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Put In - Decided to head to Badin Lake to camp, there are two camping areas on the lake run by the US Forest Service. Badin Lake campground and Arrowhead campground. The best for kayaking is the Badin Lake lower loop, which have most sites on the water. Looking at the reservations on-line all sites were reserved for the weekend, but a few had first come first serve for Friday night. The drive down is around 2 hours from Raleigh. You can either go by way of 64 east or by way of Carthage by going down US 1 south. I did the Carthage route on the way down and then 64 East back on Saturday. They both are about the same. I lucked out and got the last site(4) on the water. Site 1 is really nice for kayaking as it is completely shaded and off the road. Site 4 was in the sun most of the day and right on the road, which is dusty because of the gravel. If you camp at the Arrowhead campground you have to drive down the the Cove boat ramp about a mile or so away.
Distance/Time - 3 Trips: Friday afternoon a large loop around the area, including the Cove boat ramp - 5.2 miles; evening paddle to the dam - 5.8 miles; Saturday morning to the Reeves Spring Branch = 9 miles.
Difficulty - Average.
Trip Directions - Most of the paddling was near the Uwharrie National Forest. There are many camping locations along the shoreline and no development is allowed. Lots of folk just motor boated into the campsites. The trip to the dam was nice and I was able to find the canoe portage on dam right. Looks like a pretty tough portage if you ask me. The trip in the morning was the nicest as the wind was down and I got to see a lot of wildlife and also took in some homes on the lake. Their are two islands in the area, I only stopped at one on the way back in the morning, next trip would be to explore these and the west side of the lake. You can see the old Alcoa plant when heading down to the dam area.
Scenery - Lots and lots of egrets. Saw a beaver and many ducks.
Hazards - Motor boats.
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