Denise Godfrey, Co-Owner of River By Canyon Adventures, Ltd.
posted July 24, 2008
As a child, I remember camping out in my backyard with the neighborhood pals. We would stay outside playing hide and go seek in our PJs until the crickets were louder than our screeches of defeat after being tagged behind the bush next to the garage. I was raised in a small coastal town in New England, where greenways were as extinct as dinosaurs and you had to travel an hour away to enjoy a true camping adventure in the mountains. But I can see where it would be easy to take the great outdoors for granted if you were raised in or around the Scenic City, because you’re surrounded by mountains and rivers every where you turn. After all, it’s all you can do to keep up with your yard chores, weeding the garden and backwashing the swimming pool during the summer months, right? But when was the last time you truly enjoyed this unique geographical, ecological outdoor wonderland, besides walking across the Walnut Street Bridge, or having a family picnic or listening to the symphony at Coolidge Park?
I bet you didn’t realize that just 10 minutes away is the second most diverse ecology in the planet, second only to China, and the 4th largest river canyon east of the Mississippi. Of course, I’m talking about the Tennessee River Gorge, the gateway of which basically begins at Suck Creek, accessible from the base of Signal Mountain. River Canyon Adventures, Ltd., specializes in adventurous flatwater guided kayak eco-tours and overnight camping and kayak trips through the river gorge canyons.
This year, overnight camping and kayaking adventures have been quite popular, and I’m assuming that has a lot to do with the gas prices. Families and groups really have to choose their vacation activities wisely, and with the prices of hotels these days, who can afford to pay over a hundred dollars just to sleep. Sure, you could spend a few hundred in gas and end up at a neighboring city’s newest hotel featuring wireless internet access, a nominal continental breakfast and a noisy indoor swimming pool. But chances are, the hotel manager may not even let you splash around in an inflatable raft! As an alternative, you could conserve gas and stick around your own neck of the woods and paddle down the warm, gentle waters of an amazing river gorge that was created 350 million years ago from the continuous erosion made from an ancient, shallow sea. Go ahead and be a kid again and enjoy some of the river locals’ favorite past times: jump off a rope swing, learn the art of cat fishing, build a real fire (and not from a piece of cast iron you bought at Home Depot), attempt some gourmet Smores and blow out flaming, gooey marshmallows. And for a unique morning meditation excursion, paddle through the early mist dancing on the river and into an American Indian slough, where village markings and earthworks have been preserved for hundreds of years and still abundant Ginseng, St. John’s Wort and Witch Hazel were harvested as daily medicine prescribed by the tribal Shaman. The wildlife in the gorge is truly amazing, also. Last Father’s Day while I was guiding an eco-tour with a young family from Atlanta, the Dad relayed to us that they saw an American Bald Eagle fly right above their campsite and dip down into the river, snatching a fish. He said one of the eagle’s feathers fell into the river and he kayaked out to retrieve a truly unique Father’s Day gift.
It all begins at the RCA boat launch located at the exact point where the Aquarium’s new River Gorge Explorer spins an impressive 360 signaling it’s return back downtown to tourist central. Our guests embark on a 6-8 mile journey by kayak down the most scenic and preserved portions of the Tennessee River Gorge, getting up close and personal with all of its glory, while feeling the shadows from the past. And if you’re one of our overnight camping guests, we’ll paddle right to your campsite on the river, transporting your camping gear by ski boat. When you’re ready (maybe not willing) to begin your trip back to reality, we’ll shuttle you back by ski boat so that you won’t have to paddle upstream. Just relax and take one last look at Chattanooga’ best hidden secret, which was recently designated as a United Nations Biosphere Reserve.
Or, you could just plan your stay in a tidy hotel room decorated with fake floral arrangements and look forward to that hard onion bagel, stale Fruit Loops and a banana in the morning. And if you’re staying local, make sure to at least take in a little pavement down at the historic waterfront, watch the great outdoors on a 3D big screen, or grab a horse and carriage ride down Broad Street, smelling the sweet smell of our local honey barbeque and fermenting barley. Me personally, I remember my childhood days of seeing more concrete than earth. I’d rather settle for hosting our guests to a scrumptious, pre-trip healthy, hot breakfast at the RCA outpost overlooking 1500 ft canyons, with the morning mist silently weaving through the dense hardwood forest, watching a Great Blue Heron scout for an early snack while an American Bald Eagle majestically soars overhead. Now that’s truly living in the great Tennessee outdoors! For more information about River Canyon Adventures’ camping and kayaking eco-tours and deluxe packages, call (423) 290-8628 or visit www.rivercanyonadventures.com. Don’t be up Suck Creek without a paddle!
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