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ACE KAYAKING SCHOOL, KNOXVILLE

KAYAK instruction & guiding

 

WHERE WE WORK:

Being based in Knoxville is a gift, where a drive in any direction gives access to classic river experiences. We coach our students at a number of venues in the area. Below is a list of locations where we can meet up for a range of experiences, from tuning your technical skills, to forging your mental game, familiarizing yourself with local classics, multi-day experiences and more:

  • Obed Wild & Scenic River - An hour northwest of Knoxville, Tennessee’s only federally wild and scenic river provides an unparalleled wilderness vibe, and plenty of sections from mild to intense to facilitate a deep learning experience, such as beginner and intermediate paddles down Clear Creek and the Obed, to more advanced training grounds like Daddy’s Creek, Island Creek, Crooked Fork and more. Overnight paddling opportunities also abound here. The paddling season is November through April and is natural flowing based on rainfall.

  • Big South Fork River - Further north of the Obed, the Big South Fork has reliable flows due to rainfall from November through April of most years, and provides a gorgeous setting in which to train and learn what the river can teach us. In addition to lots of friendly tributaries, the Big South offers much in the way of multi-day paddling adventures, which we offer several of every season.

  • Pigeon River - Located right off Interstate 40 roughly halfway between Knoxville and Asheville, the Pigeon offers a convenient location to cut straight to the chase, spend less time shuttling and running logistics, and more time working hard on skills, whether on the Class II lower or Class III upper section.

  • French Broad River - The south’s oldest river, the French Broad, also has year-round water and provides one of the best teaching sections in the region on Section 9 near Hot Springs, NC. We’d love to help you gain familiarity and confidence on this southeastern staple, as well as tributaries like Big Laurel and Spring Creeks, and other Pisgah National Forest streams like Wilson Creek further to the east. Ace Kayaking is permitted by Pisgah National Forest.

  • Ocoee & Hiwassee Rivers - Host to the 1996 Olympics, the Ocoee is THE classic Class III dam-release river of the south, and the nearby Hiwassee River provides the ideal first-time river experience. This area is hard to beat for summer paddling and is the heart and soul of Ace Kayaking School. You’ll find Ace hard at work training our students here when it’s warm and the rain-fed rivers aren’t running.

photo by Mary Ann Grell

photo by Mary Ann Grell

photo by Natalie Haberer

Kirk Eddlemon

Background

I'm a native East-Tennessean who calls Knoxville home, where I live with my beautiful and supportive wife Laura, and amazing son Alexander.  I spend almost as much of my time walking, paddling, and sometimes crawling through the wilder parts of the Southern Appalachians as I do in town.  I've always been intrigued by the call of the wild, and even before I started kayaking, I spent much of my time picking out interesting places on the map, and then seeking them out on foot with a compass and a little tenacity.  This drive flourishes in a freedom-based pursuit like paddling, and it was only a matter of time before I realized that a little plastic boat could facilitate one of the most expressive, grounding, and rewarding ways of connecting with nature.  

Down the Guidebook Rabbit Hole

Having always been infatuated with guidebooks and the secrets of explorers past, I've approached the last 25 years of kayaking with the goal to see and understand as much as possible about the rivers of the world.  As I began to see more and more of the Southern Appalachians, my respect and appreciation for these mountains in particular deepened, and my passion for sharing them with others grew.  From these seeds a series of guidebooks have sprouted.  The intent is to inspire, inform, and through the visitation of these places, hopefully instill a sense of duty to protect and promote the rivers and their connected environs as critical parts of the rich natural heritage we have in this part of the country.  

A Decade of Paddlesports Education

Though the guidebooks are now in their second edition, my passion for sharing river experiences remains. For the better part of a decade I have worked full time, year-round, as an ACA Level V instructor and guide. I’m both fascinated with the progression of the sport, the equipment, and the explosion of skill I see in our community, as well as with the raw day to day experience of being on rivers that rush through wild places. I strive to understand and pass on to my students the latest, most complete understanding of how to best paddle a kayak on whitewater, and at the same time, implore clients to connect with the natural world and it’s wonders, as taken in from the centerline of a river. So I am not just an instructor, I am a river guide. It’s my aim to inspire a holistic approach to being a paddler, and by extension a human being. The river teaches us how to focus and perform, and inspires creativity and excellence. Yet we can’t help but notice our insignificance as we move through places shaped by deep time and incomprehensible forces. Our place in it, perched precariously, depends on our respect of it. And our respect is best rendered collectively. Supporting humble organizations like American Whitewater, Outdoor Alliance, and American Rivers, is a great way to ensure that river health, as well as access for paddlers, is prioritized now and into the future. The river gives so much, and these organizations keep the tap running.

Ace Kayaking

Finally, working with Ace Kayaking School has allowed me to elevate my understanding of what it means to be part of a community. We as paddlers are a small, inconsequential bunch in many lights, yet we dream big, and the human solidarity found the river is inspiring and motivates me to strive for continuous improvement in how I show up for my students and everyone else in my life. The positivity is contagious, and the river makes us good people, or at least, a little better than we might otherwise be. I’m grateful for all the growth, fond memories, and relationships gained from being a teacher. Working for Ace allows me to help others find fresh passion, overcome mental and physical barriers, and follow their own path of self-improvement, every single day, and for that I am grateful!

 

Whitewater of the Southern Appalachians, 2nd ed. is available.
CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE FROM WOLVERINE PUBLISHING!

Now in its second edition, Whitewater of the Southern Appalachians is THE comprehensive catalog of whitewater streams in the Southern Appalachian Mountain Range. The oldest mountains in the world and the younger canyonlands to their west hide hundreds of streams worth paddling, from tiny creeks steep to mild, to big rivers full of beauty and power. This series covers it all, with aesthetically beautiful maps, hundreds of river descriptions with detailed beta boxes, stories from some of paddling’s finest storytellers and more. A mini-textbook on how to chase rain also resides within these pages, along with geologic and paddling history of the area. While exhaustive, these books won’t rob the reader of the mystery of the descent, but will give a clear understanding of the difficulty and style of the river, how to get there and when it’s likely to have water. Detailed shuttle directions will help ensure you don’t get lost, but for some, there’s nothing better than losing oneself in a river gorge, for a day, or multiple days. Let these books inspire new experiences!

Volume 1: The Plateau, covers the Plateau regions west of the Tennessee Valley, stretching from Alabama through Southwest Virginia, and Volume 2: The Mountains, covers the Blue Ridge Mountains from North Georgia to Southern Virginia. If you’re not sure which one to get, do yourself a favor and get both! It’s a two volume set only because there’s too much info to fit in one book! The Southern Appalachians have lifetimes of river trips waiting. Pick these up and start dreaming and exploring!

Check out some of the layouts from the first edition below. The second edition is even sharper, if you can believe it!

 

CONNECT WITH KIRK!

We’re always ready to talk! photo by Natalie Haberer

Email me at kirk@acekayaking.com

or

complete the form below

 

I wish to thank the following paddlesport manufacturers for their support over the years. Dagger truly makes the full quiver, right here in the southeast, and I’m astonished at how many great designs they’ve made over the years. They are my favorite boats to paddle, and are the most comfortable kayaks out there! Immersion Research embodies the spirit of what it means to be a kayaker, and when it comes to dry-gear, skirts and other paddling garments, I know they’ve got my back, with durable, performance gear made by and for dirtbags. Astral makes the best PFD’s out there, hands down, and is also right here in the southeast. Now Werner Paddles, who has defined the standards for paddle design for decades, is now based here in the southeast as well! Watershed makes the best drybags in the business and are the only serious option if you’re doing multi-day paddling and want to keep your gear dry. These folks won’t let you down, and have made it possible for so much of the progression we’ve seen in paddling over the years.
 

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