Columbus, GA

Whitewater consultant for a day.

Last Thursday, Risa Shimoda  the Strategic Planner for McLaughlin Whitewater Design Group, called me up and asked if I would like to come down to Columbus, GA to help test out a section of the whitewater park being built on the Chattahoochee River and provide constructive feedback on how it could be made better. So the first thing I did was call up Max and tell him we had an adventure waiting for us.

With gear loaded up, we headed out of town on route to Columbus, GA. A location we thought to be the most unlikely of spots for great whitewater.

Two and a half hours later we pulled into town. After getting a slice of pizza in downtown Columbus. We meet up with the folks from McLaughlin Whitewater Design Group: Rick McLaughlin, Risa Shimoda, and Jack Goble all of whom where paddlers themselves and have a serious passion for whitewater.

After introductions, we walked down to the riverbed to take a look at the current stage of the whitewater park they are currently building. The river bed was an incredible site to be seen with the water off. The section we were looking at was a neat little canyon section, little did we know what it would look like with the water on…

After a crash course on whitewater design given to us by Rick and Jack we went back to the car to gear up and wait for the water to be released by the GA Power dam upstream. To our delight the flow was a healthy 8,000 CFS.

As the water filled in we quickly found ourselves staring at what has the potential to be a world class high volume playspot and beautiful heavy sheets of water flowing downstream into a big deep pool.

The stoke levels were pretty high for everyone as we watched the feature fill in and quickly looked around at each other in anticipation of who would be the guinea pig for the feature.

It was time to test the feature so we could give feedback… Our buddy and excellent boater, Hunter Katt beat me to the punch. He was in his boat and ready to go before I even stepped into my mine. With safety set at the bottom hunter slide into the water and peeled out of the eddy attempting to surf a little wave above the main hole. He quickly found himself flushed out and flipped over. He was headed into the main hole upside down, which may have worked to his benefit since he was set up to punch the right edge of the hole, I think his paddle must have grabbed some green water and pulled him right through. He rolled up and tapped his helmet to let us know he was alright.

Okay my turn…I pushed of the rock and into the eddy, immediately peeling out into the main current and decided I would try my luck at punching through the right sight of the hole, we were the guinea pigs so it was only right that I head for a meaty section of hole and see what happens after all the ultimate design is one of a playspot. I immediately got flipped back into the meat of the hole and it was rodeo time. I did my best to stay ahead of my boat and look for the seam of water that was flushing out of the hole while I was getting thrown around. I started to run out of steam and decided to pull my skirt, I went deep and it was a yard sale of boat, paddle and foam from the inside of my boat. I came up and collected my gear in the gigantic pool below the feature and went back up for round two.

After about 6 rides (no more swimming) in the hole and successful runs of the rapid by everyone else that was there including our good friends Tony Rice, and Matt Heath both of whom had styling lines and threw down like champs. We certainly had some feedback to give to the design team.

Make it less retentive and more glassy green water to surf. Other than that keep it just as dynamic and we will see a safe, fun and dynamic playspot that will put Columbus on the map for amazing whitewater with easy access and a really neat downtown area right next to the river.

McLaughlin Whitewater Design Group has really got it together and I have no doubt that they will get this place dialed in to be a safe and excellent playspot that will complement the whitewater upstream. Max and I really enjoyed getting the opportunity to play in a spot with so much potential and get to be a part of the design process.

I can’t show you too much of the feature because it is sure to change as the design process continues so the picture above is a sneak peak. To learn more about whitewater in Columbus, GA visit our friends at The Outside World located in the heart of downtown Columbus they have a great shop, local knowledge of the river and rental options for boats and a large selection of gear to get you fully equipped.

Cheers,

Sam