Mile 11 to 19 Asheville on the French Broad River movie update
My family and I are trying to make a movie about the French Broad River, the people who use it, and the political and social issues that surround it. We hope to raft 149 miles of the river from Rosman, NC to Newport, TN. We plan to do this in sections.
The plan for today was to put in near mile 11 at what is called Island Ford River Access and get out of the river at HapSimpson Park just outside of Brevard, NC.
Here’s our video report of how it went:
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Asheville Outdoor Center owner David Donnell and I talk River People and about his twenty-five years in business on this week’s Torg Stories Podcast.
I met David when he did me the good deed of helping my family make our first 48 Hour Film Project movie. Dave put my oldest daughter in a kayak and then guided a raft next to her so we could film her on the French Broad River.
This an “audio only” podcast available here and in the podcast app of your iPhone if you search for “Torg Stories” and Podcasts.
It’s also a video podcast. Both the audio only and video versions are embedded below.
iTunes link
Some stuff that might be worth knowing or checking out:
Dave gave a shout out to White Duck Taco. I’ve never been there. He said the fish tacos are good. I am a connoisseur of fish tacos. I’m planning a visit!
Our plan to go from Mile 0 of the French Broad River to 149 at the Rankin Bottoms in Tennessee was in immediate jeopardy when we were told by several people that the put in at the headwaters of the French Broad River had a private put in and was likely too shallow to raft.
Lying in bed unable to sleep the night before we started our journey of rafting the entire river in sections, I tried to decide on whether we should get up early and try to put the boat in as the sun came up, ask for permission at Headwaters Outfitters to use their private access, or just start as suggested by our river guide book to start in Champion Park in Rosman, NC.
We decided to just go to Headwaters and ask about the possibility of us putting in there and if they thought our raft could get through that section of the river.
You can watch a short video summary of our trip below:
In short, our plan is to make a movie about the French Broad River, the people who use it, and the political and social issues that surround it.
Let us know if you have thoughts, questions, or suggestions. Thanks for checking out this update on our project!
Asheville on the French Broad movie progress report number one.
Be sure to check out the video at the bottom of this post.
Since at the moment we four Torgs have plans to raft the entire length of the 149 miles of the French Broad River in sections, we decided to check things out by driving along the river from Asheville, North Carolina where we live to Newport, Tennessee.
This would normally be about a seventy mile drive from our house, but we lengthened it by criss crossing the French Broad as much as we could.
I wanted to get a glimpse of what is called Section 9, the wildest part of the river. We stopped at as many access sites as we could to shoot some video and so we would have a general idea of what to expect when we make it this far north. We also talked with lots of people, a few of whom you’ll see in our video below.
The plan is to make the film about the community that surrounds the French Broad, and the social and political issues that surround it. What you’re watching know is just an update on our progress. Thanks for checking it out!
I want to make a movie about the French Broad River…
I want to make a movie about the French Broad River, and so on this week’s Torg Stories podcast, I talk with Hartwell Carson, French Broad Riverkeeper. Carson works for an organization called Mountaintrue.
You can listen to the podcast on the player below or on your iPhone by clicking here for the iTunes link.
Click player below to listen to podcast from this site
editorial note: I uploaded the raw file without the intro and music
Hope you enjoy getting right into my conversation with Hartwell!
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For the first time ever, this week’s episode is also available as a video podcast:
I think my interest in making this movie probably has its origins in all the years I spent dinking around in a john boat on the Tippecanoe River in Winamac, Indiana. Now I live in Asheville, North Carolina where you can’t go anywhere without seeing a kayak or canoe on top of somebody’s car. I wanted to get on the river and as my wife and I looked at the cost of our options and what might fit us best, we decided on a used whitewater raft. We could be together as a family. The raft could do both the calm and more rowdy stretches of the river. To start the process of making the film, I knew I wanted to learn about the river, the community that uses it, and the social and political issues that surround it.
Carson and I talked water quality, Duke energy and their coal ash pits, the work he does as riverkeeper, and his favorite spots on the river.
If you’ve got ideas for how you could help with the Torg Stories river movie, please let us know in the comments section. I also hope you’ll take the time to share the post via social media or by email if you know of those who would be interested.
I hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with French Broad Riverkeeper, Hartwell Carson. Thanks for listening!
Check back or click around on the site for more updates on our French Broad River movie project.
