Staying Home Sucks, home
A Lowes Foods supermarket chain store in Clemmons, North Carolina 01
Clemmons, the nearest town, 6 km away. Photo: Harrison Keely, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Idols Dam Portage

Kayak spot · United States

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

98Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

3 days tie for best

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 97 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
11kn
Air
18°C
Rain
0 mm

Tue 3 · 100 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
21°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 100 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
23°C
Rain
0.3 mm

Thu 5 · 95 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
23°C
Rain
5.1 mm

Fri 6 · 100 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
23°C
Rain
0 mm

Sat 7 · 92 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
20kn
Air
17°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 96 out of 100

Wind
6 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
18°C
Rain
0 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 198, good
  2. Mon 297, good
  3. Tue 3100, good
  4. Wed 4100, good
  5. Thu 595, good
  6. Fri 6100, good
  7. Sat 792, good
  8. Sun 896, good
  9. Mon 995, good
  10. Tue 1064, good

The spot in one fact

  • Flat waterthe water

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know the river level, weirs or your skill.

Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Idols Dam Portage
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Sun 1Nov98, good6 kn15kn19°C0 mm
Mon 2Nov97, good4 kn11kn18°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov100, good3 kn10kn21°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov100, good5 kn13kn23°C0.3 mm
Thu 5Nov95, good5 kn10kn23°C5.1 mm
Fri 6Nov100, good3 kn13kn23°C0 mm
Sat 7Nov92, good4 kn20kn17°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov96, good6 kn14kn18°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov95, good6 kn15kn19°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov64, good10 kn21kntoo gusty14°C1.8 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says. Days past the forecast count as they usually are.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More kayaking near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Idols Dam Portage

A launch on the Carter Creek. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. None within 10 km, the nearest 36 km away. The town to stay in is Clemmons. Within 5 km we also list 1 kayak spot.

  • River Carter Creek
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • Who it suits No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire None within 10 km, the nearest 36 km away.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,140–US$2,060 each

about US$1,140–US$2,060 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to GSO, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bagabout US$147–US$301
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$100–US$167
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$348–US$583
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$636
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$201–US$375
Totalabout US$1,140–US$2,060

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Clemmons

Closest

Clemmons

10 min by car · 8 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 8 places to stay in Clemmons · Booking.com

About Clemmons its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$134 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 4h 55m

About 4h 55m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → GSO, direct, then 1h 05m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

No paddling school, club or hire mapped within 25 km.

Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits