Terry and Rosemary couldn't make it on Sunday, but we added Bud, Jack, and Ed for a total of seven paddlers on the tunnel section of the Etowah
The water was up a little in the Etowah, which moved us along quickly. We scooted over most all of the rapids and small drops without any problem. The first two paddlers who entered the tunnel, Chris and Jack, were not so lucky. They got sideways in the tunnel and ran up on a rock and flipped. You know that emptying a boat full of water and recovering gear in a fast moving stream is tough. Try doing it in the near total darkness of the tunnel. They got back in the boat and made it out....but with a good bit of water still in the canoe...which didn't help as they did the little drop at the end of the tunnel. Fortunately, nobody got hurt....only wet. One paddle and a couple of hats were lost. A spare paddle stayed in the boat, so it wasn't a major thing.
The remainder of the trip was very nice, with the rapids being lots of fun.
