Estimated Length:
6.9 Miles
Date: July
21,2012
Weather: Sunny with Afternoon Showers
High 80”s
Time on River:
3 Hours
River Conditions:
Class I
Distance from Nashville: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Close By: I-40 and Dickson, TN
Put-In: Pinewood Camp Property
off of
Piney
River Road
Take-Out: Walter Nunnely
Bridge
Pinewood Canoe and Camp 931-729-1042
Lex and I got out of our
comfort zone and left the Duck River a few weekends ago and traveled down the Piney River
and we are sure glad we did. Our intended trip was to follow Paddle #22 as laid
out in Patty Shultz book “Paddling around Nashville”.
We met our canoe buddy’s at the take out located by the Walter Nunnely
Bridge on Rt. 230. The
river is about was 100feet from the parking lot with a steep incline but
manageable. The road that is mentioned in Patty’s book to take you down to the
river from the parking lot was washed out and neither one of our trucks could
navigate down it. We then loaded up all the gear into one truck and proceeded
to the put-in. After some searching we found
the spot that Patty refers to as the put-in located on Piney River Road. Over time foliage does
take over and the path down to the river was barely identifiable. Once you got
to the river it was a 5 foot drop from the river bank to the water with no place
to really set up for the paddle.
We decided it was time to
find a new place to launch our canoes. After about an half hour of driving up
and down the back roads of Hickman County we located where the Pinewood River
Canoe and Camp folks put-in. This is actually a feeder creek to the Piney River.
After some negations they let use their put-in facility. My recommendation is
to first go to their camp, sign the wavier and pay the $3 fee. They will then
give directions or shuttle you to the put-in. It is a 50 foot down hill carpeted
ramp to the water. The water is a bit shallow until you get to the Piney, so be
prepared to get out and pull your canoe.
Once we got on the river all
was well with the world and the put-in hassle was behind us. The Piney is a narrower
river than Lex and I are use to, which kept us on our toes. There are some
quick turns to maneuver, strainers to avoid and places where the current picks
up. The river was a bit shallow in
places and we did drag along the bottom. If the river had been up another 3
inches it would have been perfect. The water on the Piney is clear and clean.
Some great rock formations are found on this section of river, along with the
usual Middle TN cattle farms and forests.
We did stop about ¾ of the
way down river to sign the necessary paper work with the Pinewood River Canoe
and Camp. This worked out perfectly because as soon as we got under cover the
rain started. It was just an afternoon shower and it gave us time to eat our
lunch. The paddle after the Camp slows down a bit but the scenery on this
section of the river is worth it.
In summary we really liked
the Piney River. The technical aspects of the
river was just the right amount of a challenge for us and the river is shallow
enough that if we did take a spill the water was not going to be over our
heads. This river is definitely not as busy as the Buffalo
but has some of the same qualities and is closer to Nashville.
Visited Piney River this weekend and hoped to try this route. Not sure there is access any longer at Walter Nunnelly Bridge. It was clearly posted no trespassing and the path down to river was chained off.
ReplyDeleteInstead we we decided to take out further downriver at Dodd Hollow Bridge. The TWRA website indicates that this is TWRA managed river access point (though there was no sign noting this at river). It is a bit of a chore hauling boats up but can be done. We put in at the beach at Pinewood Canoe. Our float was right around six miles- very scenic and very peaceful. Despite there being literally hundreds of folks at Pinewood, we didn't encounter any other boats on our float. Only passed on house visible from river (and a tree house). I highly recommend this stretch. If we visit again, we will likely put in at Piney Rd and take out again at Dodd Hollow (appx 11-12 miles). I believe Piney River to be one of TN's great 'unknown' treasures.
Too bad about the access point at the Walter Nunnelly Bridge. I have never gone down to the Dodd Hollow Bridge. I do agree that Pinewood Canoe can get a bit overrun with people but glad the paddle was peaceful. I have been trying to convince my husband that we should do the upper part of the Piney, from I-40 to Piney River Road but he is worried about framers that may have stretched bob-wire across the river. The Piney is one of the better paddles in Middle TN!!!
DeleteJust wanted to leave an update for 2018. We just drove through this area yesterday to scout out all the access points and plan a trip.
ReplyDeleteCan confirm there is no longer access at Walter Nunnelly bridge.
Can also confirm there is no longer access at the bridge on Old Piney River Rd, which is above the Pinewood campground.
The TWRA "access" at Dodd Hollow Bridge is almost non existent anymore. There was a gravel area big enough to park one car, but there was no way to get boats up from the river that we could find. It would be a tough enough walk to the river without boats.
Seems like the best bet is to set up shuttle with the Pinewood campgrounds and use their access points. They may have changed their access site since this was written, because they said they put in on the Piney not a feeder creek. You can pay to use their access only, or for another couple dollars they will shuttle you.
There is an RV park above Pinewood that has access, called Piney River Escape, but you'd want to call and check about permission. This upper part of the river, above Pinewood, actually looks really interesting and we'd like to find a put in up there somewhere, but I'm still not sure where we could pull out. We checked all the way down to Dodd bridge and didn't find any options other than Pinewood.