roll at Big Pillow on the French Broad., NOT the first time that she made Dad extremely proud.

Ken Dubel – First runs of Pigeon (in an OC1), Spring Creek, First waterfall rainbow at lunch stop on Chattooga IV, First time I ever heard "Excuse me sir, would you care for a rope?" (Mark Hoffman to Pat Glazier just above Humongous, Ocoee Olympic course, and, yes, I got it on tape, apologies in advance to Pat.)

Everett Bowman – First run of the high water sneak at Bull Sluice (the Virginia Slide) in an OC1

Cameron Jones – First run of Bull Sluice on Chattooga III, First boof off of Decapitation Rock

Wayne Jones – First time watching son Cameron Jones (who is 21, but "still young enough to scare me") totally miss ferry line going into Bull Sluice, miraculously land directly on top of Decapitation Rock and finish the rapid without hardly getting wet (ed note: been there, done that), Second time not to run Bull Sluice

Tim Bateman – 1st runs of Chattooga III (Cartwheel in Bull Sluice at bottom of Virginia Slide),French Broad section 9 (rolled in Frank Bells Rapid), Nolichucky (rolled in rapid above Hungry Jack), First time to travel from Florida to NC only to meet someone who had gone to the same school as him far from where either of them now live

and finally…

Chuck Hunley – First runs of Middle Prong of Little Pigeon, Big Creek, Spring Creek, Chattooga Section IV, , 1st time towing someone's big red Corsica after some failed "Rocadile: move, 1st (and hopefully last) time getting worked in Double Suck on Ocoee (curl up in a ball and wait!)

Family Paddling Addendum
by Mary Hebrank

Here are some parent/child paddling combinations at Week Of Rivers this year.

Susan Snider: Pete Gutillo and I were boating with my son Nate Snider. Nate’s daughter Opal (21 months) was playing down by the riverside but isn’t yet paddling. Give us another year! (I also paddled with Greg and Spring, George and Anna, Stephanie and Travis, and Chris and Chrissy Lynn on different trips that week.)

Mary Hebrank: I boat frequently with my 19-yr-old daughter Kelly, who works at NOC in the summer, but my 23-yr-old son Andy lives in Illinois so I rarely get to boat with him. Due to their work schedules, we only managed to get together for ONE boating day (Wednesday) during WOR, and we ran the Pigeon.

Russ Condrey: Bryson and I were one of the father/son combinations and I will get the pictures of him in nanny falls to you in the next couple of days. It is a great shot.