French Broad River at Pearson Bridge Rd

Managed by MountainTrue French Broad Riverkeeper

This sampling location is home to French Broad Outfitters, a full service outfitter offering a retail shop as well as rentals for boats, tubes, stand-up paddle boards, fishing, and camping gear. Shuttles and guided trips are also available. This section of the river is one of most popular sections due to the increasing number of river friendly businesses including the Bywater Bar and Zen Tubing.

This site is part of the French Broad River Paddle Trail which connects over 140 miles of the French Broad River through paddle in only campsites and access sites. For more information including camp site reservations go to http://wnca.org/paddle/

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COVID-19

Keep your distance from other people.

Practicing social distancing is essential right now. Follow the advice of the health experts. If your community has asked that you remain indoors and away from others, do so. Heading to the beach should only be considered an option if social distancing practices can be followed. Spending a day in any crowded place is the worst thing we can do for our most vulnerable right now and will counter the efforts to curb the virus’ spread.

For more information, please visit the World Health Organization public resource on COVID-19.

Water Quality

Met water quality standards less than 60% of the time
Historical Status
This status is based on the latest sample, taken on September 2nd, 2020. MountainTrue French Broad Riverkeeper updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on September 3th, 2020 at 12:19 PM.

For water quality icon legend, click:

Current Weather

23°C

A mix of sun and clouds

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Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

The French Broad Riverkeeper, housed at the MountainTrue, monitors the French Broad River Watershed for E. coli, a bacteria found in the waste (feces) of most warm-blooded animals, including humans. High levels of E. coli can pose a health risk for people swimming in the water.

Participating volunteers take weekly water samples, and sites are listed as failing to meet water quality standards if they fall the samples are above EPA's recommended safe level for E. coli of 235 E. coli colonies per 100 milliliters of water. Volunteers take samples early each week, and results are posted on Thursday or Friday.

This sample data provides a general guide to the health of the waterway and should only be used for informational purposes. This data does not guarantee the sampled area is safe for swimming at all times.

Overall, E. coli levels in the French Broad River are low, and the river is typically safe for swimming. However, E. coli levels can change at any time and frequently increase after rain events. As a general rule, if the water is clear, then E. coli levels are likely to be low.

Please contact the French Broad Riverkeeper at hartwell@mountaintrue.org if you have questions. Please also contact us if you would like to volunteer to take water samples.

Water Quality Graph