Scottsville James River Cliff Jumping

OVERVIEW

Hey y’all!!

The school year is almost over and I promised myself I would introduce ODC to the AMAZINGNESS of the Scottsville James River!! Yes, yes there are a lot of “Richmond James” types in the club. Emma and I are here to disprove all that. Scottsville James is not well known by UVA or ODC and in my humble, Scottsville-born-and-bred, definitely NOT biased opinion, it is simply the best.

Here’s why: cliff jumping!! There is an island in the middle of the river that has 3-4 really good spots to launch into the water. The spots are of varying heights, somewhere between five feet and twentyish feet (VERY estimated). What I’m trying to say is that there is good jumping for people of various adrenaline tolerances. The water is calm and deep in this section (~9ft), so no concerns about rapids/rocks/etc.

I have been patiently waiting for the right weather and river conditions to lead this trip, and next Thursday is looking promising. I track the river conditions on this website: https://jamesriver.com/

If you wanna see a video of the island: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15wlburFluI

This is an inherently dangerous trip because it is jumping into moving water. By signing up, you must be a confident swimmer, know your limits, and not be afraid of snakes/poison ivy/etc. You also must agree to not dive in at any height or jump off the front of the island, which is way too high and shallow. People have died doing that and I will not expose the club or anyone who signs up to that kind of risk. We will only be jumping off the 3-4 spots on the side of island. Also, I will cancel the trip if the river conditions are not safe for swimming (average >5 ft or yellow/red for tubing per JRR website). However, if all this scares you, don’t worry! I have gone here countless times growing up and feel really comfortable judging the safety of the river conditions and rock.

What to wear & bring:
Bathing suits or swimming clothes that stay on
River shoes (can be sneakers, but chacos/actual river shoes with straps are better)
Towel, sunscreen
Water

What Emma & I bring:
First aid kit & three years of nursing school knowledge
Scottsville local knowledge & fun facts (do YOU know what a batteau is??)

The plan:
Leave UVA around 12ish
Drive to the Warren put-in (~45min away)
Swim jump swim jump swim yayayayayay for as long as we want (1-2 hours??)
Drive back to Cville, get back around 4-5ish?

If you have any questions or concerns, don’t be afraid to text me! My number is 434-270-4230.

— Shannon & Emma