Submitted by WhitesCreek on January 16, 2013 - 6:42pm.
Pat Keller and a support team ran Ozone Falls today. I know Pat and his Mom is a friend of thirty five years. Pat is a super star but this was stupid. I'll link to pictures as soon as we get them.
Roane County has wonderful whitewater streams and is a destination spot that needs more promotion. We'll work on that.
Submitted by WhitesCreek on January 17, 2013 - 10:01pm.
Yep.
I know this kid and I would have told him not to do it. There is no pool at the bottom of Ozone Falls...No place to land. But Pat has made a career of running things that no one else thought could be run and walking away from the things he decided were not safe. I'm in awe.
Submitted by WhitesCreek on January 18, 2013 - 10:34am.
Apparently the helmet cam was lost and Pat was ejected from his kayak. That will make it controversial. I may count as a first descent but not as a first "Run" of the falls, which would require the paddler to stay in his boat and paddle away. I think the pile of debris just downstream backed up enough water to form a pool deep enough to pad the rock pile at the bottom of the falls. This won't be the last time someone goes off this thing. Not everybody will be as lucky as Keller.
Submitted by eaglelodge on January 18, 2013 - 10:48am.
Yeah the landing did not look very enticing! Or any kind of fun i'm use to having in a kayak. I would rather see footage of the below the waterfall rapids. Those look interesting when its dry.
...like over the falls?!
Mushy
Yep.
I know this kid and I would have told him not to do it. There is no pool at the bottom of Ozone Falls...No place to land. But Pat has made a career of running things that no one else thought could be run and walking away from the things he decided were not safe. I'm in awe.
I guess that was a first for Ozone Falls?
Link...
Apparently the helmet cam was lost and Pat was ejected from his kayak. That will make it controversial. I may count as a first descent but not as a first "Run" of the falls, which would require the paddler to stay in his boat and paddle away. I think the pile of debris just downstream backed up enough water to form a pool deep enough to pad the rock pile at the bottom of the falls. This won't be the last time someone goes off this thing. Not everybody will be as lucky as Keller.
Yeah the landing did not look very enticing! Or any kind of fun i'm use to having in a kayak. I would rather see footage of the below the waterfall rapids. Those look interesting when its dry.
Were you there?
I'd loved to have snapped a few frames!
Mushy