Discharge and Gage Height near Francisco, NC
September
20, 2004. Jeff and I rented a couple of Dagger
Zydeco's from Hanging
Rock Outdoor Center and paddled a ten mile stretch of the Dan River near
Danbury, NC. We put in at Moore's Spring Campground at 9:30am and the took
out at Moratock Park at 3:00pm. We followed Hurricane Ivan by four days,
which gave the river time to drop, but was still a little above average.
It was a first time paddle for the five miles below the Hanging Rock access
point. The last five miles were a little slower than the first five, with
few overhangs or other scenery, mostly mud banks and tree stands bordering
bottom land. And because we were paddling on a Sunday afternoon, the dirt
bikes
and
four wheelers riding through the bottoms were a little distracting. But
the lower half did have some backwater leading to a feeder stream that we
explored in the rented nine footers. The Zyedecos were able to maneuver
through water no more than 6 inches deep and turn around in some pretty narrow
quarters. The abandoned Seven Islands steel bridge gave that stretch a
very southern flavor. It was a very nice paddle, but for all the Zydeco's
maneuverability, they don't track at all and will spin around as soon as you
stop paddling.
You can watch a short clip of Jeff paddling the Dan by clicking here.
River Depth at Francisco gauge = 1.65 feet Discharge = 176 cubic feet per second
