6. US Route 15/501 Bridge to US Route 1 Bridge

Put-in: US 15-501 River right. Take-out: Old US 1 River right. Description: This section of the Deep River is a beautiful, mostly flat paddle. There are three sets of rapids along the way. The scenery is very nice, with little signs of civilization anywhere. This section is less than 30 minutes from Raleigh. The rapids below the dam would make a nice park and play spot. The center and river right lines have the best ride. The only difficulty is the portage around the Dam at Moncure. River right is steep and river left is not easy. Suggest using ropes to aid in the portage, especially river right. A great dry, cold weather paddle for beginners and novices. Update on Dam Portage: It used to be much harder to portage the Lockville Dam. Now you can follow a trail that goes uphill close to the Rock Quarry retention wall. Follow the trail to a small valley to put in just below the dam. At levels over 2 ft on the gage, this is followed by the best rapids of the run, class II with some wave trains, small ledges and a good roll practice spot right near the take out on the last rapid. You can then choose US1 on a small pull off for the take out if you eddy right into a small cove at the last rapid. Follow the trail to the take out. This is an easier take out than the Old US 1 take out, which is steep and adds a short section of flat water. The dam is scheduled to be removed in the future, but no date is set for it's removal.