After the One Mile Branch Cleanup at VSU, let’s head west on US 84 to the Withlacoochee River and paddle (or hike) downstream to Spook Bridge: if you’ve seen the locally-made movie, come see the bridge! In between we may see the river part of Wade Spring, and we will see the railroad bridge and the old, closed, Blue Springs road bridge, aka Spook Bridge. Then we will paddle (or hike) upstream to the Sabal Trail pipeline crossing, also less than a quarter mile. If you don’t want to do either, we will tell you how to get to Spook Bridge by land to greet us when we get there.
When: 1PM, Saturday, November 11, 2017
Put In:
US 84, park between the bridges on the Lowndes County side.
We will climb down the steep rocky embankment between the bridges,
seen from the Brooks County side in this picture:
Photo: John S. Quarterman,
From Brooks County to Lowndes County, under the US 84 bridge, 85.2 on the Quitman Gauge, May 22, 2017.
Anyone in reasonable shape can climb it.
Bring: mud boots, plus the usual personal flotation device, boat paddles, food, drinking water, warm clothes, and first aid kit. Also trash pickers and trash bags: every WWALS outing is also a cleanup.
Free: This outing is Free! And we recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!
Bottom to top (south to north): Spook Bridge, CSX railroad Bridge, US 84, Sabal Trail HDD.
Photo:
Dominic Gheesling for WWALS on Southwings flight 2016-10-22.
Take Out: Same as put in.
Shuttle Distance: None; we’re returning to the put in.
Shuttle duration: None.
Photo: John S. Quarterman.
Downstream under the US 84 and CSX Railroad bridges, Withlacoochee River, May 22 2017, 85.2′ on the Quitman Gauge.
Paddle Distance: Maybe a mile total.
Paddle Duration: One to two hours, depending on how much we dawdle, for example looking for the river part of Wade Spring. The inland part is a pretty sad sight these days, but a recent report says there is at least a trickle of water coming out of the Brooks County bank.
Gauge: Quitman (US 84). The low level in the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WRWT) Access page is 85.5′, same as the NWS low stage. The Quitman Gauge is currently reading 85.27′, so unless it rains before Saturday, we may be hiking on the river bottom.
It read 85.2′ when I hiked upstream from that bridge on May 22, 2017
However, we did paddle upstream to the Sabal Trail crossing August 28, 2015, at 85.3′, with only some boat dragging, so we may be able to paddle Saturday.
Host: Phil Hubbard
Contact: Phil Hubbard
Backup: None.
More: For more outings and events as they are posted, see the WWALS calendar.
-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
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