Rafting companies hit rocky economy; drought is cause

"At this point you'd see about 20 different rafts floating down the river. The water would be two feet higher," Jon Felderman said as he pointed to the Pigeon River in Cocke County.

There are around 12 white water rafting companies along the Pigeon River in Cocke County. They take advantage of what is considered the fifth most rafted river in the United States.

This season, extra rocks means fewer rafts. It is the worst season Jon Felderman has seen in 13 years.

Felderman's company, Big Creek Expeditions, would have 150 customers on an average day in August.

Wednesday, they only had 20. The company is going from rafting four days a week to one or two days.

Numbers are also down at Smoky Mountain Outdoors. Workers tell 10News that they usually average 50,000 customers each year. In 2008, they'll see 20,000 fewer.

On a scale of one to six in the rafting world, the Pigeon River currently ranks a two, which means the water is running slow, and it's very hard to navigate.

The main reason is the lack of rainfall. To make matters worse, rafting shop owners said the reservoir that usually releases extra water to the Pigeon River is low.

That mean less water is being released.

"There's been times that I have talked to someone in Knoxville or saw on the news that it rained two inches in Knoxville, and it didn't do anything here," Felderman said. "Obviously, Knoxville is getting more rain than Western North Carolina, where we need the water to provide for this river."

After a rocky ride this year, Felderman hopes Mother Nature will flood his company with business next year.