By AD CRABLE | Staff Writer | Posted 2 hours ago
By remote control, a metal gate opens on the York County side of the Holtwood Dam and impounded Susquehanna river water gushes down a 100-year-old stone fish ladder at 755 cubic feet per second.
Soon, a newly constructed channel is transformed into churning, splashing whitewater reminiscent of a Western river.
The scene last Wednesday morning is just what Matt Samms, a 40-year-old kayaker from Safe Harbor, had been dreaming about for eight years now.
Samms, in a wetsuit, protective helmet and ear plugs, eases himself into a short, snub-nosed Pyranha kayak that weighs a mere 45 pounds.
Over the next several hours, he and eight other devotees of the whitewater freestyle kayaking sport of playboating spin, surf — even roll underwater on a whim — their kayaks in powerful artificially-created waves and momentum-stopping hydraulics.
They test different flows to see which will make the playground all it can be.
“We’re working out some bugs,” announces Samms as wailing sirens and strobe lights announce the water release from the dam and that the downstream river level will soon be rising. Four bald eagles soar overhead.
After years of planning and initially testy negotiations, the $4 million waterpark built by PPL is about ready to open to the public. Backers believe it will offer world-class whitewater features and become a popular spectator sport that will boost local economies.
The whitewater playground was tested by area kayakers three days last week and it was pronounced ready to rock.
All that remains is for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to sign off on a safety plan for spectators lining the banks. Once that happens, likely a few days to several weeks from now, the park will be open for use by the public.
Samms says it may be open almost daily throughout October and November. To find out when the park will open, and a daily schedule of hours, check out this website. The site is currently inactive until the park gets the green light.
An expansive flat area borders the whitewater where the public can bring lawn chairs and watch the playboaters.
Area kayakers and American Whitewater, a national whitewater advocacy group, mounted a persuasive coalition when they learned that PPL’s expansion of capacity at its Holtwood Dam hydroelectric facility would remove many of the riverbottom boulders that had created what some considered the best playboating features on the East Coast.
They argued to FERC, which had final say over the project, that federal regulations require that in allocating use of rivers, that equal consideration be given to nonpower uses.
Playboating at the Holtwood Dam, they pointed out, had become an important recreational activity.
PPL and the paddlers, mainly from the Conewago Canoe Club, which includes about 30 members from Lancaster County, reached a settlement agreement that was approved by FERC.
But the project took an unexpected turn when, after four years of modeling, PPL announced it would not be building the playboating playground in the middle of the river, below the dam, after all. It was felt current created by the new artificial features would interfere with migrating shad that needed to be drawn to fish lifts elsewhere at the base of the dam.
Instead, the old shad ladder at the western end of the dam was manipulated with rounded concrete boulders, steps and cement chutes to create three distinct whitewater features over the length of about a football field.
Unlike running rapids in conventional whitewater running, playboaters do freestyle tricks while being held in place by a wave.
Spins, cartwheels, loops and blunts are just a few of the moves in the playboaters’ repertoire.
One goal of the course is for intermediate-level playboaters to advance their skills and learn tricks by watching others. It’s not a beginner’s course. And no tubing is allowed.
A member of the U.S. Freestyle Kayaking Team has already contacted Samms about possible used of the course for team trails.
By releasing water for the playboaters — 264 hours a year is promised — PPL is losing water that it could be using to generate electricity.
“No doubt, this will cost them money,” Samms says.
Asked about that, PPL spokesman George Lewis says, “The whitewater feature was part of the negotiated settlement for the Holtwood hydroelectric expansion. The settlement balances the interests of various stakeholders.
“We constructed the whitewater feature to make up for the loss of expert kayaking that had been available below the dam at times of high river flow. With the expansion of the hydroelectric project, less water spills over the dam, which improves fish passage, protects endangered plants that grow in the spillway and enables PPL to put more water through the turbines to generate electricity.
“Water releases for kayaking are being scheduled so that the effects on fish passage, endangered plants, power generation and other stakeholder interests are minimized.”
Samms expects the waterpark to return big dividends of its own. “We’re hoping we will host a world event here in the future,” he says. That would bring hundreds of kayakers and thousands of spectators.
Also, he foresees the park being used as a training ground for first responders in the region for swiftwater rescue. A vehicle could be submerged for underwater rescue training.
“I think it will be real good for the area,” Samms says. “The facility itself can do good for the community.”
IF YOU GO
The whitewater park is located along McCalls Ferry Road, which begins on the York County side of the Norman Wood Bridge. After crossing the bridge on Route 372 from the Lancaster County side, turn right. The park is located in about 1 mile, on the right.
Ad Crable is a Lancaster Newspapers staff writer and outdoors columnist who covers agriculture, energy and the environment. He can be reached at acrable@lnpnews.com or
(717) 481-6029. You can also follow @AdCrable on Twitter.
Just a quick comment. While I have not tested this stretch of water, I do have a fair bit of experience in that area of York. I did a two day trip from the Holtwood to the Susquehanna and I donated over $100 worth of gear to the bottom of the drink. I did not expect that kind of white water in my back yard! Can't wait to check this place out
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