Paddling in the Wake of Ancient Americans

By Jackie Brown

           A light rain falls over our brightly-colored sea kayaks as we paddle toward Oates Island. We are hoping to find a secluded, but water-accessible, spot for a campsite in the Tennessee River Gorge. The paddling potion is unfamiliar to my arms, and the vistas are new to my eyes, but the hills have seen many boats before mine. The gorge is indeed "the scenic route," and we hope that many more paddlers will enjoy it once we finish the blueway.

            A blueway, often called a canoe trail or water trail, is a predetermined route along a waterway with designated access points and campsites. By providing facilities for the human-powered craft of canoes and kayaks, blueways connect people to an area’s natural assets and highlight historic water routes used by Native Americans and European explorers and settlers. Blueways allow contemporary Americans to engage in a very old endeavor—a voyage by water.

The "Grand Canyon of the Tennessee"
            Jeff Duncan from the National Park Service’s Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program (RTCA) Field Office in Chattanooga is helping local conservation and recreation advocates plan a 50-mile flatwater blueway through the Tennessee River Gorge, sometimes called the “Grand Canyon of the Tennessee.”

            “Due to its presence on the cusp of two ecoregions, the Cumberland Plateau and the Ridge and Valley ecoregion, this area hosts a quantity of unique and threatened species that rivals the Great Smoky Mountains,” Duncan says. The bald eagle, snail darter, large-flowered skullcap, and orange-footed pimpleback mussel are among the many state and federally listed threatened or endangered species that inhabit the area.

            The gorge is also steeped in human history, as it has been a major transportation corridor for thousands of years. Paleo-Indian, Archaic, and Mississippian peoples occupied the Moccasin Bend area west of Chattanooga prior to European settlement. Cherokee lived there for a while, only to be forcibly removed in the 1830s. Thus, the official water route of the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail includes part of the Gorge. During the Civil War, the Tennessee River served as a major supply route over which Union and Confederate armies fought for control. Today, barges and motorized fishing boats share the river. However, the gorge is still sparsely inhabited and offers a true wilderness experience convenient to Chattanooga.

What Makes a Blueway?
            Several factors distinguish a blueway from an informal water route. First, the official designation lets the public know that a water route is accessible and safe. The blueway would open up the gorge to novice paddlers who currently lack the knowledge of the area to plan their own trips. Ed McAlister, owner of River Sports in Knoxville, an outfitter that also organizes river trips, says, “Many people don’t know how to get on the river or where to go.” John Osborne, a kayaker in Florida who is helping to plan blueways in Manatee County, feels that more families and neophyte paddlers would visit a certain area if they knew others had already traveled it. Published brochures and guidebooks about blueways help users plan their trips while signs on the riverbank identify access points and campsites.

            Another critical aspect of a blueway is the provision of campsites, which enable multi-day trips. “Finding legal spots to camp has always been an issue,” says Jeff Moore, who coordinates canoeing and kayaking trips for the City of Chattanooga’s OutVenture Program. TVA and the Tennessee River Gorge Trust own land in the gorge that may be suitable for campsites. While several informal campsites already exist in the Gorge, it may be necessary to develop more to shorten the distance between stopping points.

            The lack of paddler-friendly amenities is one of the main barriers to paddling more, according to a survey of sea kayak owners sponsored by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Kayakers indicated that they would take more overnight trips in their kayaks if there were more water-accessible campgrounds, a way to reserve a campsite ahead of time, and more places to take shelter in the event of bad weather and if they knew more about paddling the area. All of these issues could be addressed through the formation of a well-managed, well-publicized blueway.

Local Effort for Local Benefit
            The prospect of a water trail through the Gorge has stimulated the formation of fertile local partnerships. Jim Brown, Executive Director of the Tennessee River Gorge Trust, and Laura Duncan, a Watershed Specialist with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), are two of the local leaders of the project. Jeff Pfitzer, with the Regional Planning Agency, and Jeff Moore are also actively involved.

            This blueway would be an “added jewel in Chattanooga’s outdoor crown,” says Moore. “It would be a better tool for promotion and would hopefully bring more people from throughout the region.”

            Active, community-based management is key to a successful modern water trail, according to Al Staats, Executive Director of North American Water Trails, a non-profit organization that provides information and technical assistance for those who develop and operate water trails. “People feel they benefit more and will use the trail more fully for education and heritage if they care for it themselves,” Staats says.

            Angie Tornes, with the National Park Service’s Rivers and Trails Field Office in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, says that, for her, “education is the whole focus of water trails.” Beyond just providing legal access, she says, water trails should present opportunities for environmental and cultural education. They should enable paddlers to learn about the historical background of the waterway and the issues threatening it.

            The work of a blueway does not end once the signs are posted and the maps are printed. Someone must assume responsibility for promoting low-impact use of the blueway and maintaining the campsites and access points. However, “A lot of trails lack long-term management considerations,” Staats says. As an example, he notes that some of the state water trail systems overlook this component.

Long-Term Management
            When asked who manages the water trails, Carole Mullis, Manager of Nature-Based Tourism Development for South Carolina State Parks, responded “Nobody.” Although the state coordinates the planning of blueways and provides some access facilities, the responsibility for maintaining the access points and campsites lies with whoever owns the land where the facility is located, such as the U.S. Forest Service or the state’s Department of Natural Resources. There is no separate entity for maintaining trails.

            One alternative, community-based management, encourages users of the water trail to be more responsible than if an agency is taking care of the trail, says Al Staats. The Maine Island Trail Association (MITA) is a model of this type of blueway management. With only a few staff but hundreds of volunteers, MITA manages the entire 325-mile Maine Island Trail. Because it offers camping on 100 public and private islands on the rugged coast of Maine, the trail demands a level of care well beyond that required by the day-use water trails more common in the Southeast. Volunteers help with annual island clean-ups, usage monitoring, and erosion control activities and may choose to provide special care for one island by “adopting” it. MITA also promotes adherence to “Leave No Trace” Outdoor Ethics, which serve the double purpose of preserving the resource and reducing routine maintenance needs.

            However, the Northeast has a much longer tradition of recreational paddling than Tennessee, and modern water trails have been in existence there for many years. In contrast, the Tennessee River Gorge Blueway will be the first of its kind in the state, but hopefully not the last. “There’s a huge potential to develop marked trails throughout Tennessee,” says Jeff Moore. Jim Brown of the Tennessee River Gorge Trust wants people to be able to get out and experience the area. “We’re doing this for the people, he says. “The birds don’t care.”

            We didn’t reach Oates Island that day. Thunder warned us to turn around and paddle back to the boat ramp. But we will return soon to chart the way for others to follow. Like the river’s sluggish current, the establishment of the Tennessee River Gorge Blueway will hopefully instill stewardship and a sense of place in paddlers of this generation and of the future.

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