Northwest Tennessee Chapter

Tennessee Trails Association

Ghost River Float Trip

Larry Smith Gives a Lesson on the Wolf River

April 28, 2000

I don't know when I first heard of the Ghost River Section of the Wolf River, but when I did, I knew I had to float it!. Thus when Joe Seago arranged for Larry Smith, Director of the Wolf River Conservancy, to give a presentation to the local chapter of TTA and to lead us on a float trip down the Wolf from LaGrange to Bateman Bridge, I knew we were in for an adventure.

Our arrangements were to meet Larry at the Bateman Bridge at 9:00. We made it at 10:00, mainly because of our having to ferret out a key to be able to get life jackets from campus recreation from whom we had rented our canoes. Arriving just about the time the folks who had gathered earlier were about ready to give up on us, we quickly set up a shuttle and put in near LaGrange. Here the river appears like a real river. It was 20-30 feet wide and a little current, and it is relatively broad. This would change quickly.

This was a learning experience for us all, as Larry would have us pull the canoes aside and tell us of the history of the river, and the acquiring of the Beasley property to protect it. Sometimes he would jump out of his canoe to move logs and help us over low water points. Mind you this is not a pristine mountain stream! The water is the color of chocolate milk. When one of us suggested that we would not want to risk clogging a water filter with water from the Wolf, Larry said that "There's nothing in it. I drink from it all the time!" Wisteria draped from many of the trees. Those not careful enough to stay away from some stumps in the river might also manage to brush against poison ivy. There were lots of heron and yes, even a few snakes.

We stopped for lunch after about 1.5 hours, having been guided between a row of cypress knees to a sheltered spot away from the main current. At this time, the river was becoming increasingly more difficult to make out, as there were side-channels and ways to meander all over the place. Blazes on the trees pointed the way. During lunch, Michelle, Joe Coulombe's friend asked, "So why is this called the Ghost River? To which Larry replied, "In about 1/2 hour, you'll see why."

True to his word, after we got back on the river, we suddenly came to a dead end and a sharp left turn. At this point the river had no perceptible current as it flowed through an seemingly endless number of cypress knees. Those ahead and behind could hear others as they bumped into trees along the canoe trail that made the river possible to follow. Sometimes there were stretches of wide swamp with lily pads and open sky. This is the part of the river where Larry has said that some folks have spent the night (not by design) but because they neglected to follow his advice to "not get ahead." I suppose the bank was there somewhere, but from where we were, there was no discernible shore.

Then as the current began to pick up, we began to encounter a few boats from people coming up from the put in at Bateman Bridge. Indeed just before we got there, there were again noticeable riffles in the water, and one did not have to paddle quite so much.

Time spent on the water was approximately 6 hours. Some of us spent some time in the water also! Clear blue skies, 88 degrees. I think most us slept well that night!

In reflecting on our adventure, I asked one of the experienced paddlers on the trip whether he was ready to lead a trip down the Wolf on his own. "Maybe after one more time down it, I could find my way!" Personally, the way to do this trip is with an expert from the Wolf River Conservancy. Thanks, Larry.

Participants: Michelle and Joe (Coulombe), Andy Wright, Joe Seago, Laura Brown, Vivian Norwood, Gaven Meadows, Hao Nguyen, Jim and Anna Clark, Debbie and Chris Fox, Gil and Kathleen (Memphis Chapter of TTA) and, of course, Larry Smith.

j.c.

Note: the Wolf River Conservancy regularly leads trips down the Wolf for its members and has a number of activities relating to the conservation of this vital watershed.