The writer joined a flotilla on the expanding Chattahoochee RiverLands TrailPhotograph by Growl Bros We were a flotilla of 10 flatwater kayaks on a lazy stretch of river that might have been anywhere in the rural South. We had the wide-open waters to ourselves, as far as we could see. I propped my f eet up on the sides of my boat, filled with camping gear, and leaned back: An eagle passed overhead and landed on one of the massive sycamores lining the banks. Spotted bass swam beneath our boats, a few biting the lines cast by the anglers among us. The rapids were infrequent and small, but that was just fine. Someone popped open a beer. We were exploring in cruise mode. Just south of Atlanta, this tranquil section of the Chattahoochee River—long avoided by recreationalists—is where we floated for three days late last summer. Until the past decade or so, it wasn’t prudent to paddle here. The river was septic from sewage and sludge in the late 1960s, according to Harold Reheis, who worked at the Georgia Environmental Protection Division at the time. Two decades later, the state implemented a policy not to build boat ramps along the river below Peachtree Creek, where the city discharges its treated wastewater and polluted stormwater from downtown Atlanta drains: The water was far too filthy. In 1994, a new nonprofit Chattahoochee Riverkeeper (founded by my mom) started to clean things up, sue polluters, and monitor the waterway’s condition. Gradually, the river began to reawaken. In 2023, the Chattahoochee Riverkeeper (TPL), using a mix of public and private funding, acquired 1,200 acres of riverfront south of the city. More recently, a group called Chattahoochee Now stepped in to spread the word about the Chattahoochee RiverLands Trail. First announced in September 2018, it’s a kind of aquatic Beltline, in theory, linking various areas below the city, including much of Chattahoochee Hills. Fellow camper Drew SimsPhotograph by Growl Bros Jordan Budnick, director of philanthropy for the Trust for Public LandPhotograph by Growl Bros The Standing Peachtree kayak launchPhotograph by Growl Bros The trail will ultimately create more than 100 miles of public space along the river, with access points and hiking trails extending from as far north as Buford Dam to as far south as Chattahoochee Bend State Park in Newnan. New sections of the trail were completed in 2025, and visitors can now find kayak launches, boat ramps, picnic shelters, restrooms, and well-outfitted campsites within what will eventually become more than 6,000 acres of protected greenspace. Delightfully, what you can’t yet find are crowds. My flotilla included a few members of the TPL and Chattahoochee Now, as well as a fisherman from the nearby Serenbe community, a former member of the Atlanta Regional Commission, and an old high-school pal of mine. We had put in at the new Peachtree Creek kayak ramp off Ridgewood Road and made our way to our first campsite in Fairburn at Campbellton Park, five and a half hours and 20 miles of river later. Along the way, the city slowly receded behind the trees, and the Chattahoochee hill country emerged: farmland, old homesteads, little else. Not a sludge worm in sight. We needed more fishing rods and camp chairs, though, so we did what you can only do when you’re close to a big city: We Instacarted them from Target. Our pizza-delivery dinner, too, came from the invisible city nearby. We bedded down in our tents, after some whiskey and cards, and woke up in wilderness—with plumbing nearby and Chick-fil-A for breakfast. Thomas Peters, director of landscape and natural resources at SerenbePhotograph by Growl Bros The Chattahoochee RiverLands Trail is set up for camp and paddle adventuresPhotograph by Growl Bros Cycling through Chattahoochee Hills back to AtlantaPhotograph by Growl Bros Back in our kayaks, a birder from TPL spotted ospreys on the water. Sturgeon trolled the mouth of a creek. We traded stories as the hours and the river drifted past, ignoring our phones. Our second campsite was 17 miles downriver at New RiverLands Park, a 260-acre park opened in spring 2025. A few kind folks from Serenbe surprised us there with a float camp party, a cookout, and an acoustic concert on a bluff, as the sun set over the river and the whiskey—among other delights—reemerged. Forgive my fuzzy memory. But this kind of gathering couldn’t have happened on this stretch of the Chattahoochee a generation ago. A few of us—wanting to up the adventure ante and work off our hangovers—had arranged for bikes to be dropped off at our location. The next morning, we rode back on two wheels through Chattahoochee Hills and the edges of the big city to where we’d started. My phone’s fitness app reported 37 miles and 2,500 feet of elevation gain. My old pal’s photos offered the better barometer of the trip: huge smiles. This article appears in our June 2026 issue. The post For decades, the Chattahoochee River was too filthy for recreation. Now, things have changed. appeared first on Atlanta Magazine. ...read more read less