Tye, Upper North Fork, Virginia, US

Upper: Adrenaline Alley

Usual Difficulty	V+ (for normal flows)
Length	0.5 Miles

Gauge Information

Name	Range	Difficulty	Updated	Level
TYE RIVER NEAR LOVINGSTON, VA
usgs-02027000	1100 - 10000 cfs	V+	00h59m	125 cfs (rc= -0.1 )

River Description

"Adrenaline Alley"

Adrenaline Alley is a half-mile of hair located along Rt. 687 near Montebello, Virginia. Five significant drops stacked on top of each other plummet drammatically through a small mini-gorge. At high water they become almost one steep slide sequence. This is the uppermost section of the classic North Fork Tye. Below the Adrenaline Alley section there are several miles of class III-IV water (known as the Middle North Tye) before the last 3 miles of the Fork drop away through class V boulder gardens to join the South Fork and create the Tye proper.

This section is not to be confused with the classic section of the North Fork Tye, which is the classic and beautiful 3-mile section that ends at the main Tye confluence near Nash, VA. Both of these sections are similar in difficulty, but very different in character. Adrenaline Alley is a short section of slides and cascades located __ miles upstream from Nash. The Alley runs less often than the lower part of the North Tye, but is steeper than any other section on this creek. I would say it is sort-of similar to Statons Creek which is only 15-minutes away. Adrenaline Alley is probably a bit harder than Statons though. Paul's Creek is another Nelson County creek that is similar in difficulty as well. Adrenaline Alley is probably even harder than Paul's Creek. Several folks have compared Adrenaline Alley to the Raven's Fork in NC.

Adrenaline Alley was cleared of wood in 2003, making our first successful full descent possible, but it is likely that more wood will appear over time.

Adrenaline Alley starts quickly with an ugly, narrow, undercut ledge called "Dirty Sanchez." Nasty! Walk on the right. Immediately below, a razorback slide called the Beaver Slide bends to the right. Next comes the centerpiece drop, "Adrenaline Alley." Sweet! The Alley drops about thirty feet or more in a 100-yard slide. Midway through the slide an overhanging rock juts out from the right bank. Duck the undercut and finish the slide, missing the pillow/hole at the bottom. Next is a boulder rapid that guards the entrance to a 25-foot riverwide near-vertical sliding cascade. An eddy below the cascade (at high water this eddy is not there!) gives you a chance to prepare for the last significant drop, a meaty twisting eight foot boof. This boof marks the end of A.Alley - a hardcore addition to the Nelson/Amherst/Rockbridge area creeks.

You could run the short section of good drops and hike back up, but the land nearby is posted. To avoid trouble, put-in above A.Alley, huck the drops, then continue down the quick and continuous class IV water of the Middle North Fork to the ford at Durham Run, or go a little farther to the North Fork Tye put-in at White Rock. Or keep going all the way down the North Fork Tye to the church at Nash. Then...paddle the South Fork or drive 15 minutes to Statons, South Piney, South Rockfish, Paul's Creek...

Respect private property at all times and drive responsibly on the narrow gravel roads in this area. Don't get naked in plain view, block the road, trespass or otherwise give the local residents a reason to have a problem with boaters. This is a great area, full of creeks - don't be the one to screw it up for all of us. Thanks.