Tennessee whitewater - Holston River, Sullivan County

Sullivan county, South Holston Dam to Boone Lake section whitewater kayaking, rafting, and paddling information.

 

CLASS I-II     10 miles
 
Be sure if you go down this river that you check TVA.GOV for the generating schedule. It is a really good river to go down if they have generated for an hour or two. If you start the river before or right after the start generating you will run out of water. You will be draging your kayak before you know it. So remember give the water a little time to get ahead of you and you will have a great time. If you are wanting to start a little further down river the water moves about 3 mph from the time they start generating. Have a good time. Says Glen Peery

    The South Holston Dam to Boone Lake stretch of Holston River is 10 miles long and is according to American Whitewater a class I-II section of whitewater. Whitewater rafting and kayaking in Tennessee is often more difficult than elsewhere, so better not forget that many of the rivers
here are not very forgiving. A bit of exercise and just hanging out with mother nature are sure to keep you coming back for more. If you're coming from Bristol it's not a long drive at all to the put-in location, there's a road map further down the page with more info on that. The scenic beauty of Sullivan County and the sparkling of the sunlight on the water are reasons enough to come here and paddle. This stretch has enough mileage for an overnight trip, so pack your camping stuff. Not too many hotels nearby, you'll have to drive a bit to get to one,  
but do book a room before you come because it is a very popular destination. No matter if you're whitewater rafting or kayaking this area has a large number of paddling places. You can pitch a tent or park your RV at a nearby campground.

Briefly about the general area:
A wonderful location right next door to Holston River is Harrington Hollow. All through the warm days of summer highs here at Holston River get into the 80's with night lows in the 60's. High temperatures all through the winter are normally in the 40's; night lows in the 20's for Holston River. Holston River is a wet place that gets much precipitation; the month of July is the wettest with most of the rain while October is the month with the least amount of precipitation.

Holston River, South Holston Dam to Boone Lake road map
Printable road map with the put-in and take-out locations clearly marked.

QUICK STATS
AW Class: I-II
Length: 10 miles
  
Putin Location Coordinates:
Latitude: 36.52055
Longitude: -82.09223

Takeout Location Coordinates:
Latitude: 36.47583
Longitude: -82.31112

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Current weather conditions at Holston River, Tennessee
WXPort

Local climate location: WISE 10 miles away


RAFTING TRIP OUTFITTERS

There are no whitewater outfitters currently listed for this river.

Days Inn Bristol Parkway, Bristol
5 miles away
Days Inn Bristol Tennessee offers The Best of Tennessee, The Best of Virginia. The story of our town is more than a tale of two cities. It is really a story of one city in two states. Bristols unique...

Hampton Inn Bristol TN, Bristol
5 miles away
The Hampton Inn Bristol hotel is located off Interstate 81 at exit 74A three miles from downtown Bristol Tennessee and Bristol Virginia. The hotel is directly across from Wellmont Bristol Regional Med...

Knights Inn Bristol, Bristol
5 miles away
Welcome to the Knights Inn of Bristol, Virginia. AAA Approved Property, located just off I-81 and 1 mile from the Tennessee State Line. Bristol Motor Speedway, home of NASCAR Racing and many other rac...



OTHER_INFO
  All Tennessee Whitewater
Complete list of all the whitewater paddling spots in Tennessee.
Books about whitewater paddling on Holston River, Tennessee
List of books from Amazon.com that cover whitewater paddling on Holston River, Tennessee.
Find a whitewater outfitter in Tennessee

Whitewater Basics
If you're new to whitewater paddling please take a look at this basic whitewater info.
Outdoors Recreation Near Bristol, Virginia
Very comprehensive list of a variety of outdoors recreation in the vicinity of Bristol, Virginia, the metro area neareast to Holston River. Find info on campgrounds, hiking trails, ski resorts, lakes, beaches, parks, whitewater and more.
 

   

OUTDOORS
These outdoors activities are available near Holston River.
 Whitewater Near Holston River:
Watauga, Carter/ Washington County , 9 miles away, Class I-II - 20.6 miles long (Watauga Reservoir to Boone Lake)
Doe River, Carter County , 10 miles away, Class II-III - 8.5 miles long (Hampton to Elizabethton)
Doe River - Laurel Fork, -blank- County , 13 miles away, Class IV-V(V+) - 5 miles long (Dennis Cove to Hampton)
Doe River, Carter County , 14 miles away, Class III-IV - 5.7 miles long (Blevins Bridge on Bear Cage Road to Highway 19E bridge)
Doe River, Carter County , 17 miles away, Class II-III - 4.6 miles long (Crabtree to Blevins Bridge on Bear Gauge Road)
Elk River, Carter County , 20 miles away, Class II-III - 4.3 miles long (Route 2520 to US 321 bridge Close to Elk Mills)
Big Moccasin Creek, Scott County , 22 miles away, Class I-III(IV) - 6 miles long (Snowflake to Antioch Church)
Watauga, Watauga / Johnson County , 23 miles away, Class IV-V - 4.9 miles long (Guys Ford Bridge to Watauga Lake)
Watauga River, Watauga County , 24 miles away, Class IV-V - 4.9 miles long (Guys Ford Bridge to Watauga Lake)
Elk River, Avery (NC)/Carter (TN) County , 24 miles away, Class IV-V(V+) - 4.8 miles long (Route 130 to bridge above Sone Mtn Church Tennessee)
 Ski Areas Near Holston River:
Ski Beech, North Carolina , 28 miles away, 830 vertical feet
Sugar Mountain, North Carolina , 31 miles away, 1200 vertical feet
Hawksnest, North Carolina , 33 miles away, 619 vertical feet
Wolf Ridge, North Carolina , 37 miles away, 700 vertical feet
Appalachian Mountain, North Carolina , 41 miles away, 365 vertical feet
Cataloochee, North Carolina , 81 miles away, 740 vertical feet
Winterplace, West Virginia , 97 miles away, 603 vertical feet
 Hotels Near Holston River:
Days Inn Bristol Parkway, Bristol , 5 miles away
Hampton Inn Bristol TN, Bristol , 5 miles away
Knights Inn Bristol, Bristol , 5 miles away
Howard Johnson Bristol, Bristol , 5 miles away
Americourt Hotel Elizabethton, Elizabethton , 6 miles away
 Camp Grounds Near Holston River:
Pearce Place, Bristol, 2 miles away
Bristol Campground, Bristol, 3 miles away
Thunder Valley Campground LLC, Bristol, 4 miles away
 Trails Near Holston River:
Old Dug Trail, Carter County , 5 miles away
Morrill Trail, Sullivan County , 7 miles away
Short Spur Trail, Sullivan County , 8 miles away
Holston Mountain Trail, Carter County , 9 miles away
Flint Mill Trail, Sullivan County , 10 miles away
 National Parks Near Holston River:
Blue Ridge Parkway, Asheville - NC , 56 miles away
 Golf Courses Near Holston River:
Cedars Golf Course, Bristol , 3 miles away
Steele CRK Park Golf Course, Bristol , 4 miles away
Tri-Cities Golf Club, Blountville , 7 miles away
 Lakes Near Holston River

Outdoors related information copyright © Stratus-Pikpuk, Inc. - Detailed hotel information copyright © Interactive Hotel Solutions
Some content, including Reach Name, Class, and Length, comes from American Whitewater