December Novice Trip on the Eno River by Paul Joffrion
| River: | Eno |
| Skill: | Novice |
| Trip Date: | 12/11/2004 |
Date: Saturday, December 11, 2004
Where: Eno River, from Lawrence Rd. put-in (bridge) to Fews Ford Access, Eno River State Park
Water Level: 377 cfs/4.22 USGS (Hillsborough gauge); 590 cfs (Durham gauge)
Trip Coordinator: Paul Joffrion
Paddlers: Jan Bolen, OC-1; Roger Gaby, OC-1; Pat Heron, K-1; Jack and Kathy Imbriani, K-1; Paul Joffrion, OC-1; Lynna Woods, K-1
Recent rains brought all of the local rivers up to a roiling boil, making selection of this segment a suitable choice for the novice trip. Coughing up about four miles of essentially development-free terrain from the put-in through the park, this stretch gives a healthy sampling of whitewater and a measure of solitude. Winter paddling in the Piedmont offers some of the most striking views of woodland waterways, and this trip provided a visual treat of near blaze-white American Sycamores hanging far out from the river banks, along with conifers and other leaf-barren hardwoods. The autumn undressing of the forest exposes the handiwork of humans and animals alike not usually visible from the water during the greener months: some very old stone walls or building foundations; a vacated bird’s nest; a basketball-sized hornet’s nest suspended from a branch over the water.
With a cool water temperature, air temp in the low-fifties (upper 40’s by day’s end), a bashful sun and a breeze rising to 10-15 mph, this trip called for winter paddling preparations. Everyone dressed for the occasion. We had set a rendezvous time for late morning to give the day a chance to warm up, unloaded gear at the put-in, and boarded vehicles for the shuttle run.
The shuttle – Generally simple and straightforward, always important, occasionally complicated or comical. One key step in running shuttle is to remember to remove all gear temporarily placed on the rooftop of one’s automobile before leading the shuttle caravan to the take-out. Experiencing some kind of total blind spot to the presence of my river boots resting in between the two bars of my roof racks, I hopped in the car and led a procession of vehicles back down Lawrence Road to Highway 70, checking my rear-view mirror to make sure we were all together as we made the left-hand turn onto 70. Comfortable with what I saw, I turned my thoughts toward the take-out and the river trip, still checking the mirror, but less frequently. The laws of physics will not, however, be forever denied. All of a sudden I noticed a long-distance gap between me and the next shuttle vehicle behind me, a big gap, and that vehicle was not the one that had been in line behind me. I slowed down as others caught up, and pulled into the turning lane for the left turn from 70 onto Pleasant Green Road. A red traffic-light provided time enough for Pat to exit his truck, run up and hand me one of my river boots. He let me know that Roger had stopped for the other river boot that had flipped off some distance back. We made the left turn with the green light onto Pleasant Green Road, and pulled onto the shoulder at the first available opportunity to wait for Roger, not the most visible location but the only available option given that I had committed to make the turn before knowing about the river-boot rescue efforts. We eventually were all re-united, but my gear-management omission doubled the duration of our shuttle, and we got on the river about 12:40 pm, with a short-lived though morale-boosting burst of sunshine.
At this water level, the Eno had clearly-moving current, a few shallow shoals at the beginning along with other features to work with for eddy turns and peel-outs. Not long into the first mile a paddle-snake grabbed the trip coordinator’s blade during a cross-bow move to make an eddy, sending him head-over-keister into the chilly drink, and no doubt, inspiring due-confidence among other trip members. After self-recovery and a clothing-augmentation, our group moved downstream. Gradient increased, producing standing-waves with verve, weaving around some larger rocks and shallow ledges managed with boat-scouting, for the most part. We broke for lunch about an hour into the run, re-fueling on personal stocks, shared goods and some hot drink from a paddler’s thermos. The after-lunch water grew a little busier, leading to shore-scouting of one ledge that could not be conveniently boat-scouted, along with two additional swims followed by quick recovery of person and gear. Getting winter-water swimmers out of the water as quickly as safely-possible, and completely out of the water before relaxing recovery-assistance monitoring, can help mitigate onset of hypothermia-related incidents.
A winter-paddle can be stingy with daylight, and by the time we reached the main rapid at Fews Ford within the Eno River State Park boundaries, the waning-sun had emerged from overcast with a low-angle blinding fury, obscuring any useful view of the complex ledge-system forty yards ahead of us. We spent a near half-hour looking over the options, from river-level as well as from the top of the stairs that cross a 20-foot high outcropping rising above the shore right next to the crux of the drop. The deliberative-time reflected both desire and reticence: paddlers faced an opportunity to navigate the longest and most technically challenging rapid of the afternoon, but the combined chill factor of the cooling air and possible immersion also made its voice heard, given the three swims earlier in the trip. A safety-boat was installed right beneath the first and largest drop; Roger set up a rope on the mid-river island below the crux next to the run-out as a back-up. Three paddlers found comfort in walking the rapid; those who ran it, ran it clean. The safety set-up remained in place until two of the portagers crossing the river above the drop, to a more accommodating trail on the other side, got gear and selves onto dry land. Team work simplified the work of hauling boats the hundred yards from the take-out to the parking lot, some four hours after boats and paddles had first hit the water. We finished the loading and the shuttle un-wind without a drop of daylight left, but with a good cup of winter paddling under our belts.