More than 550 paddlers flocked to Graham County this weekend for a whitewater adventure on the Cheoah River for the first of what will become a regular schedule of whitewater releases — 19 a year to be exact.

“It is really neat to be out on the first release, to be out on a day in history like this,” said Adam Joslin, a paddler who made the pilgrimage from Rome, Ga.

The large turnout for the inaugural release earns the Cheoah a prominent position in the “up-and-coming” category of the region’s whitewater arsenal.

“It’s just kind of exciting. It’s kind of a party atmosphere,” said Michael Middlemas, a paddler from Atlanta who showed up for the inaugural Cheoah release.

The Cheoah’s attraction is not an isolated phenomenon. There are a host of rivers in the Southeast that comprise a sort of whitewater circuit of special releases provided by hydropower companies. Avid paddlers follow the circuit, creating a traveling whitewater festival wherever they go.

“It’s one more to add to the list,” said Bryant Smith, also from Atlanta.

Smith said there is always a “novelty factor,” so the turnout could drop off. But, the numbers could also grow after word gets out and after feedback on tackling the river’s tricky spots circulates among the paddling community.

“Probably the people who are staying home today are a little smarter, letting us be the guinea pigs,” said Kevin Turner, a paddler from Maryville, Tenn. “There’s always a chance you’ll hit a bad spot nobody’s discovered yet.”

After running the river himself, Turner spent the afternoon hanging out at one of the toughest spots on the river — a drop already bestowed with the name God’s Dam. The solid six-foot cascade looks just like waterfall going over a low dam. Before going over God’s Dam, most boaters paddled over to the riverbank, got out and walked downstream to see just what they were up against. Known as “scoping,” boaters suffered from shock and awe, exchanging exclamatory terms upon seeing God’s Dam before talking strategy on how to tackle the drop.

Upon seeing it, a boater named Eric decided to rename it “Eric’s Demise.”

American Whitewater, a national paddling advocacy organization, was instrumental in securing the whitewater release on the Cheoah River. During negotiations with Alcoa Power on how much water to release over the dam, a handful of paddlers with American Whitewater had the lucky job of being the first to test the river. They posted basic descriptions of the river and tough spots to look out for on their Web site, but the nine-mile run was still exploratory territory shrouded in mystique.

The scoping scene was similar at another drop called “The Big Un.”

Keith Gunder, a construction worker from Boone, spent his afternoon watching other paddlers come over it, slightly stunned that he had somehow managed it himself.

“It scared the heck out of me,” said Gunder. Gunder said he felt safe, though, with so many top-notch paddlers around, many versed in rescue techniques.

“For the most part they look out for each other,” Gunder said.

When an empty boat came downstream and went over “The Big Un” unmanned, two boaters stationed themselves at the top of the falls for 30 minutes in case the person who had obviously capsized was still in the water and needed pulling out before going over.

Adam Joslin, a paddler from Rome, Ga., said his goal had been to make it over the “Big Un” upright, but he flipped about halfway down. His new goal became to stay in his boat.

“I was just happy not to swim,” Joslin said.

Natalie Brunner, a paddler from Ellijay, Ga., said she felt like “a cork in a washing machine” going down the river.

Several rafting outfitters showed up the Cheoah release to get a feel for the river and test its viability for commercial guided trips.

Ken Kastorff, owner of Endless River Adventures in the Nantahala Gorge, and some of his guides were among the first in line to go down the river Saturday morning. They took kayaks down the first time, and then returned upriver to try it in a raft.

“With a kayak, you can make a last minute course correction and go zooming off in another direction,” Kastorff said. “In a raft, you have to plan a lot further ahead.”

Kastorff will take another batch of his guides to the Cheoah release scheduled for Oct. 1.

“At that point, all my guides will sit down together and decide what’s viable in terms of trips and how we can start training for it,” Kastorff said.

Kastorff said the Cheoah is comparable with section IV of the Chattooga River or the Olympic portion of the Ocoee River.