Georgia Natural Wonder #76 – Cartecay River – Gilmer County. 1,234

[Top Row Dawg]

Georgia Natural Wonder #76 – Cartecay River – Gilmer County

We come off the top 10(11) tallest peaks of Georgia to finish up some of our best North Georgia whitewater. We already spent three Georgia Natural Wonders (16-17-18) on the Chattooga River. Amicalola Creek was (GNW - 41), while Talking Rock Creek was (GNW - 48). We floated over the Fall Lines of the Savannah, Oconee, Ocmulgee, Flint, and Chattahoochee Rivers with (GNW - 60 to 75). We now turn our attention to the surprising Cartecay River with a history tangent on Gilmer County and its chief town of Ellijay.



The Cartecay River is a 19.1 mile-long river that runs through Ellijay, and is one of the most popular whitewater runs in the north Georgia mountains, probably due to many Class I and Class II rapids and close proximity to Highway 52. Top Row Dawg addendum. Put in at Lower Cartecay Road is best. Do not mess with Blackberry Falls access, just go on past. Paid not one but two parking tickets there. (Bitches).



Now you can put in just off Highway 52 between Ellijay and Dahlonega. There are no rapids to report in this stretch. I have never done this part, cow pastures, not wild and scenic. The river overall is scenic, but runs by many houses and lawns that stretch down to the edge of the river. These are common below Lower Cartecay Road. Best behavior is paramount here and avoidance of trespassing on the riverside private property.



Y. Holt Bridge (Ellijay River Outfitters), (POLS), 2.7 miles, Class I

The first 3 miles of scenic paddling are a placid prelude to 7 miles of outstanding whitewater. If you prefer, you can put in at Highway 52 and paddle the extra mile down to Lower Cartecay Road, but be prepared to portage because this section will likely have some strainers (deadfall) on on it.



Z. Lower Cartecay Bridge (River Left), (POLS), 2.4 miles, Class II+

Here is a tip for running the Lower Cartecay when the level is near minimum: Drive to the the take-out on Mulkey Road and look at the shoals there. If it looks high enough to run, it is. Remember the gauge is down river so it matters whether the level is rising or dropping.



Most of this section of the Cartecay River runs through a residential area. There are no restrooms after you put in and most of the river banks are on private property.



So, please take care of these needs before putting on. You will paddle past cabins and homes on both sides of the river for most of this section.



Most of the homeowners are friendly toward the boating community, but they do not want to see you nude, nor do they want you going to the bathroom in their yard. It is recommended that you keep your groups small and quiet and not stay too long at any one spot, or put on the river after dark. In short, please be respectful to the home owners.



Put in at the bridge on Lower Cartecay Road. There are put-ins on river right and river left. Managed by commercial outfitters these access points have their own sets of rules.




Main put in is at Lower Cartecay Road.

The Stegall Mill Road takeout is just past the bridge downriver from "Blackberry Falls" on river right. Please do not change clothes at the takeout.



You should be aware that parking is limited and the parking lot is closed from Friday through Monday from May 15th to September 15th. If you take out here, you should arrange for someone to pick you up after you get off the river. You will get a rather large ticket and your car will be towed. Hard lesson learned. Arrange a shuttle from put in folks or just float down to the jail. When the level is 2.2' or better it is worth it to paddle on down to the DNR takeout.



a. Mulkey Road access (Blackberry Falls), (PALS), 4.8 miles, Class II+

Rapid Descriptions

Sexton's (Class II, Mile 1.0)

About a mile below Lower Cartecay Road you will see some houses on river right. These houses look out of place in the mountains because they have long green lawns leading down to the river. Here, a narrow chute on river right forms a small Class II rapid. Run it down the right and eddy out left or right at the bottom.


Sexton

Rock Garden (Class II, Mile 1.3)

A quarter mile down river is "Rock Garden", another Class II. Look for a narrow slot in the middle of the drop at the top of the rapid. Go over the drop with a left angle and immediately make a sharp turn back to the right.



Follow the channel down the middle, but look out for a pinning rock about 1/3 of the way down. Eddy out at the bottom on the right or the left. There is a decent squirt spot on river left at the bottom. Large kayaks and canoes may have trouble navigating Rock Garden at levels below 1.2'.



Surfing Rapid (Class II, Mile 1.5)

After Rock Garden work your way through some shoals and pools until you come to a river wide ledge known as "Surfing Rapid.





Here is a good place for beginners to work on their surfing skills.



It has a good recovery pool and a nice beach, but you should be prepared to roll or get rescued because it is easy to flip here. More shoals after "Surfing Rapid", then "S-Turn".

S-Turn (Class II+, Mile 1.8)

An island in the middle of the river marks the entrance to "S-Turn". Run left of the island and stay far left to avoid getting stuck on rocks. Beginners will want to scout "S-Turn". Eddy out on river left to scout. The most distinguishing feature of this rapid is the sluice that forms at the top of the ledge on river left. The river makes a sharp right turn through the sluice, and then quickly turns back to the left.



Most beginners will run this rapid by aggressively paddling through the sluice and turning left after the drop. Others will catch the large eddy on river right and continue the run from there. At levels above 2.0' you can skip the sluice and drop straight over the ledge.



Either way, you need to paddle aggressively the rest of the way. Punch the hole at the bottom. Eddy out river right or river left. If you eddy left be aware of the undercut rock at the bottom of the eddy. "S-Turn" is rated Class II+ at normal levels. At 4-6' it is definitely a solid Class III.



Whirlpool (Class II+, Mile 2.0)

"Whirlpool" gets its name from the large swirling eddy on river right at the bottom of the rapid. Beginners will want to avoid this and eddy left, where there is a large pool. Be careful though, because the left eddy has a very dynamic eddy line. For best results run "Whirlpool" with a left angle and paddle hard for river left. WARNING: there is almost always a strainer at the bottom of the river right eddy. Also, this is a very deep spot in the river and the channel is full of trees and debris left over from ice storms and other bad weather. You cannot see them because they are below the surface. But watch out if you take a swim.



Keep your feet up and swim aggressively for river left. "Whirlpool" is rated Class II+ at normal levels. At levels above 4' it becomes a Class III/III+. At these levels a very large hole forms at the bottom of the rapid. Run the sneak down the left to avoid this hazard. I don't recommend playing in this hole. It is shallow and people have been known to get hurt or break their paddles while attempting to play here.



Blackberry Falls (Class II+, Mile 2.3)

The grand finale of the upper run is "Blackberry Falls". It looks intimidating to beginners but it is actually just a big ol' slide.



It ends in a haystack that tends to stop and flip those who air-brace, rudder, or otherwise don't paddle. You know - beginners. The classic "Blackberry" run is down the center with a slight left angle.



Look for the green hump of water just below the top and split it with your boat. Paddle hard and punch through the haystack at the bottom. Eddy left or right - preferably left.


You can body surf this, looks tough but really kids stuff.

The other popular line is the diagonal line from left to right. If you are good enough, and lucky enough, you can catch the wave above the haystack and surf it. "Blackberry Falls" is Class II+, Class III/III+ at levels above 4'.



Stegall Mill (Blackberry) Falls

b. For the takeout at Cartecay Canoe Launch, (GA)

Now I have been down this River several times and I always blow past the Stegall Mill takeout, I take out down by the Gilmer County Jail. Shallow in here, lot of stream side houses a lot like downtown Helen on the Hooch. But there is some damn fine whitewater in here too.





This is really living, stream side the Cartecay.





Lower Rapid Descriptions

Rooster Tail (Class I, Mile 0.5)

A small ledge drop with a rock in it. Run just to the right of the rooster tail created by the rock.



Mr. Twister (Class II+, Mile 1.5)

You will see some cabins high up on the ridge on river left. Usually you will see a bench on a rock on river left as well. Since the bench marks the entrance to the rapid, we call it the benchmark.



Run this one down the center and punch the hole. The hole is grabby and will flip or surf an unweary boater. There is a large recovery pool after this drop.


Mr. Twister

The Narrows (Class II, Mile 3.0)

A long and technically challenging set of rapids. Kind of creeky. A pretty section of the river that offers beginners a chance to practice some easy creek moves.



Clear Creek Falls (Class III, Mile 3.0)

Hazards: Rocks on river left at the bottom of the drop and rocks with broaching potential in the middle of the channel after the drop. The "Narrows" ends with a large eddy on river left. Eddy out here and boat or bank scout "Clear Creek Falls".


Clear Creek Falls

Run this drop by lining up just to the left of the curler wave in the drop. Keep a slight right angle and paddle agressively. This rapid ends in a large recovery pool. At most levels the wave at the bottom of the drop is the best place to front surf on the river.



However, don't flip. There are very nasty rocks just below the surface immediately downstream of the wave.



Two reviews to share. Made the full trip down to the DNR for the first time @ 2.3 Being a beginner, the hole on the right side of the bottom of Mr. Twister looked a little crazy and of course Clear Creek was very intimidating, but there was a nice straight line. Most of the videos I have seen of people going over the falls needed to make a move left over the curling wave at the top, but it was seriously a straight shot. The Narrows was exactly like its description. A lot of quick moves and plenty of lines at the top. I chose the middle line instead of going around the right. The middle included a two foot drop into a area of aerated water. Caught me by surprised how far I sunk and found myself swimming. At 2.3 I rode right over top of the rock that had "broaching" potential. Not sure that is accurate at 2.3. This run included a lot of fun whitewater. Wave trains and shoal rapids were scattered all over the first 3.5 miles.



I wish someone had warned me of the last 2 miles... NOTHING BUT FLAT WATER! Oh my god.. it was horrible!


Less rapids and less houses too. Have to admit kids were bitching like the end of the Amicalola Creek run.

Second review. Ran the 7 mile section from the MOE put in at Lower Cartecay road down to the DNR takeout. Second time on the river for me, (did the short section years ago in a kayak), and the first time doing it in a 16' tandem canoe. This is a great river for those just starting out. There are definitely plenty of spots to get your heart pumping. We tried to boof the rock on river right at blackberry falls and this proved to be the first of 2 wet decisions. The other being at clear creek falls where we went right of the bolder at the bottom of the drop on river left. All in all, for 2 novices paddlers fairly new to whitewater canoeing, This was a great run and I'll definitely be coming back. Plus, you can't beat the shuttle service provided by MOE.



The DNR takeout is behind the Transfer Station you pass on the right as you are going up the hill. Go past the dumpsters and there is a dirt road that winds downhill thru the woods and ends up in a gravel lot at the river.

Found some additional images to add in this tweak of Imgur images.













TRD images.







Ellijay - Gilmer County

We did the Natural Wonder of the Cartecay River we tangent now on the history and natural beauty of Gilmer County, in northwest Georgia. It is the state's eighty-fifth county. Originally held by the Cherokee Nation, its land lay within that lost by the Indians via treaty, battle, and forced removal in the 1830s. The region was claimed by the Spanish as part of Florida until 1665, when it became part of Carolina. It then became part of the original grant to James Oglethorpe, the founder of the Georgia colony. Early white visitors included the Spanish explorers Hernando de Soto and Juan Pardo with their men. Pardo's chaplain, Sebastian Montero, unsuccessfully tried to establish mission churches in the region. The first non-Indians to settle in what was to become Gilmer County arrived by 1769.



Establishing homes in an area called Talking Rock (now part of Pickens County), early white settlers developed communities along the Federal Road, to which right-of-way had been granted by the Cherokees.

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Tangent Federal Road

Settlers and others who used the Old Federal Road normally joined the route in Athens, Georgia or Jefferson, Georgia. At "Federal Crossing", near present-day Flowery Branch, they left the protection of the federal government, crossing Peachtree Road and entering the Cherokee Nation at Vann's Ferry less than three miles away. Over the next two miles they climbed out of the river valley past James Vann's Chattahoochee Plantation and his tavern adjacent to the road. Seasoned travelers knew this stop well - they could get a grog-like drink from the "walk-up window" at Vann's Tavern.


Vann’s Tavern would be under Lake Lanier in Hall County now in New Echota in Calhoun Georgia.

After crossing Two Mile Creek and Six Mile Creek (Four Mile Creek was noteworthy), Coal Mountain was visible in the distance. From Coal Mountain to Frogtown (later Scudders), the road was mostly level. Here it crossed the Etowah River at the Frogtown Ferry. After passing Buffingtons/Blackburns, the road entered the rugged highlands east of Tate, then quickly dropped some 400 feet to Long Swamp Creek.


Long Swamp Creek where our Georgia Natural Wonders began with the Long Swamp Valley Marble Vein.

At Talking Rock the road passed Carmel Mission before heading into the sparsely populated area south of the Coosawattee River. The Taloney Mission (later Carmel Mission) was founded by the Georgia Presbyterians in Pickens County along Talking Rock Creek. The Presbyterians established and ran a number of mission schools throughout Georgia from 1817 to 1833.


The remains of the Taloney Mission were photographed between 1930 and 1960.

Because of the altitude only small streams needed to be crossed. The road climbed Blalock Mountain and followed it to Coosawattee Old Town, where it crossed Talking Rock Creek multiple times before reaching the Cherokee/Moundbuilder town. Deep tangent Indian history.



North of Coosawattee the land near the road was more populated. At Ramhurst the Federal Road to Knoxville went north, while the Federal Road to Nashville continued to the northwest towards Spring Place, the home of James Vann. After Vann's house travelers once again entered an area that was only sparsely populated with little in the way of stores or inns until they reached present-day Ringgold, where the road once again entered the mountains.


Vann House

As the road entered the Tennessee River Valley it began a downhill stretch, passing home of John Ross, and continued on to Ross's Landing, at the center of today's Chattanooga.


John Ross House Rossville.

Much Northwest Georgia history from 1800 until 1838 occurred along the Old Federal Road and as such is important to understand the route. Travelers from the east coast of Georgia crossed Peachtree Road at Federal Crossing and headed northwest to the Chattahoochee River. Vann's Ferry carried them across the river to the Cherokee Nation. Vann never actually ran the ferry. He would lease the right to run the ferry to different settlers between 1805 and his death in 1809.



James Vann's son Joe leased the ferry (or, at least, benefited from the annual lease payments) until 1820. That year Richard Winn won the lot on the "south bank" of the Chattahoochee in the Land Lottery of 1820. From this point forward Winn would lease the south bank and Vann the north and the point slowly became known by two names, Winn's Ferry or (Old) Vann's Ferry. Since the Vann's Chattahoochee Plantation was adjacent to the river the ferryman was also granted the right to use the land to raise crops. The ferry would later be known as Williams Ferry.



Settler Jacob Scudder moved near the Cherokee town of Hightower or Frogtown, just east of the Frogtown Ferry. He opened a "house of entertainment" that drew the wrath of the Cherokee and fueled their nationalistic movement in 1823. Cherokee Principal Chief William Hicks decided to tax Scudder $507 for his operation. This led to a ruling by Attorney General William Wirt that the Cherokee did not have the right to tax Scudder. In 1829 the $507 charged to Scudder for running his house of entertainment was taken from the Cherokee annuity and returned to Scudder. When the state of Georgia created Cherokee County from the Cherokee Nation, Scudder was its first senator.


Scudder and family in front of Scudder Inn. Scudder has had his family's grave vandalized twice now someone looking for gold.

Samuel Tate bought a large piece of land in modern-day Pickens County through the Georgia Land Lotteries in 1832, and by 1834 had opened an inn on the Federal Road. In 1836, Henry Fitzsimmons, an Irish stonecutter, was riding in a stagecoach. It stopped for a break near the inn; he bought some moonshine from a local and proceeded to get drunk. The stagecoach driver wouldn't let him back on, so he waited for the next one. While he was waiting, he saw marble deposits (and a business opportunity) on Tate's land. Fitzsimmons bought/leased part of the land and in 1840 started the Long Swamp Marble Company. In 1844, Fitzsimmons was killed in a brawl and Tate bought the land back, as well as Long Swamp Marble Company.


Henry and his grave in Tate today. We did a tangent on Tate and Tate House back in GNW #1 . The Longswamp Valley Marble Vein.

In the late 1820's and early 1830's, the Old Federal Road became a major route to the gold fields near the Etowah River during the Georgia Gold Rush. Mines dotted the river throughout its entire route south. Franklin Gold Mine, about two miles south of the Old Federal Road in Cherokee County, was one of the most productive in the state. Besides carrying miners to these mines, the road was also used to transport the gold back to the east. The influx of miners brought demands from the government for protection from the Cherokee.


Franklin Gold Mine Hotel Ball Ground Georgia

Both the state and federal governments subsequently abrogated treaties with the Indians, preventing them from regaining control of their land, which was then sold to white settlers by lottery. Several important Indian leaders from what became Gilmer County, including Chief Whitepath and Walking Stick, tried repeatedly but unsuccessfully to obtain just treatment of their people at the hands of the U.S. government.


Whitepath’s cabin is in Gainesville now, at the history center.

Tangent within Federal Road Tangent - Chief Whitepath

Chief White Path was born in 1761 near Ellijay and grew up in the Cabin. His Cherokee name, Nunna-tsune-ga, translates literally as “I dwell on the peaceful (or white) path”. A skillful orator he frequently spoke out at the Cherokee national capitol at New Echota against ceding land to the white settlers. In 1814 he joined General Andrew Jackson to fight the Creeks at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in Alabama War (of 1812).


He along with a small band of Cherokees was instrumental in securing victory for Jackson when they stole the Creeks’ canoes, cutting off their escape by water.


Sam Houston wounded Battle Horseshoe Bend

White Path strongly protested the influence of white settlers in fiery oratory at the Cherokee capitol of New Echota. A strict follower of the traditional ways he spoke against the new Cherokee constitution and the introduction of Christianity by the missionaries. He eventually yielded to the new ways and focused his efforts on fighting the removal policies of his old comrade and now president, Andrew Jackson. He and Chief John Ross traveled to Washington to denounce the removal treaty signed as void. They were unsuccessful and returned to Georgia.


Chief Whitepath is a American Pale Ale (APA) style beer brewed by Fannin Brewing Company in Blue Ridge, GA.

In the fall of 1838 at the age of 77 White Path helped to organize the removal, later known as the “Trail of Tears.” He and other Cherokee leaders realized that the best chance for survival lay in an orderly march to Oklahoma. On a stop near Hopkinsville, Kentucky, Chief White Path died and was buried beside Chief Fly Smith who also died during the night.


Both Chiefs memorialized in Hopkinsville.

In 1838 the Georgia Guard and federal troops would use the Old Federal Road and the removal forts to move the remaining members of the Cherokee Nation west on a tragedy known today as the Trail Where They Cried or The Trail of Tears. Cherokee rounded up in the area were the first inhabitants of Forts Scudder, Gilmer, Newnan and Hoskins. As they moved north on Old Federal the Cherokee to the east moved to the empty forts. Slowly the Cherokee moved north to Ross's Landing where other roads took them to Gunter's Landing (Alabama) or Rattlesnake Springs (Tennessee) where they moved west over water land.



Fort Hetzel was the Indian Removal Fort in Ellijay. One of fifteen roundup posts in Georgia, Ft. Hetzel was one of the earliest established (October, 1837), one of ten that were stockaded, and one of three occupied and stockaded by the winter of 1837. Commanded by William Derrick, captain of a Georgia mounted company, the post gained a second company (infantry) by early spring. Ft. Hetzel was assigned to the eastern Military District commanded by Gen. Abram Eustis. Located in a densely populated area of the Cherokee Nation, Ft. Hetzel briefly housed an unusually high number of prisoners. By late May 1838, Derrick had captured 425-450 prisoners and by early June thought he could start about 500 from Ft. Gilmer to Ft. Cass. He later reported he had sent 84 additional prisoners, "in all 884."



Back to Federal Road tangent - Decline and Abandonment

By the time the Cherokee we being forced west a railroad that would spell the end to the Federal Road was pushing east from Augusta to the Chattahoochee River. From here, the Western and Atlantic would carry passengers north to Chattanooga, completely replacing the Old Federal Road. By the middle 1850's the road was no longer shown as complete and sections of the road were abandoned. During the Atlanta Campaign portions of the road between Ringgold and Praters Mill were used by Union and Confederate troops. By the early 20th century only a few sections of the road were still being used.


Praters Mill and Federal Road.

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Back to Gilmer County

In 1831 the state legislature created Cherokee County, including in it all land west of the Chattahoochee River and north of Carroll County. Because of the large size of Cherokee County, and the fact that its inhabitants included a number of Cherokee Indians, the county proved too difficult to administer. In December 1832 it was divided into several smaller counties, one of which was Gilmer County, named after George R. Gilmer, who as governor was a leading figure in the forcible removal of the Indians.


Gilmer and his grave in Lexington Georgia.

The current Gilmer County, at 427 square miles, is about 68 percent of the original county's size. Many of its historic sites are located in what is now Pickens County.



The county seat, Ellijay, was established on the site of a Cherokee town with a similar name. The seat of county administration since 1834, it has been home to a series of courthouses. The most recent is a converted hotel building constructed in 1898 and made into a courthouse in 1934, with an annex converted from a private home across the street. This courthouse was demolished in 2003 and replaced with a new complex that was completed in 2009. The county's only other incorporated city is East Ellijay.




TRD image

There was a short period of "gold fever" in Gilmer County after gold was discovered in the region in 1829. Prospectors seeking their fortunes came to the county in several waves, some of them establishing the Georgia White Path Copper and Gold Mining Company, but the gold rush ended in the 1840s. The mines were thereafter sometimes operated with convict labor.



Early industries in the county were cotton gins, gristmills, and sawmills. Agriculture for the market was at first solely focused on cotton, but local farmers achieved more security by growing apples, now a prime crop and source of a tourist attraction. After long and hard work, residents of the county were able to secure the arrival of a railroad in 1883. Ellijay existed as a remote mountain community until the Marietta and Northern Georgia Railroad (later the L & N) arrived in 1884.



My photos of 1800’s train station and hotel away from downtown.



This prompted something of a boom in the timber industry, but the area remained relatively isolated until the Zell Miller Mountain Parkway (Georgia 515, named for Georgia governor and U.S. senator Zell Miller) was completed in 1991. It has brought increasing numbers of tourists, drawn by the county's apples, scenery, and various festivals.


Apple Festival


Apples


Camels


Mountain Women


Apple Festival has it all, except it is during football season usually.

Points of interest include Carters Lake;



A large portion of the Chattahoochee National Forest;


Hendrix enjoys view east toward Chattahoochee Forest

Old Cartecay United Methodist Church, the oldest Methodist church in north Georgia, established in 1834;



The Perry House, home of the Gilmer Arts and Heritage Association;



Tabor House This museum & treasured historic home. You will step back into time at this 1870's victorian era home with a Civil War Library that is home to over 200 books on the War Between the States.



And River Park, a recreation and picnicking complex on the banks of the Coosawattee River.



According to the 2010 U.S. census, the population of Gilmer County is 28,292, an increase from the 2000 population of 23,456.



31 Things



Wow that was a deep dive every which way. A Top Row Dawg addendum is to visit the Mercier Orchard and the Big Red Apple Barn. TRD images downtown Ellijay.







Also don’t forget Poole’s Bar B Que with the hillside of Pig signs.





Neat mountain all alone to right coming in to Ellijay from Atlanta. Big Cross on peak.



Almost bought a lot up here.



Today’s Cartecay River GNW gal's got good Kayak form.



Today’s Ellijay and Gilmer County GNW Gals are all about the apples.


The Queen and some apples of my eye.

Bonus GNW Gals at a Winery in Gilmer County.



We move back east tomorrow to some whitewater we already visited downstream and another of these fascinating North Georgia Mountain Counties.