In two weeks, two friends and I will embark on a four-day, 51-mile paddling trip down the Nolichucky River.
A patch of whitewater along the NolichuckyThe Nolichucky is a scenic waterway that flows through east Tennessee and western North Carolina. The upper section is famous for its whitewater. But Kyle Simpson, Teresa Lee and I plan to paddle the tamer lower-middle section, boating from Uncle Johnny’s Hostel & Outfitter in Erwin, Tennessee, to Kinser Park in Greeneville, Tennessee.
To date, my longest paddle has been a 12-mile day trip on the South Chickamauga Creek. In fact, between the three of us, Kyle is the only one who has been on overnight paddling trips. So Teresa and I were grateful to have him take the helm on planning, and even more so to discover his penchant for list-making. Three months before our departure, Kyle had drafted our itinerary, pack-lists and even proposed meal schedules.
To help you plan a long-distance paddling trip of your own (or to follow in the wake of ours), here I share with you Kyle’s well-laid plans.
His first piece of advice? “Start with the basics and go from there.”