First Time on the James River

[Myst]

I am new to the area and wanted to spend a little time on the James river. I was with my girlfriend and we wanted to paddle flat water. It looked like the Huguenot area was a good idea and we tried that Saturday. Putting in at Huguenot Woods we met an angler who had been out there before. The current was more than anything I had kayaked in before, but didn't look dangerous. She didn't say anything while we paddled, but the GF was a bit intimidated. We put in and started paddling upstream planning to reach Bosher's Dam before returning. The current was over 2 MPH as measured with my GPS and progress was slow. As we approached the bend that was about the half way point and the river pinches together a bit, I measured our progress at less than 1 MPH. We got through that section and got up to about 2 MPH.

Rounding the bend we could see the bridge and dam in the distance and decided to push on to the bridge. We made it to the bridge and rested behind one of the islands there. We had spent almost 2.5 hours traveling 1.5 miles against the current. We then made the return trip in about 45 minutes. We didn't see much in the way of wild life, but the water seemed fairly clean here. Later the GF told me she was a bit scared at some points. She wasn't sure she could continue against that current. I guess scared wasn't really what she meant, but I understood. It was a bit intimidating.

Sunday I thought we might try water below the city where the channel is deeper and I expected the current to be much less. We left a car at Osborne landing and expected to put in at Rocketts landing. Little did we know that Rocketts landing was only a condo center now, regardless of what it might have been. We did find one landing there, but it was private. Asking someone there we were told that Ancarrow's landing was just across the river, so we crossed to the other side and put in. We should have known that a landing right next to the city sewage treatment plant would not be a great place to kayak. It started out ok with views of some large boats at dock and the Rocketts landing condos. But once we passed the treatment plant it quickly got a bit seedier. We did see some wildlife, startling several herons which flew off into the sun. There were a number of wharfs and sets of pilings for large ocean going ships and we passed a docked tugboat.

However, we continually passed all sorts of floating debris and some just under the surface of the water. Some of it was so disgusting that we ended up turning back for Ancarrow's landing rather than continue down to Osborn's landing. We spend almost three hours on the river and that was about 2 hours and 59 minutes too much.

So my initial impression of flat water kayaking on the James river by Richmond was not so good... we were 0 for 2 and not inclined to go out on our own again.

Can anyone suggest some good spots for flat water kayaking in the area? I read a trip report on Swift Creek at Colonial Heights, but looking on the map, I see not one, but two sewage treatment plants there. Maybe I am spoiled by the nice paddling I've done at Lake Anna and on the upper Potomac River, but I am sure there must be plenty of nice places around Richmond to paddle.

[Jenny]

You might try the James from Watkins Landing (Rt 711, west of Rt 288) to Robious Landing (near James River HS). It's all wide and flat (above Bosher's dam). A smaller stream is Appomattox through Amelia Wildlife Preserve (maybe not the best during hunting season, though). I don't know water level required for this one, but very little development in the area and lots of chance for wildlife viewing. Main issue is strainers. Other places for flatwater paddling: lake at Pocohontas State Park, Pamunkey River, South Anna to confluence with Pamunkey. Good luck.

[sandysdad]

it's a little ironic to compare the impact of industry on the james to lake anna which was man made to provide cooling water for the nuclear plant. that said,

the local paddling meetup group does a lot of area flatwater
http://www.meetup.com/VA-Paddlers/

google map of richmond area locations
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie ... 762817&z=8

resource for virgnia rivers
http://people.virginia.edu/~jtb9f/canoe ... oeing.html

[graystroke]

sorry your initial outings were disappointing, there is much to be seen and appreciated along the james.
somewhat wordy and spelling of landmarks is questionable.
I have no experience on the james upstream of boshers but can offer some information on the river downstream of boshers.
from huegenot to boshers is best left to the summer months when river is at its' lowest and there is little current to deal with. on a summer day you will see dozens of craft plying their way upstream and it is a relaxing paddle with ample opportunities to fish, park on a rock, take a swim, have a picnic.
from huegenot down past the fall line is best left to those seeking various grades of whitewater, there are some flat, lake-type area in parts of this river but access is limited and usually requires negotiating some whitewater which can range from mild to wild depending on river level and CFS.
if you launch at the 14th st whitewater takeout (just across and upstream of the boat ramp you used) you'll have access to the tidal james, miles of flat water tween richmond and atlantic ocean. from here you must contend with incoming and outgoing tide flow plus whatever CFS is running downstream. Riding the tide and current downstream is an easy out but makes for a difficult paddle back to your launch site. Best to get familiar with tide charts and paddle downstream on a slack tide and then ride incoming high tide back upstream.........never thought paddling a yak would involve this much planning!
yes there is all manner of industry on the banks of the james as you head downstream. there are also miles of wooded river banks, eagles to be seen, all manner of birds and critters and a very interesting history of the james from an industrial perspective as you paddle past abandoned and/or ruined commercial sites. despite the occasional barge, dock, pipe station the james is surprisingly undeveloped.
you can launch at 14th st and paddle approx 5 miles to falling creek, river right, just under the pochohantas overpass, get out or continue down another 6 miles to the dutch gap/henricus boat landing, also river right.
you can put in at dutch gap and paddle around all the lagoons and channels at henricus for hours and take out at launch point.
there are miles and miles of paddling between richmond and hopewell, suggest you check out noaa chart 12252 for paddling ideas.
the hard part is finding public access along the river.
further downstream is area along colonial parkway, jamestown island, powhatan creek and chicohomminy river.
just beware of power boat/jet ski traffic on this portion of river during warmer months.
that barely touches upon paddle opportunities.
good luck

[Rob Ault]

Another possibility is Dutch Gap. You can carry your boat down to a floating dock behind the visitor center. It's a decent walk (100+ yards), but the access is good.

You can also put in by the Dominion Power Plant (I forget the name of the boat ramp) and paddle downstream and around to Dutch Gap, but there is a lot of powerboat traffic at that ramp.

If you check with Chesterfield Parks & Rec and ask for Mark Batista (spelling?), he might be able to get you better access, and he has some good ideas for flatwater paddling in the Dutch Gap, Swift Creek and Appomattox areas. Mark is the Dutch Gap naturalist.

There's also excellent flatwater paddling at Pocahontas State Park and no power boats.

And if you like small, easy rivers, there are many options, including the Pamukey, parts of the North & South Anna and the Mattaponi, all just north of Richmond.

West of Richmond, the Hardware and the Rivanna are both fun flatwater floats.

Ed Grove's book, "Classic Virginia Rivers" and Roger Corbett's "Virginia Whitewater" cover many of these flatwater rivers, plus lots of whitewater trips.

Hope this helps, and happy paddling.

Rob

[Myst]

it's a little ironic to compare the impact of industry on the james to lake anna which was man made to provide cooling water for the nuclear plant. that said,

Yes, another even bigger irony in my opinion is that a recent court case about the nuke plant adding a third reactor resulted in a ruling that all of Lake Anna is a "public waterway" and that "Dominion is guilty of thermal pollution"! How's that for a lake built as the cooling pond!!!

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/02/judge-n ... -was-wrong

the local paddling meetup group does a lot of area flatwater
http://www.meetup.com/VA-Paddlers/

google map of richmond area locations
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie ... 762817&z=8

resource for virgnia rivers
http://people.virginia.edu/~jtb9f/canoe ... oeing.html

I'm aware of the VA paddlers meetup group and have joined. I also had found the map you link to, likely from a thread here. BTW, your last link doesn't work for me, I get the "404 not found" error.

I went out on the Mattaponi last Sunday and braved the 2 MPH current upstream. It was interesting, but there weren't many opportunities to sightsee as not paddling for more than a few seconds was not a good idea. I'm not sure any rivers around here will be at decent levels by this weekend; the gauges seem to say that the rivers north of Richmond are not swollen too much. But then I'm not familiar with the typical levels, so even if the USGS says they are "normal", that may not mean the levels aren't significantly up.

[graystroke]

most of the rivers that empty into the bay are tidal to the fall line, while the tidal range may not be much it does impact the effort required to paddle against or with tide flow especially when combined with a higher than normal CFS.
it will take some research to judge when conditions are just right.
g'luck

[kayakah]

Just out of curiosity, what type of boats do you and GF paddle? This can make a great difference in time, distance and speed. Also has direct impact on enjoyment or frustration level.

[jamess94]

i think someone said this already but the park behind james river high school is a great place to go with a kayak ramp and a floating dock

[Myst]

Just out of curiosity, what type of boats do you and GF paddle? This can make a great difference in time, distance and speed. Also has direct impact on enjoyment or frustration level.

I have several boats. I started with a $330, 10 ft kayak from Costco made by Future Beach. It was pretty good for starting out as it is very stable and goes straight as an arrow. But they were made really cheap, hence the low price. I wanted to have company paddling, so I bought a Perception Rhythm 11 at Dick's. Where the Costco kayak is stable, this one can't go straight for more than it's length. I've learned to paddle it straight in calm water with no wind, but under any adverse conditions it is a bear to keep straight. To accommodate some friends with kids, I bought two more used, a Necky Manitou Sport (about 10 ft 6 in) and an Old Town Loon 10. These were all used to paddle on Lake Anna. When I started paddling with the Potomac River Paddlers I was encouraged to get a long boat so I wasn't holding up the group. I got a used Prijon Kodiak 17 ft kayak. This boat is pretty nice, much faster than any of the short boats and tracks much better of course.

Since I started paddling I acquired a GF here in Richmond, so now I am driving back and forth from Frederick, MD every week with three kayaks on my truck; the Rhythm 11 and the Necky for us to paddle together and the long one for me on Sunday paddles when I go back up to the Potomac. I've been skipping the Potomac paddles lately as the driving can be a PITA. But they are a great group of people and I miss them.

I have done paddles of up to 16 miles round trip on the Potomac so my strength and endurance have built up over the 8 months I've been paddling. My GF has done round trips of 7 miles and gets stronger each trip. She managed paddling against the 2 MPH current at Huguenot flat water a couple of weeks ago. I'm pretty impressed considering that she is about 5'2" and can be blown away by a stiff breeze.

We visited the Zoar State Forest boat launch this Saturday. When I first saw the water, I thought it was a bit odd that there was no dock or ramp of any kind and the water was very shallow. Then I realized that I was still in the woods and the launch area was under a couple feet of water! I took some snaps and we headed down to Aylett landing where I had put in last weekend. The current didn't seem to be any faster than last week, but the water was maybe a foot higher at the ramp. It was pretty impressive. The boat dock must be closed underneath as the water was flowing around it. The end of the dock produced some interesting patterns with eddies and turbulence that would well up from below only for a bit every couple of minutes. We both liked the park area and are looking forward to paddling there when the conditions are better.

Earlier in the day we stopped at the 14th street site to check it out and see the current on the river here. I paced the current at 2 MPH which is about what we paddled in at Huguenot flat water a couple of weeks ago... not that we were considering going out Saturday. Only the really brave would do that! ;^) We met a couple of paddlers here who gave us some tips on places to go which we will follow up on over the coming months.

Even though we never paddled, it was still a good paddling day. We both liked seeing the Zoar Forest area and the rivers were interesting to see angry. It was nice meeting some local paddlers here. I hope to meet more.

Rick

[Myst]

I was searching the web for info on paddling spots and putin locations and found a mention of an 11 mile paddle on the Mattaponi from the Rt 628 bridge to the Zoar State Forest launch site. Having surveyed the Zoar site this weekend, I would like to get an idea of the Rt 628 bridge site.

It doesn't sound like this is a developed putin, but rather just a place where you can reach the river without trespassing. Looking on maps and using Google, I can't even see where you might park. I do see where there was an old bridge and road that crossed less than half a mile upstream from the current bridge. I thought this might provide a good access point, but I don't see where the road is still there, rather it looks like a private road now.

Has anyone here used this putin before? Can you describe it or how to get to it?

Rick