1. Upper, Tuxedo Powerplant to trail above Hungry Creek

The Upper Green is an excellent intro to creek boating with frequent optimal dam releases making it readily available. The 3.7 mile long run alternates between Scenic Class I-II and more defined bedrock drops. Two drops in particular, Bayless' Boof and Pinball offer Class III+/IV excitement. Bayless' is easy to scout and portage, with the main line riding the tongue down river left, and a sneak line sliding down the river right side. Stay heads-up for a sloping ledge hole that is the next rapid after Bayless's which can be sticky. Pinball comes after paddling under the I-26 bridge: follow the left-of-center tongue and move just a bit left for a slide through a hole on the left side of the river. Save some energy for a suf just upstream of the take-out. Perhaps the only downside to the Upper Green is the significant uphill hike-out (0.7 mile and ascending 300' in elevation), and the small amount of public parking at the top of the hill. The hike out begins on river left just upstream of the Big Hungry Creek confluence and just downstream of a fun surf wave. Pass Big Hungry and you'll quickly find yourself in the Class V Narrows. You'll need to purchase a key to the private take out parking lot to utilize the large paddler parking lot. The other option is to use the 6-8 public parking spaces right at the trailhead, which are often fully utilized during the summer by folks hiking into Big Hungry Creek to swim. Go to Green River Access for info about keys: Green Key While there is no online gauge for the Green, Northbrook Power Management posts a rolling 3-day release schedule year round, and also complies with an annual schedule during the warmer months. Here is the link: < http://carolinalakelevels.com/Tuxedo.php>. Generation is given in % of unit(s). 100% of one unit is an OK level, especially when it has been raining and you are also getting inflow from side creeks. Anything less than 100% is bony (unless the river has a lot of inflow). 200% is a sweet level. The link also gives you Lake level where 100 is a full lake and anything over that is spilling over the dam. 100.4 is about the equivalent of a single unit at 100%. So even if no turbines are running 100.4 will provide adequate flow. The link also has the annual release schedule, and a discharge reading that paddlers are working on better understanding.