Entry-level whitewater is touted by outfitters as kid-friendly.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

DILLSBORO, N.C. _ Whitewater paddlers take the plunge on the Chattooga and Nantahala rivers.

But did you ever wonder where they learned to run big, rambunctious rapids?

Maybe it was the Tuckasegee, a lower-octane river whose peppy-but-manageable whitewater draws paddling clinics. Instructor Juliet Kastorff takes beginning kayakers to the Tuckasegee for their first moving-water lessons.

"For people starting out, it's a great introduction to whitewater," she said. "It has real defined features on the river.

When paddlers talk about the Tuck, they're referring to a 5-mile section between Dillsboro and Bryson City in Western North Carolina. It's called the Tuckasegee Gorge, an exciting descent through seven Class II rapids with names like Train Wreck Ledge and Double Drop.

Not only an entry-level whitewater river, the Tuck is touted by outfitters as kid-friendly. They advertise trips in rafts and inflatable kayaks as suitable for families.

I hooked up last Sunday with Kastorff and student Sarah Machinist, 23, of Pittsburgh, near Railroad Rapid.