Youghiogheny

You gotta have permits to do those I believe. I know the Lower and the Falls especially! Don’;t know about the Upper, never done it.

John Kuthe…

Yes, you do need a permit as it is a very commercial/crowded.  Permits are allocated by launch time to limit river crowding.  There is a website to buy permits in advance.  Have fun, it is a great river!

Daily band is only required for the lower and you simply go to the store near the putin, sign in and get a band much like at the Nanty and Cheoah. You can run the falls if you have a group of 4 or more and the level is below about 1.8 ft (My experience last year).  I have seen people run solo. Currently, the falls are closed since the level is 2.13 which means they got some rain.  I caught the lower at 4 ft last July 4 weekend and it was a great level (Ocoee like but fewer drops). If you run the lower, and want a good surf, catch Swimmers on the fly because the eddie service is not good. Swimmers is an excellent surf, so don’t miss it.  One spot to be careful is Dimple which has an undercut on the left, otherwise fairly typical class 3 run.

I was there this past weekend and ran the Upper on Friday and TUpper on Saturday (I posted weeks ago). I may post a report. The Upper is intoxicating – you will love it, or you just don’t like creeks.

The Upper Yough take out has transformed over the past few years and is now an excellent, large gravel parking lot with a men’s and woman’s changing room and clean outhouse. It is located on Maple St just as you are entering the town from the highway.  It is next door to the white liquor store and is very easy to find.  Get there early and you will hook up with a group – I always meet great new paddling friends there. The release is typically about noon, although some locals told me that the release is almost always modified (needed to keep Deep Creek lake level).  People meet at the takeout about noon to shuttle. Be sure to make a donation at the put in box to help maintain the facilities, Charlie Walbridge picks up the donations on a regular basis.

Post paddle, walk over to the cafe on Water Street for pizza rolls – fresh and tasty. The liquor store has refreshments if you run low… There is always paddlers sharing stories in the parking lot – great place, can’t wait to get back there.

As Mike mentioned the Upper Yough and Top Yough do not require permits. They do like you to sign in for the Upper just to keep track of whose on the river. The Upper is dam release while the Top Yough is natural flow and you have to catch it after a good rain. Both are awesome runs. But since it’s a little harder to catch the Top Yough when it’s running, it’s definitely worth doing. Starts just above Swallow Falls followed immediately by the second drop, Swallowtail Falls. Since Swallow Falls is a popular tourist destination with an observation area, you usually have a large audience watching you run the drop. Something you might find interesting is that this is a north flowing river. So when we talk about Top, Upper, and Lower the Top and Upper Yough are located in MD while the Lower Yough is located north of that in PA.

Pretty sure the requirement is 3 or more in your group to run the falls, but obviously you don’t all have to run it.  I think it is a minimum for a safety on land and in the water.