North Carolina-Lake Fontana

[swampfox]

I went on a 4 day, 3 night kayak camping trip with Muskrat, Half-Hitch, and Nameth to Lake Fontana in the mountains of North Carolina.
We launched from the Flat Branch Boat Ramp, near Bryson City NC and started the hour long paddle, 3 miles to Back Country Campsite #72.


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They drop the water level in the fall.
It was nearly 30 feet below full pond and 20 more to go.

The camp was small and on the end of a little peninsula, but there was room for 4 hammocks.

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The average high temperature here in October is around 75 degrees with lows in the 50s.
Day 1 was 93 degrees, day 2 was 90, and day 3 was 85. The day we left, the high was 75 and no forecast above 80 for the foreseeable future.
Luckily, there was a pretty constant breeze blowing through camp.
Nighttime lows were in the low 60s so mornings and evenings were quite pleasant.

It was pretty muddy at the water's edge and we had to park the kayaks a good walk from the camp to get solid ground.

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The mud yielded a lot of wildlife tracks, this being the most impressive.

Fontana-Bear Print.jpg

Sitting around camp, Nameth noticed this little guy going down to the water for a drink.
We heard a lot of coyotes howling at night.

Fontana-Bear.JPG

There was a burn ban in place so campfires and cooking fires were not allowed. Stoves were ok so we were able to cook.

Speaking of food, camping for me is all about sleeping well and eating well.
Kayak camping opens up a lot of opportunities that you just don't get with backpacking.
We had 2 Yetis, 1 RTIC, and a Playmate cooler.
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I decided to bring my Outback Oven on this trip and use the bottom for a skillet.

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Pizza, brownies, real eggs, sausage patties, nothing is off limits.
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Three packs of microwave brownie mix and 1/4 cup of water.

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Gravy biscuits and eggs
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Sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich
Fontana-Breakfast sandwich.JPG

The night sky was gorgeous.

Fontana-Sunset.JPG

Fontana-Moon Shot.jpg

The real shocker on this trip was cellphone service. There was very little at the boat launch but in camp we had 3 solid bars.
We were able to keep in touch with home and post pictures.
Since we couldn't have a camp fire, we set up an iPhone in the fire ring and watched the Braves game on Hulu.
All in all, this was a pretty lazy trip, paddling around a beautiful lake in the mountains, swimming in cool water, naps, and good times with friends.

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We will certainly do this again, but probably in the late spring when the lake level is still up.

[Dvankirk]

Good stuff.

[Cabmanhang]

Looks like it was a great trip! I am so interested in doing a kayak camp, but I've gotta get a boat first.

We stayed on Fontana a couple of times during the winter and it is remarkable how low they drop that lake.

How much did you notice the lake drop during your trip?

Thanks for the excellent trip report.

[swampfox]

I did not notice any change in the lake level while we were there.
But it looks like they plan to drop it 20 more feet.




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[TallPaul]

Looks like a great trip Swampfox. That pic of the cooler on the kayak - wow.

[Cabmanhang]

I mean, it's borderline glamping when you have a cooler, make pizza, brought your own oven, brownies, biscuits and gravy, fresh eggs etc...

Bravo!

[swampfox]

I mean, it's borderline glamping when you have a cooler, make pizza, brought your own oven, brownies, biscuits and gravy, fresh eggs etc...

Bravo!

Don’t forget watching baseball!
All I needed was a mint on my pillow and I would have felt spoiled.


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[wsp_scott]

Nice trip report, I've done some overnight trips on the lake, but only the other end. Site 72 looks pretty good, have to check it out sometime.

Here is the view in March when the lake is about 50 feet down (site 87)

[swampfox]

Nice trip report, I've done some overnight trips on the lake, but only the other end. Site 72 looks pretty good, have to check it out sometime.

Here is the view in March when the lake is about 50 feet down (site 87)

50 ft down is really low.
We had planned to kayak around and check out some of the other camp sites. 73 and 98 were within striking distance, but we got lazy.
After reading online reviews, I would not trade 72 for anything else.



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