You’ve never really seen what a river has to offer until you’ve appreciated it from a canoe.

Clinch River Canoe Trip

Date: August 21, 2004

Cost: $60 per person including ground transportation from Abingdon and lunch on the river.
Length: 9 miles by canoe, about 4 (+,-) hours float time.

Contact: Adventure Damascus Tours, Inc. toll free 888-595-2453 or tours@AdventureDamascus.com 

We’ll shuttle from Abingdon to Cleveland, Virginia to begin our adventure on the Clinch River. The highlight of this day will be our canoe trip along the Clinch River to learn about and observe many of the rare and endangered fresh water mussel species found in the Clinch River. This stretch of water passes near Cleveland Island Preserve owned and maintained by TNC. We will be accompanied by an interpreter from The Nature Conservancy who will explain how TNC is helping to preserve this habitat. We’ll have plenty of time to stop and use special viewing scopes to observe and learn about the aquatic life, especially the fresh water mussels. If you have good eyes and a bit of luck you may spot a shiny pigtoe, rough rabbits foot, purple warty back or a wavy ray lampmussel. After all this exploration we’ll be hungry so we’ll enjoy a leisurely lunch on the island before we finish our canoe adventure.

This stretch of water is mostly flat and wide but has a nice steady current that will allow us to float at a leisurely pace. Take in the views of the giant sycamore trees along the river banks, keep your eyes open for yellow warblers feasting on May Flies and wood ducks with chicks. Just relax and enjoy this pace of life in Southwest Virginia. 

The swift-running, picturesque waters of the Clinch River provide habitat for 16 species of rare fish, such as the yellowfin madtom, and are the sole remaining sanctuary for an embattled collection of freshwater mussels living nowhere else on earth. Once sheltering nearly 60 species of mussels, the number has dwindled to around 40, of which 26 are globally rare.  

Long flat pools with a nice current separated by shallow shoals typify this section of the Clinch. It is leisurely paddling with no real appreciable whitewater. This float trip is considered easy and we are glad to instruct you on the basics of canoeing if you are a beginner. Two people per boat with children welcome as long as parents will maintain responsibility for them. Life vests are supplied and participants are expected to wear them.

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