Chamber News

DAN RIVER BASIN ASSOCIATION'S FIRST 'FALL RIVER CLEAN UP' OCTOBER 4th

The Dan River Basin Association’s October 4 outing will be a 5-mile cleanup float on the Dan River from Whetstone Creek to Eden. Meeting at 10:00 a.m. at the NC Wildlife Access in Eden, locally called the Boat Landing (36.4752, -79.7503), participants will paddle through several navigation sites, well-preserved nineteenth century river structures now on the National Register of Historic Places. The navigation structures provide easy passage through shallow areas, making this a Class I section, suitable for novice paddlers. Boats may be rented from Three Rivers Outfitters, 336-627-6215, www.3-r-o.com. Boaters are asked to choose canoes, which can hold more debris than kayaks.

October 4, 2014 Time: 10:00 AM October 4, 2014 10:00 a.m. NC Wildlife Access (the Boat Landing) near Eden, NC GPS 36.4752, -79.7503 Coordinated by Ward Collis and T Butler, the cleanup is part of NC Big Sweep, the statewide component of an international watershed cleanup. Participants record the types of trash they find, contributing to statistics that help design educational programs to prevent littering. Collis, an avid paddler and coordinator of several DRBA cleanups, can often be seen trailing his fishing line as he paddles. He comments, “This DRBA First Saturday Outing is an easy paddle on a section of the Dan River containing several historic structures from a period when the river was of great commercial importance. This section is well upriver from the coal ash spill which occurred last winter. Participants will enjoy the company of their fellow paddlers and feel the accomplishment of improving the natural beauty of this portion of the Dan River.” Butler, who served for many years on the NC Big Sweep Board of Directors, has coordinated hundreds of cleanups as Rockingham County Coordinator and was honored repeatedly by the state organization for her service. “I am extremely proud of DRBA’s role in working to keep our rivers clean and safe,” she says. “Our goal is litter-free waters throughout the Dan River basin in North Carolina and Virginia.” The navigation structures in the Dan, built in the 1820s and expanded as late as the 1880s, include sluices, landings, and wing dams that made the river usable by flat-bottomed batteaux, the long, narrow workhorses of nineteenth century river commerce in the region. According to Lindley Butler, a senior North Carolina historian, “The structures channel the water through rapids and ledges that would have blocked the batteaux, each of which carried several tons of goods. Present-day recreational users enjoy the effects of these structures, which have been self-maintaining for over 130 years. The improvements enable us to float the Dan throughout Rockingham County even in times of extreme drought.” In this section, boaters will pass through several of these improvements, including Galloway’s Lower Ford Sluice and Sneed Strong’s Fish Dam Sluice. Two miles into the trip, on river left, was the Grief Wade Plantation where coal was mined during the Civil War and shipped by batteau to heat military prisons in Danville. Just after passing the confluence of Buffalo Island Creek on river left, boaters will pass under the Harrington Highway Bridge, the site of former Hamlin’s (Menzies) Island. Students of river hydrology explain that islands appear and disappear as a result of water action during heavy storms and floods. Nearby on river left, according to Rockingham County Historian Bob Carter, is the graded right-of-way of the uncompleted North Carolina Midland Railroad. Also on river left one may see a fine stand of the river cane common on the river when William Byrd surveyed the “Dividing Line” in 1728, but now gradually disappearing throughout much of the river’s length. During a lunch break at Leaksville Landing, boaters can view the crib structures in the river to which the nineteenth century batteaux were moored. Leaksville Landing is the only known batteau port remaining in the United States. After lunch participants will drift past Johnston’s Landing and then the site of the former Leaksville Covered Bridge, where a massive stone pier from the 1852 span survives, along with a 150-foot-long sluice wall on river right. One of the last points of interest on the trip will be the confluence of the Smith River, which enters the Dan from river left. According to The Dan River Book by Forrest Altman, the North Fork of the Smith and the East Fork of the Dan rise on opposite sides of Mountain View Road on Belcher Mountain in Patrick County, Virginia, within sight of the Blue Ridge Parkway. More information may be found on Maps 47-50 of An Insider’s Guide to the Dan River. Both the Guide and Altman’s book are available at www.danriver.org. Participants in the outing are asked to bring boat, life jacket, gloves, lunch and water, to dress in layers of artificial (quick-drying) fabric and to sign a waiver. Trash bags will be provided. To reach Eden Wildlife Access from the north, travel south on NC 14 through the city of Eden. After crossing the Dan River, turn right at the traffic signal onto Harrington Highway. Take the first right, Bethlehem Church Road, turning right again at the Wildlife Access. From the south, turn left off NC 14 onto Harrington Highway at the traffic signal just south of the Dan River. Turn right onto Bethlehem Church Road, then right to the Wildlife Access. From the west, take NC 770 or NC 135 toward Eden. Turn right onto Harrington Highway and continue to Bethlehem Church Road. Turn left, and then right to the Wildlife Access. From the northeast take US 58 to Danville’s western city limit, turning left on Road 863 to Berryhill Community, where 863 becomes NC 770 West. Follow NC 770 West into Eden to NC 14. Turn left onto NC 14 and travel south through Eden, cross the Dan River and turn right at the traffic signal onto Harrington Highway. Take the first right, Bethlehem Church Road, turning right again at the Wildlife Access. Wear hat, gloves and close-toed shoes, be prepared to get wet, and bring boat, paddles, life jackets, lunch and water. Trip coordinators: Ward Collis, 336-292-2200, wjc07@triad.rr.com and T Butler, 336-349-5727, members@danriver.org