Chota Canoe Club January Newsletter

EDDY OUT

Book Signing

Winter Touring

Kirk Eddlemon’s book signing event was a big hit! Here’s a peek in case you missed it.

Jim Martin gives us some safety tips to keep touring fun and warm in the winter.

January 2014

Member Newsletter • Chota Canoe Club, Knoxville, Tennessee • paddlechota.org

EDDY OUT For your Calendar...

FEB

Wilderness First Aid/CPR class to be held February 6-7, 2014 in Knoxville, TN.

Member Newsletter • Chota Canoe Club, Knoxville, Tennessee • paddlechota.org

A wee note from your editor...

Hey there!

Well, I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season with your families, and those of you with a drysuit, with your boats too.

As you can tell in this issue, like the last, there are not many trip reports. Please take a second on your trips to befriend a new boater and pull a “Gary Kilpatrick” to delegate the responsibility of writing the trip report to that unsuspecting newbie. It’s nothing fancy!

Just send me a text file or a word doc that has a BRIEF, funny, optionally non-fiction story of how your trip went down, who was on it, and/or major milestones. Most importantly I will need high res photos (cell phone shots will do too) of more than just your boat sitting at the put in and your group standing around.

Don’t have a trip report...no prob, Bob! Do a write up on your bootie beer experience, or what it’s like to swim every rapid on a run.

ALL information included in that months newsletter needs to be in to me no later than by the 25th of the month!!!

See you at roll practice!

Rachel relise@me.com

WELCOME NEW CLUB MEMBERS!!

Be sure to say hello to the newest members of the Club as of this fall. They are:

Garth Brown and Jen Dail Matt Ostermeyer Liz Rees Stuart McKee Wesley Moore Ben Kazimier and Audrey Douthit

get your roll on...

Roll Practice We are currently holding roll practice on Friday evenings from 7-9pm at the University of Tennessee Pool.

$5 for Club members $10 for Non-members $20 for Memberships

*Don’t forget your gear!

Winter roll practice is back and here’s some roll practice shots and stats.

We started roll practice in the fall for the very first time this year and it was hugely successful. We had an average of 18 boaters per session for 4 sessions, and we had 10 people pay their membership, 6 of whom were new members!

Thanks to everyone who helped out!

-Sean

py Now! o C r u o Y r Orde

Whitewater of the Southern Appalachians

by Kirk Eddlemon For those of you who missed a great time at Kirk’s book signing here are a few photos from it!

Wilderness First Aid + CPR Training February 6-7, 2014 Knoxville, Tennessee This class is now full, but be on the lookout for updates as the training date approaches.

Contact Angela Wood at ajwahl09@gmail.com

Jett to Lily

by Leslie Stewart November 23, 2014 • Clear Creek

Liz Rees, Wes Dobson and I (Leslie Stewart) decided to do an early Sunday run on Clear Creek the Jett to Lily section.

Water levels were low but definitely doable. This seemed like a perfect opportunity to get in and try out my new (to me) canoe.

This would be my second ever solo run in a canoe. It was so much fun the first time I decided to buy a used canoe and explore the dark side of white water boating. We eddy hopped, practiced ferrying and poked our way down the river.

Fun was had by all and I’m happy to report there was no swimming out of that canoe, although there were several out of control moments.

The water spirits were smiling on us that day. As we were getting to the take out I noticed someone taking our pictures he was generous enough to share them with us.

Pictures courtesy of Larry Carr.

Winter Touring

by Jim Martin

Just because the calendar says it’s winter don’t let that stop you from paddling. If you have the right gear, pick the right day and pick the right lake it is safe and fun.

One of the great advantages of winter touring trips is that except for a few fishermen you usually have the lake to yourself. It’s all about waiting for the right winter day.

There will be days when the sun is out, the winds are calm and the temperatures are way above freezing.

The first safety issue is to be prepared for cold weather and cold water. You need to have emergency gear to deal with the conditions. Dress in layers. Wear synthetic materials or wool that will keep you warm even when you are wet. Make your top layer something waterproof and windproof. A Gore-tex shell or a splash top will work.

Keep your feet dry, wear a warm hat and gloves.

Once you have the right clothes get another set that will be even warmer. Pack them in a drybag along with extra hats, gloves and hand warmers. This is your bailout bag.

If you do get turned over or just slip and fall you will be wet and cold. The stuff in the drybag will save you from getting hypothermia. I also pack a small camp stove, pot and matches along with instant coffee, cocoa or soup.

Having a dry suit will keep you dry, but if it’s a warm day you will be miserable in it. Touring is an aerobic workout.

You should have good self and assisted rescue skills before you consider paddling in cold water.

The final consideration is where to go. Many of the tributary lakes that are fun in the summer are drawn way down in the winter. Fontana, Norris, Cherokee and Douglas are rocky canyons. Other that a few long boat ramps it is hard to find a landing spot.

The upper end of Tellico Lake is very interesting this time of year. There are lots of sandy beaches and very clear.

Chilhowee, Calderwood and Santeetlah don’t get drawn down much and there are very few boats on them.

Those are the best lakes for winter paddling.

Wherever you be sure to go check the hunting schedules for the area. I have had some encounters with deer and bear hunters.

When you see a stretch of good winter weather in the forecast plan a quick trip and post it on our Facebook page and the web calendar.