only search W.R.W.W.     Stinging Fork  Waldens Ridge             Stinging Fork Falls off of Shut-in-Gap Road to Piney River, Shut-in-Gap Road Spring City TN Walden's Ridge Area   Water Quality (1 bad 3 good) Scenery (1 bad 3 good)              Need a ride you can contact these nice folks: We live about 3 miles from Duskin Creek put in. We moved up here from Atlanta 9 yrs ago. The upper part of Duskin Creek runs through our 11 acres before it crosses Shut In Gap Rd. We backpack the Piney Trail and Stinging Fork often but aren't kayakers. If you need to someone to go read the gauge, need a ride, some help, or just putting in...give us a call. We are one of the few non-scary resident up here. 423-533-4212 (feel free to leave a message if you need to). -Grant and Carrie.       Class IV.5 7+ Miles Average Gradient 120 fpm Maximum Gradient 250 fpm   Maps:   Watershed Map (to find location and size of creek) Click Here Special thanks to Steve Zerfos for making the map.   Topo Map: Click Here A special thanks to Randy Hale of NorthRiverGeographic for the map                                                   Stinging Fork Falls                                              River Description   This this sign to the Stinging Fork trail head.                                                   The Piney Watershed          The Piney Watershed Map was donated by Randy Hale of North River Geographic                                                                                                   To see the quads in a truly awesome format; click on the links in reference to the quads listed above. http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_A4.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_A5.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_B5.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_B6.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_C5.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_C6.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_D4.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_D5.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_D6.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_E4.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_E5.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_F3.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_F4.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_F5.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_G3.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_G4.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_H3.pdf http://www.northrivergeographic.com/wrww/Piney_H4.pdf                                                       Justin Owen going his above the big one.........................................................................................................                      Photo by Justin Kleberg     Justin Owen Running The Big One.................................................................................................................               Photo by Justin Kleberg.     Or you can drive just up the road, look for a gravel road on the right, it might have a gate, but would be an easier walk to the creek using the trail head NOT, and you can put-on there, and take off at the Piney River takeout. Most of the time we sneak across the gate, sometimes it's locked. If so don't sneak across the gate. The river features a 60ft that has broken back, back in the day...ie LOOOOOONG BOATS. Today's shorter boats help take care of all of that. The trick to the big one is two go slower or just as fast as the water but not faster.   Paddling Stinging Fork is a bang and then its over run all the gradient has been chewed up at the falls and the rapid right below it. After that it peters out and get pretty much flat. NOW not to take away from it because the paddle on Soak Crekk is or might be one of the prettiest paddles there is on Waldens Ridge. But if you came for a hair raising run. You just don't get that here.   To see Justin Owen paddle this in video click on the picture below   Haulin' Arse.....................................................................................................................................................               Photo by Justin Kleberg.     The approach can be tricky at higher water, and below the falls a slide is around the corner with a beat-n-bang rock that is hell on open boats. Then around the next bend is boggie water until you hit Soak Creek which is more of the same.    Directions to put-in Drive up Shut in Gap Road for 5-7 miles, looking for the sign on the right for Stinging Fork Falls Pocket Wilderness. You have the choice of either hiking in from this trail, which is about a mile long, or continuing to the next little logging road on the right and driving down to the creek for another mile of fun little drops, though there is some wood to negotiate. The creek will be crossed 0.4 miles after turning onto the unmarked gravel road. The takeout is the same for Piney River. Here is the gate the put-in road, it right after the stinging fork trail sign on the right...and yes you can see how the locals treat the land...nice indeed