Griffin Creek

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Griffin Creek

Sequatchie Valley Tennessee

Class V

Water Quality (1 bad 3 good)

(acid mine run-off)

Scenery (1 bad 3 good)

Maps:

Watershed Map (to find location and size of creek) Click Here

Special thanks to Steve Zerfos for making the map.

Free Camping:

There is paddling friendly camping at the Big Brush Put-in in the winter.

Click here and follow our homemade map to the put -in

Camp at the Put-in.

Topo Map: Click Here

A special thanks to Randy Hale of NorthRiverGeographic for the map

Rain Gauges:

These rain gauges are nearby to help you figure out how much rain has fallen.

Dunlap Rain

amazon.nws.noaa.gov/nexhads2/jsp/interactiveDisplays/createChart.jsp

Whitwell Rain

amazon.nws.noaa.gov/nexhads2/jsp/interactiveDisplays/createChart.jsp

The Put-in:

The put-in can be hard find there aren't many real road signs.

Look on Page 24 of you Tennessee Gazetteer , the look for hwy 108 outside Whitwell TN. Okay here is the hard part, look for Pocket Road. (It takes you to Pocket Creek) keep going and look for this road on the right coming from Whitwell, Tennessee.

You will turn right here leaving from Whitwell on Hwy 108. This road wasn't on the GPS or the Gazetteer.

Then go down this road..............it will be pavement and will turn to gravel.

Look for this flat crossing...you can miss it really easy...its the put-in.

River Description

Class 4 for the runnable ones, which ain't many. Back in the spring of 1995(?) Tom Bowen, Tim Williams, Clay Wright and Bill Morwinkle made an attempt on Griffin Creek .

Griffin runs into the Sequatchie valley. Brian Collins and I scouted this in 1994 and were unsure due to weird gradient, and decided to move on after walking 20% of it. It's steep, but not extreme, also the rock is shelfy, if that is a word. And it was full of deadfalls.

Well that following spring it was confirmed by Tom Bowen and crew. The run started out nice, but when the gradient picked up, so did the undercuts. The portage factor is high. Brian and I imagined slides going into walls and undercuts, and according to Tom Bowen his team confirmed it. The others that I have talked to about the run said never again, and to write if off. Also the watershed head waters are very close to Pocket Creek, but the personalities of those creeks are totally different.

Here is the put-in pipe that is underneath the road..........

You can actually paddle inside this pipe!

Here is the beginning of the run.........

***Warning label***

Whitewater paddling is VERY Dangerous, and you should get instruction before ever attempting even to paddle flatwater. One of contributors to this web site has personally helped bury 3 kayaking friends, this isn't a joke. Whitewater paddling can ruin your life through accidents and can effect your family and friends throughout a lifetime.

The information on this page is incomplete, inaccurate, and very unreliable. Use with caution. Whitewater paddling is a dangerous sport and the information here is not a substitute for actual knowledge and skill. The authors are not liable for your actions. Go ahead and kill yourself if you want to, but don't blame others for you actions and decisions that you will make on and off the river.

***Warning label***

Our hemlocks are dying on the ridge due to the woolly adelgid infestation. You can find out more at the Save Our Hemlocks website: http://www.saveourhemlocks.org/

To learn even more click here

The Picture below is depressing to say the least...

Picture courtesy of KnoxNews.com