Line Creek

Line Creek is an unusual piece of the Alabama whitewater puzzle. Not only is it the only whitewater run on Sand Mountain that does not flow into the Tennessee River, but also a preponderance of the rapids are formed by creek-bed base rocks rather than the normal Alabama rock jumbles. Line travels a scenic journey near or through Old Sheffield Gap, Sligo, and the old Cherokee Nation Boundary. This must have been a busy place in the past. Today a cliff on one side and a railroad cut on the other borders the creek.

The creek can be broken down into three parts. The upper mile+ is narrow and only carries a fraction of the take-out flow. It has several 3-6' high class III drops and slides along with a couple of rock jumble rapids. The middle section has a few braids or splits. The third section is the reason to be on the creek. It has a triple drop slide, a rockhouse in a cliff, and several more slides and abrupt drops. Some of the holes can get sticky at higher water. Scouting is easy throughout the run since the stream is seldom more than 50 yards from a railroad line.

Line is suitable for the skilled and lucky boater who happens to catch it with water. You must get to Line within one day after a heavy rain or immediately after a rain of 1.5" or so in the winter or spring.