to buy a single rock; we just rearranged the ones that were already there.” But the best surprise is the finished


product. After seeing CutBait, the high- est class rapid on the course, outfitter Dan Gilbert announced, “This is one of the most exciting rapids in North Amer- ica.” Another outfitter said Chile was the only place he’d seen anything comparable. And yet another, after watching his raft go nearly vertical at CutBait, said, “I’ve never seen that happen with an 8-person raft.” The project has revealed the river’s


beauty to a community that’s never given it much thought. Turner hopes they’ll


take the next step and actually get in the river. “Standing on the riverbank gives you one perspective, but it’s not the same as being on top of a big rapid,” he said. “It’s so noisy, and I guess it’s kind of like going to a NASCAR race. You can feel how powerful the river is when you’re down on top of it.” Turner expects local residents to get just


as excited as he is about the “new” river. He says they’ll find two flows a day: “big and bigger.” And unlike whitewater courses on Tennessee’s Ocoee River and North Caro- lina’s Nantahala River, the Chattahoochee will be different every day.


Because of that, the course is expected


to attract enthusiasts from all over. In fact, Turner said, much of the fundraising was done outside Columbus. “Folks realize this is truly one-of-a-kind. This doesn’t hap- pen, really, ever.” Turner predicts another, hidden benefit.


“I think folks are going to insist on the city taking care of the river. They will accept nothing less. Trash, water quality, you name it. They’re going to insist on us doing a better job in the future than we have in the past of taking care of this river.” Back in Batson-Cook’s West Point


offices, walls are lined with glossy photos of monumental buildings the company has erected. But the company’s signature on this project won’t be so evident. “When we leave here we don’t want anyone to know we were here,” Meadows said. “If you look out there and see nothing but nature, then we’ve achieved our goal. And there is great satisfaction in that.” Looking out at the new Chattahoochee,


Turner, too, can’t help be proud. “If you think about it, what we’re doing is a forever kind of thing. One-hundred years from now, folks are still going to be appreciating this river.” C


12


Columbus and the Valley


JUNE 2013


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90