Harpeth River - East Flank Park to Williamson County Rec Center

Estimated Length: 4.7 Miles

Discharge Day of Paddle: 86 cfs
Date: May 7, 2015
Weather: Sunny and in the low 80's
Time on the River: 2 1/2 hours
Put-In: East Flank Park Canoe Access
Take-Out: Williamson County Rec Center

Our Kayaks

Lex and I bought our second kayak this week and of course we had to try it out. Lex had never been in a kayak before and it was only my third time, so both of us had some learning to do. Our new kayak is an 10 foot Pelican that we got at Academy Sports for $150, what a deal. The Dagger which is the nicer of the two was given to us for free, even a better deal!

We decided on taking a paddle for a couple of reasons; first both of us had to work in the morning so drive time had to be at a minimum. Second we wanted a short trip since we did not really know how to handle the kayaks. Lastly, I have always wanted to try the Harpeth through downtown Franklin but was not sure our 16 foot Old Town Canoe would "fit" on this stretch of river. The kayaks were the perfect choice. 

For two "mature" paddlers and I mean age not experience, the trip was great. The getting in and out of the kayaks was a challenge. Everyone I have even seen makes it look so easy but we kinda plopped ourselves into the boats and then rolled ourselves out. There was some getting use to sitting that low in the water. Being able to "read" the river was more difficult but we were able to respond a lot quicker. Our Old Town Canoe would have been dragging the bottom, so our choice of kayaks was smart.

The river was cleaner then anticipated. The water had good visibility but there are still some tires in the river bed. The river banks had some debris, some of which looked new but a lot of it has been there for a long time. I was encouraged by how many people where on the river banks either fishing or playing in the water.

Great water visibility!

 With all the access points the State and Local Government is planning and the continuous effort to clean up the river, the Harpeth is a wonderful recreation destination. For those of us the that live and work in the area what a great resource and we need to help take care of it.