South Carolina whitewater - Catawba River, Chester Lancaster County Chester Lancaster county, Great Falls section whitewater kayaking, rafting, and paddling information.   CLASS III     2 miles   This is the currently dewatered stretch of Great Falls, about 2 miles long. The bottom 1.5 miles is drowned by Cedar Creek Reservoir, whose dam is just upstream of Lake Wateree. The average gradient is about 30 feet per mile, and the rapids fairly continuous when there's enough water. Unlike the nearby stretches of the Catawba, this stretch is choked with boulders & contains several islands & multiple channels. Scenery is spectacular, the river coursing through a mini-canyon with granite walls & no development visible from the water. Right now it can     be run only when the Catawba is very high, after extended periods of heavy rain. A good indicator is the Catawba USGS gauge at Rock Hill (basically the discharge from Lake Wylie Dam). If it's running well over 10,000 c.f.s., there's probably some flow spilling into the Great Falls run. It needs about 3,000 or 4,000 c.f.s. spilling into the dewatered stretch to be worth running. At these levels it's low class 3. At 10,000 c.f.s. in G.F.(about 20,000 c.f.s. full flow) it's big water class 3-4 & alot of fun. Under the new Catawba/Wateree relicense agreement, there will be (I think) about 28 scheduled releases beginning next year. But it appears that the flows into G.F. will be about 3,000 c.f.s., kind of on the low side. This has great potential as a commercial raft run & play kayaking run if adequate flows can be available (at least   8,000 c.f.s., preferably 10,000 c.f.s.). There are 2 separate runs, separated by Mountain Island--the 'Long Run' (the top of which is visible from SC 97/200 bridge) and the 'Short Run', which is around the right side of the island. Take-out is at the Stumpy Pond access on Cedar Creek Reservoir. Says Silly Willy The scenic beauty of Chester Lancaster County and the sparkling of the sunlight on the water beats anything. The average whitewater rafting or kayaking river tends to be a bit easier to master in this state than those in other states, so better not forget that a large number of rivers in this state are quite easy. You might have to settle for a hotel a bit away from the river if you want to stay the night, and if you make reservations in advance you're all set. Getting some good exercise and just being out on the river for a while are great reasons to come. This is a bit of a short stretch so you'll have to walk back to the start over and over. Catawba River doesn't have a lot of paddling stretches, the Great Falls stretch is the only one. There are campgrounds quite near the river where you can camp. The put-in location is a short drive from Chester, if you're not familiar with the area there's a road map further down the page. Briefly about the general area: A short journey to Great Falls of Catawba is always worthwhile. Summertime highs at Catawba River ordinarily tend to be in the 80's, and during the night it cools down to the 60's. Daytime highs throughout the wintertime are in the 50's; nighttime lows during the winter for Catawba River tend to be in the 30's. Catawba River sees pretty high levels of rain; March is the month that gets the most rain while April is the month with the least amount of precipitation. Catawba River, Great Falls road map Printable road map with the put-in and take-out locations clearly marked. QUICK STATS AW Class: III Length: 2 miles    Putin Location Coordinates: Latitude: 34.59799 Longitude: -80.8919 Takeout Location Coordinates: Latitude: 34.5418 Longitude: -80.8751 Paddler input for Catawba River, South Carolina: Submit Input: Your Name: Write or Paste Input here: Upload picture:      Input Submission Guidelines Current weather conditions at Catawba River, South Carolina Local climate location: WINTHROP COLLEGE 9 miles away RAFTING TRIP OUTFITTERS There are no whitewater outfitters currently listed for this river. Rodeway Inn & Suites, Richburg 9 miles away All rooms offer refrigerators, coffee makers, irons, ironing boards, hair dryers, 25 inch televisions, HBO, ESPN, 63 cable channels, and free wireless/hard wired high-speed Internet access. Several re... Jameson Inn Lancaster, Lancaster 11 miles away Featuring true Southern Hospitality, Legendary Service, white colonial design, Deluxe Breakfast, clean comfortable rooms, fitness center & sparkling pool. Close to area attractions, you will enjoy the... Travelodge Lancaster, Lancaster 12 miles away #NAME?...   All South Carolina Whitewater Complete list of all the whitewater paddling spots in South Carolina. Books about whitewater paddling on Catawba River, South Carolina List of books from Amazon.com that cover whitewater paddling on Catawba River, South Carolina. Find a whitewater outfitter in South Carolina Whitewater Basics If you're new to whitewater paddling please take a look at this basic whitewater info. Outdoors Recreation Near Chester, South Carolina Very comprehensive list of a variety of outdoors recreation in the vicinity of Chester, South Carolina, the metro area neareast to Catawba River. Find info on campgrounds, hiking trails, ski resorts, lakes, beaches, parks, whitewater and more.       These outdoors activities are available near Catawba River.   Hotels Near Catawba River: Rodeway Inn & Suites, Richburg , 9 miles away Jameson Inn Lancaster, Lancaster , 11 miles away Travelodge Lancaster, Lancaster , 12 miles away Super 8 Lancaster, Lancaster , 13 miles away Days Inn-Richburg, Richburg , 14 miles away   Camp Grounds Near Catawba River: Chester State Park, Chester, 1 miles away Wateree Lake Campground, Liberty Hill, 8 miles away Landsford Canal State Park, Catawba, 12 miles away   National Parks Near Catawba River: Congaree Swamp National Monument, Hopkins - SC , 37 miles away   Lakes Near Catawba River