Leaning Tree

Beyond Presbyterian Falls, the river widens, flattens out and runs fairly straight for about a mile and a half, then becomes channelized and splits around an island at lower levels. Run right of the island through the wide shallow channel. At the end of this channel there is a leaning cypress tree in the middle of the chute that has pinned, wrapped, and broken many canoes and has caused quite a lot of problems for unsuspecting boaters. The higher the river level, the greater the chances for problems here. Most will run the narrow passage to the left of this tree. Whichever route you choose, make your decision as soon as you see the tree and stick to it. Last minute indecision here will likely lead to an unpleasant encounter with the old cypress tree. Note: The island mentioned above will flood out at levels above about 2000, making the route somewhat more difficult to find. Strainers can be a big problem if you somehow end up in here when this area is flooded.