Morriston Rd. to Runnelstown

We finally got to paddle this section of the Tallahala on March 4, 2023 with a group of Seven Rivers members.  It was our first trip this Spring, and boy did we pick a perfect day.  We put in at the concrete boat ramp on Morriston Rd. and exited on Hwy 42 at Runnelstown.  The landing at Runnelstown has a long dirt (and sometimes mud) drive and a fairly steep bank down to the river.  We logged 6.44 miles on my Paddle Logger which took us 3.08 hours, including numerous stops on sandbars to pick up trash and, play, swim and eat lunch.  The weather was sunny with a high temperature of 74 degrees with a slight breeze.  The water level was approximately 7.2 feet near Runnelstown.

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The terrain of the river was excellent with numerous beautiful white sandbars and gravel bars.  There were lots of good picnic areas and potential campsites.  One of the sandbars hid a beautiful small stream with about a 6 ft. high small waterfall. (see pictures below)

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We had a real treat with wildlife, observing Great Blue Herons, Kingfishers and hawks that were out in abundance.  A highlight was when a very large hawk took a dive and plunged into the river just ahead of us and came out with a fish so large it could hardly get it up into the air.  

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