Appalachian Outfitters

First time here, we loved it! Easy to find, staff was great and made it very simple to get checked in, and we had a beautiful serene trip down the Chestatee. We got hung up a couple times in our 2-​person kayak (which is to be expected), but for the most part it’s definitely a beginner course, perfect for a relaxing afternoon. My 8-​year old son thought it was awesome. Love it, we’ll definitely be back!

Been here a couple of times now for relaxing and easy kayak trips with friends. The staff is always super friendly, courteous, and helpful. The river is really fun and there are a couple of good points to stop and hang out for a bit. We’ve always brought snacks and such with us which has been good since we usually stop and the trip takes a bit longer. I love that they’re doggie friendly, although I have yet to bring my pooch along. Also very affordable! Two person kayaks are $ 43 and singles are $ 28 (plus tax), if I remember correctly.
Had a super fun and relaxing day, AND it’s an easy hour drive up from the city. Can’t beat it!

Great outfitter. Easy to find. Very helpful getting kayaks in and out of river. Slow moving Chestatee River was easy to maneuver. Very leisure trip that was about three hours long.

Awesome time, completely safe for kids. Had as much fun here as a theme park, and we brought our dog who loves to swim. Can’t beat the price.

My friend and I did the beginners kayak course on the Chestatee River and had the best time! I thought $ 28 was a great deal for the kayak rental and the great service you get from these folks. Before getting on the river listen very closely to the exit/​pickup instructions. Don’t assume your friend is the one paying attention and vice versa. We ended up overshooting the exit spot by half a mile and had to paddle upstream but they assured us it happens all the time. Just one tip, they say the trip takes 2 – 2 ½ hrs but the main reason we missed the get out spot was because it came up after 1 ½ hours and we weren’t even paddling hard. We went on a Tuesday and encountered very few other kayakers but I can imagine that the weekend would be a very different story.
Also they seem to think of everything for you. Zip bags for keeping phones dry. Peg board for leaving keys so they don’t end up at the bottom of the river. Trash bags to put wet clothes in and about 7 changing rooms. There are signs in the vans that say tipping is appreciated and I would recommend keeping a few bucks handy for doing just that. These guys earned it in our case.

Kayaking was great. There were two locations: one for kayaking/​canoeing & another solely for tubing so make sure you pay attention to the area. If you choose the two person kayak option, it costs $ 43 to rent the kayak. There is also a one person kayak, but I don’t know how much it is.
If I can remember correctly, it will take 2 ½ to 3 hours to finish. This of course depends on whether you make a pit stop, whether you float lazily with the river, or if there are incidents (i.e. kayak flipping over or a rescue mission is needed). And yes, the mentioned instances did occur. What can I say, I partnered with a close friend that was a beginner as well. Lol. At the end of the kayak session, there is a designated area marked by an orange marker where a car will pick everyone up so no walking afterwards is involved.
Oh. I DO NOT recommend bringing along cell phones, keys, or items of value. For car keys, there is a place at the office where you can hang your keys. If you want, you can bring food and drinks and take a pit stop… There will be a large container that’s provided so you can store any items you take along. This is a secure container so no water will leak through.

The people here are very nice and helpful… but actually, I prefer tubing in Helen.
When the current is swift — as it was yesterday — it takes less than 15 minutes to reach the point where you can get out and walk back on the trail with your tube, to start again. (It’s a considerably longer float in Helen.)
There’s a great big rock in the middle of the path, which you have to paddle vehemently to avoid.
Again, a fun afternoon –very pretty scenery — but not as fun as Helen. (Sorry.)

Love this place; they are always super friendly and helpful. We do this particular river trip about twice a year with a big group of friends and always have a blast. We also like that it’s safe for the kids (over 5).
We always rent the «sit-​upon» kayaks and find them super easy to handle and very reasonably priced.
It’s a super fun time and the scenery is always beautiful. We look forward to it every year and can’t wait to go again.

I’ve done the Chestatee River trip three different times now with the folks at Appalchian Outfitters and I have to say that it is a wonderful experience for a very reasonable price.
I always rent a canoe, but kayaks are also available in both single and tandem models. Tubing is also available. Whatever you decide to rent all of your gear will be included like life vests, and paddles, and a shuttle back to your car will also be included. The canoe or kayak trip is self guided and takes about 2 to 3 hours depending on your level of experience, the height of the river and your desire to paddle faster or float more slowly. The river will be much warmer then most mountain streams if you go during the summer time but it is still pleasantly cool. Rapids are primarily class I level and are spaced apart between very long intervals of lazy flat water. They aren’t particularly difficult to navigate but they still provide a bit of entertainment to enliven the trip. This section of the river is very secluded and there are long stretches where you can neither see nor hear the slightest sign of modern civilization. There’s plenty of shade and a nice spot at about the midpoint of your trip to take out for a break or even lunch.
I mentioned at the beginning that I’ve run this trip three separate times now and one thing I have learned is just how much variation you can experience based on the current and recent local weather. My first trip was run with a river level so low that navigating the rapids could be a real challenge due to the difficulty in finding enough water across them to float the canoe (I had to get out of a couple of times and drag mine along). The second time I ran this trip the level was so high as to almost render the rapids non existent, and barely noticeable. The most recent trip I ran fell somewhere between those extremes and was probably my best experience yet, plenty of water to run the river, but low enough to still make the rapids sections fun.
Appalachian Outfitters and a trip on the Chestatee are a great way to spend a lazy summer afternoon. I highly recommend them.

Had a great experience doing a Chestatee trip with these guys. Really helpful staff, reasonable price, and a beautiful trip. A very well run operation.

A great outfitter for a nice smooth canoe ride if that’s what you are looking for. We looked around for a place that we could bring out the pooch for a nice calm day on the lake. Noone else is on the lake so the water is nice and you don’t have to worry about any motorized boats.
The guys who worked there were super friendly in helping us get ready to go in the lake, they even come and pick you up and take you back to your car in a shuttle.
It was very reasonably priced and we cannot wait to go back! We had a great time and so did Penny!

Fantastic little outfitter up near Dahlonega, Georgia, which rents canoes, kayaks and tubes to get your float on down the Chestatee and Etowah Rivers. Leave your city-​fied self back in Atlanta, jump on 400, and voila! about an hour later you’ve arrived at Appalachian Outfitters!
They do a pretty big tubing business, but this Unilocaler went for a taste of the great outdoors via canoe. They have a cool overnight camping trip (priced per canoe), which is about an hour canoe ride to a little shore where you can get your camp on. They’ll then pick you up at your takeout point the next morning and take you back to your car. Makes for a really cool trip to get your feet wet with a little camp action!