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31
Oct

Going Home

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I learnt to paddle in the middle of London, perhaps not where most people consider the most auspicious start to a career in whitewater… The youth club I started at, Islington Boat Club, was based in the middle of town, on the Regents Canal. It was there I spent a long time just messing about in boats, and also started my coaching career, teaching younger paddlers.

Mayor christening ramp

They have recently had a kayak kicker ramp installed, and I saw the launch party as an ideal opportunity to head back down south and see how the club was getting along (and to have a few goes on the ramp!).

Dan at top of Ramp

What a cool feature to find in the centre of London, 5 minutes from the Angel tube station, looking more like it belonged at the start of the Sickline course. Pyranha were kind enough to provide a few prizes so we had an impromptu slopejam, with various categories (after the local mayor had declared the kicker ramp open).

Kid at top of ramp

A big up to all those who have worked so hard to keep the club going, and who are developing the next generation of paddlers!

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29
Oct

A Classic Scottish Adventure

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Scottish kayaking can be a bit hit or miss, but when the river gods are on your side, it is world class.

The Ossian/ Abhainn Ghuilbinn trip has to be one of the coolest river trips in the UK.  Inaccessible, wild and spectacular, it has excited me for years and today, I finally got a chance to quench my thirst.IMG_9770 (1280x960)

After some smooth talk with the Caledonian Sleeper train guard, Amy and I arrive at Corrour station, made famous by the iconic “it’s s#!*e being Scottish” moment in Trainspotting. Amy works in the cafe there, so we sleep in the cosy cafe and use Hector the ‘landy’ to get down to Loch Ossian.IMG_9772 (1280x960)

A tail wind blows us swiftly along the loch, past the grand shooting lodge and onto a well filled River Ossian.  IMG_9776 (961x1280)This amazing grade 2 river, carries us through breath-taking scenery into Loch Ghuilbinn.IMG_9793 (1280x960)

The Abhainn Ghuilbinn flows out of the loch and is the highlight of this mini-exped.  Raging white burns gush off the hillside, producing involved paddling with picturesque views.IMG_9797 (1280x961)

As the heavy rain finishes, the sun bursts through the clouds, illuminating the winding gorges and steep drops.

The final rapid is a geological masterpiece.  The jagged slide, shoots up huge rooster tails and engulfing holes, creating a complex maze to weave through.  A great last hurrah for a well recommended trip.
IMG_9801 (1280x961)Thank Amy for a great wee mission and lets hope that the rivers gods keep giving 🙂

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29
Oct

Spooky Rivers of Britain

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It’s almost Halloween (or Hallowe’en if you prefer the traditional spelling), and whether you believe in ghosts or not, rivers can be pretty spooky places to be as the air gets colder and the evenings get darker. Here’s a few ghost stories based around rivers that have given us chills recently:

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Pumpkin carving exploits from our friends at University of Bristol Canoe Club

The Drowned Children of the River Severn

One winter, two young twins were playing on the spoil heaps of the Craven-Dunnhill Tile Works; it had been a particularly wet winter, with the River Severn flooded to humongous levels.

As the ferocious river surged its banks and eroded the bottom of the spoil heaps atop which the children were happily playing, unaware of the danger that lay ahead, the ground suddenly collapsed underneath them and they were swept into the raging torrents below.

Their bodies were eventually recovered downstream some time later, still holding hands. The anguished cries of the twins can sometimes still be heard in what remains of the spoil heaps from which the river took them.

The Haunted Wreck of the River Adur

The River Adur runs through Shoreham-by-Sea in West Sussex, the newest region of which has a history that dates back to Roman times, so legends are plenty!

At one time, the river was at the heart of the local community, with fishing being a significant source of income for the town. During a storm of unprecedented size in 1893, one particular resident’s fishing boat was carried upstream by a sizeable wave and smashed against the rocks of the river bank. The owner of the vessel was distraught as this meant the ruin of his livelihood and the onset of hard times for his family.

The remains of the wreck can be seen to this day, now far from the River Adur’s meandering path, and it is said that the howls and sobs of the fisherman and his family can be heard late at night as they attempt to push the ghostly wreck back towards the water; some have even reported seeing feint figures of the fisherman, his wife and two children around the wreck, their faces dull and eyes dark as they mourn the vessel’s loss eternally.

 

If those stories have left you in the mood for more chills, check out Go Canoeing’s Spooky Halloween Events for some quality family fright times this weekend: http://www.britishcanoeing.org.uk/news/2015/spooky-halloween-guided-tours

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25
Oct

Seal Launching in Scotland

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After a week at home and trying to sort out grown up things. I was more than ready to escape to the river, and when my friend Dennis Newton called me to tell me he was heading to Scotland the next day, I jumped at the chance to run away from Credit card bills, Visa applications and job hunting.

We arrived in Scotland to find no water, when I say no water. I mean NO WATER! Absoloutley (bloody) nothing. The rivers where drier than a nuns CENSORED.

Luckily for us, it doesn’t take much water at all to get down some of the Scottish burns and tribs to the Etive like the Alt Chorain (spelling?) provided great entertainment in the form of (slightly) damp seal launches. All be it at the cost of several layers of plastic from the bottom of our kayaks.


Mid week we got a small influx of rain that proved enough water to top the Etive up just enoug to make it worth while. This river often doesn’t get the credit it deserves as it gets run so often but it is honestly one of the best sections in the U.K, especially at higher flows. It’s most well known rapid is by far Right angle falls, A twisting little dog leg rapid leads into a beautiful 15ft (ish) waterfall that is perfect for first timers or people looking to work on their free fall technique with almost no consequences.


The Morriston was also churning out releases and it felt great to be back on this river. It is split into the upper and the lower with both providing a small but great selection of boofs and slides. It is also really easy to lap each section without having to set shuttle!
After several days of hunting for water and no rain forecast anytime soon, we reluctantly packed up our things and started the long drive home to Credit card bills, Visa applications and various other grownup things that I hate doing.

See you on the water,
Bren

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23
Oct

Crana Fest 2015 – The best all inclusive kayak event in Ireland

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On Friday the 16th of October most of the Irish kayaking community descended on the wee town of Buncrana in Donegal to battle it out for the top spots in their chosen disciplines. Having not had any rain in what seems like forever the event couldn’t have come at a better time.

Crana river flowing into the sea. Photo: Ken Ansell

Crana river flowing into the sea.
Photo: Ken Ansell

Crana Fest is a two day event of all levels and disciplines of kayaking including rafting. This exciting event is now in its 7th year and has attracted participants from all over Ireland, the UK and Europe. The event is run on the Crana River which includes a small freestyle feature, a Grade 4 rapid known as The Claw, a lovely little Grade 3 section which then runs right into the sea, all in less than 1km. So when they say there is something for everyone there genuinely is!

Throw Bag Olympics Photo: Adrian Durrant

Throw Bag Olympics
Photo: Adrian Durrant

I headed up to the event to coach, race, and maybe to do just a little bit of socialising 🙂
My favourite part of going to any event is meeting up with kayaking buddies who in this case I hadn’t seen all summer, meeting new people and generally just messing about on the water. The racing itself is just a small part of it. Though I really do enjoy the buzz of it, the butterflies in your tummy beforehand and the feeling of adrenaline pumping through your veins as you cross the finish line.

Photo: Elaine Alexander Shooter

Photo: Elaine Alexander Shooter

After spending the day coaching, meeting some lovely new people and rafting with my besties my 1st race of the weekend was the Palm Night Race which is also the 1st event in the Irish White Water Race League series.
It’s a time trial event run under lights, music and cheers from the crowd, the atmosphere is fantastic. You start off down a sudsy ramp onto the run-in rapid of The Claw then onto a flat water sprint around a lit up, upstream gate to the finish.

Susan Doyle Photo: Fernando Ayuso

Susan Doyle
Photo: Fernando Ayuso

The Claw is a double drop, a small boofable ledge into a short ramp, but get this wrong and you either run it on your head or get pushed right into the Room of Doom: a double drop with a very sticky hole at the bottom, this is the crowd-pleaser and the line that gets the biggest cheers 🙂
This year Kris and the Slalom committee were in charge of timing using their new laser system, very posh ! The whole event really is very well run, all its missing is a hot tub 😉

The Claw Photo: Fernando Ayuso

The Claw
Photo: Fernando Ayuso

After heading over to the Sickline in Austria but not being able to compete this was my 1st race in my new Pyranha 9R and I was feeling confident, it is the fastest creek boat I have ever sat in so I knew it was just up to me to get the line right, luckily I did ahead of some very tough competition and took home 1st in the Ladies Race. I later loaned my 9R to young slalom paddler Oisin Farrell who if not for a touch on the upstream gate would have had the fastest course time by well over a second. The 9R’s were in flying form that night with David Doyle and Cian McNally taking 2nd and 3rd respectively in the Senior Men’s Race.

9R v 9R - Cain McNally and David Doyle Photo: Maria McNally

9R v 9R – Cain McNally and David Doyle
Photo: Maria McNally

Next up for me on Sunday afternoon was the Expert Boater Cross, it starts roughly 200m up stream of The Claw, so plenty of distant to feel the burn in your lungs before you try to set your boat up for that all important entry ledge into the Claw. We had enough ladies for two heats with the top two progressing to the final. I had a great battle with good friend and pocket rocket Ms Laura Griffin in the first heat just managing to tag the banner before her. There were then 4 of us in the final and while I was in 2nd place coming over the Claw I had to throw in a roll at the bottom with the final result being Aoife Hanrahan 1st, Laura Griffin 2nd and myself in 3rd. Aoife had clearly been training hard and it was a well deserved win!

Aoife 1st, Laura 2nd and Susan 3rd in the Ladies Expert BoaterX Photo: Maria McNally

Aoife 1st, Laura 2nd and Susan 3rd in the Ladies Expert BoaterX
Photo: Maria McNally

Just to finish I’d like to say that the standard of the juniors paddlers who were out on the water over the weekend really would put a smile on your face, the future of Irish Kayak is surely safe in their hands! 🙂

Big thanks to Adrian Harkin and the Inish Adventure crew for a fab weekend and to Paul McNally and his rescues rangers who stood on the riverbank all weekend keeping us safe.

If this event isn’t already in your calendar for next year, it should be… ! 🙂

The Rescue Team Photo: Maria McNally

The Rescue Team
Photo: Maria McNally

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Like A Lady

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For many of us kayaking is a way of life, an art form, a passion, it represents determination, empowerment, and the very best of everything we are. This summer I set out to Idaho and Colorado to chase my passion for white water and new experiences, to explore what I’m capable of and what makes me most happy! It doesn’t matter what river I’m on, who I’m with, or how difficult it is; I love it! It’s where I’ve met my best friends and continue to have the best of adventures directing me towards the very best of everything life has to offer. Go after what creates meaning in your life and trust yourself, you’d be surprised at the places it will take you; I sure was. Here’s a peak of what I was up to this summer!

-Alicia Lycan

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20
Oct

Ok, so Team Pyranha love the 9R, but what about everyone else?

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We recently received this review from a local SE boater, so happy to hear everyone is as stoked on this boat as we are!

Aggressive, Nimble and Stable… these are the 3 words that come to mind when I am asked what I think about Pyranha’s new boat the 9R. I have paddled a lot of boats in a lot of styles of water from big water waves, steep fast slides, and low water creeks. The 9R is my new choice of boat for any of these conditions.

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I am a southeast class 4/5 boater, a weekend warrior and not sponsored. For reference I weigh 160lbs, I am 5’6” and have a size 9.5 shoe and the 9R fits me like a glove. I have owned the 9R for about 2 months now and have over 20 runs in it. This boat was my pick for my trip to Colorado In June and has also been my go to boat for local runs. From Upper East (CO), Daisy Creek (CO), Big Creek (NC), Green River (NC) to the Little River (TN) and Piney Creek (TN) this boat has seen it all.

Aggressive – The 9R is a fast narrow boat that wants to be driven. The more you put into this boat the more it gives back. At 8’ 11” this boat is long for a “short” boat and you can tell this in the speed of the boat. It drives over waves and through holes with ease. A few strokes and you are up to speed even in boiling water and funky eddy lines. Coming down slides the 9r is lighting fast, but very in control. You are able to pick your lines and stay on them.

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Nimble – From catching eddies to must make moves or even holding a line for a killer boof the 9R can do it all. The sharper edges on the stern of the boat are great for driving into small eddies with ease. Using the speed of the boat and the stern edges you can make quick, tight moves through boulder gardens with little effort. Great for those go fast days down your local creek. The continuous rocker along with the speed of the 9R make it a boofing machine.

Stable – The 9R keeps the key figures of a displacement hull with soft edges up front to keep the boat very stable. The bow of this boat looks similar to Shiva and just as forgiving, but the stern flattens out with the sharper edges to give you the speed you need. In big water the 9R rides over boils and holes with no issues due to the new wave deflectors on the bow. These deflectors help push the water away from the bow and keep you riding high and dry.

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A few last remarks on the boat’s outfitting, the C4S. Having the ability to change the rake of the seat is key to being locked in and having full control of your boat. The knee hooks and the narrower knee position make this boat very comfortable. Along with the standard foot rest and the ample foam that’s provided, outfitting this boat is a breeze.

Here are a few videos of the 9R in action:

Royal Gorge (CO)

Daisy Creek (CO)

Cheoah River (NC)

Upper East (CO)

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20
Oct

Balkan Rivers Days – 72 Hours for Rivers

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Shortest way to explain what was going on from September 24th – 27th in Serbia is to describe it as Unconventional gathering of River lovers.

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Imagine 120 River conservationists from 18 countries hanging out in the most amazing place just next to the mighty Sava River in the most vibrant city and the former capital of Yugoslavia – Belgrade. We were the ones representing kayaking community…

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It was as fun as it looks or reads. When you have good and quality ingredients it is not hard to make a good dish with them. In our case the dish were ideas on how to fight the insatiable appetite for damming rivers in the Balkan Peninsula.

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It is somehow hard to imagine that there are more than 2,700 hydropower plants projected in the region; even National Parks and other protected areas are at risk! They want to put a dam to every river that was left untouched till today as they think they have a right to do it and that they are doing us a favor. Or just said simpler – they like the easy money.

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So who is the one against all this absurd dam craze, who is the one going to battle with big corporations and corrupted governments that don’t give a damn about the treasures their countries, in difference to other European countries, still possess? We are! Kayakers, fishermen, little local NGOs and other passionate people in the campaign. There is only us, no one else will do it!

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I can fit myself in all listed above, but to be honest I am most proud of the fact that I am a kayaker. This has to do with the fact that kayakers were the ones that made the difference in the field in many past battles for the rivers. We don’t think and discuss too much; we simply go to action without big hesitations. Or like a respected activist Edward Abbey, who was totally against dams that devastated USA, once said: “Sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul.”

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Among all I believe we kayakers feel the strongest connection to Rivers and their free flow. One can’t be a sailor without an ocean and we can’t be kayakers without wild and free Rivers and we feel this in our guts. You all know the smell of the river in the morning when mists are still rising above the rapids, the haze around a waterfall that never cease and a feeling when you see a wild trout or salmon under your boat. All that is gone when there is a wall between upper and lower stretch of river…

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It feels good to know that there are more enthusiastic people like us around and that we are not alone in this. Joining forces is and will be crucial and having fishermen and conservationists for friends is not that bad at all, believe me. So lets prove that we are still the ones that River lovers can rely on when battles for Rivers start.

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There is a choice; we make it every day… Leeway collective’s choice is organizing a Tour across the Balkans in 2016, all the way from our home Slovenia to the Albania and gather broad kayaking community to paddle these amazing rivers together, spend time with friendly locals and spread the word about this important issue across the region and in world wide media. Come join us, you know it will be fun!

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More info on the tour and dates will follow but April/May will be time for that. Follow us on social media or contact me directly via rok@leeway-collective.com.

See you on wild and free Rivers!

Rok

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15
Oct

Huck-tober in Virginia

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Heavy sustained rains in early October brought some of the most treasured creeks in Virginia up to perfect levels. We were lucky enough to spend several days chasing rain from Roanoke through the Shenandoah Valley and into the fabled Nelson County region of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Here are some images from “Hucktober” in Virginia.

With rain starting to fall we headed to Bent Mountain to catch Bottom Creek at a primo level. Melissa Vaughan became one of only a handful of women to paddle this scenic class V stout. Here she is finishing up “Two Blind Mice” at the end of the Waterfall Section.

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“You only get one chance to run a drop blind.” Melissa V. gets her first glimpse of “Two Blind Mice” the traditional way…totally blind. Bottom Creek, VA. © Gordon Dalton

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Josh P. enters the righteously infamous “Gorilla North,” Bottom Creek, VA © Gordon Dalton

Next morning started off with some portage-free laps on the North Fork Tye River just 15-minutes from my house. Backyard boofing!

Gordon on the last of three consecutive boofs in “Cushion” Rapid, North Fork Tye, VA. Photo by Art Barket

Gordon Dalton, “Packsaw” Rapid, North Fork Tye River, VA. Photo by Art Barket

It is usually a bad idea to drive away from good water, but after a great session on the NFT, the crew pushed on to an exploratory run just over the mountain near Lexington, VA. When we got there it was clear that levels had dropped to less-than-optimal for this unknown run. There was much debate about whether to hike in or not. In the end I stuck with my own motto: “It doesn’t have to be running to be runnable.” It wasn’t hard to convince Josh or Andrew – in fact they were the most eager to see what this promising waterfall run had to offer. Especially Andrew since this run had been calling his name for some time. Thanks for sharing Andrew! This creek has a clean, vertical 20′ falls (actually twin side-by-side falls), several defined ledges, and a mini-gorge narrow enough to jump over. The travertine formations are like something out of Mexico. This will be an awesome option for those days when everything else is blown out.

Andrew Epperly on the first 20-footer. © Gordon Dalton

Andrew Epperly explores “little mexico.” © Gordon Dalton

The creek culminates in this multi-stage travertine cascade at the take-out. We gave Andrew the first-descent honors, then Josh and I dropped in:

Josh P. gets a geology lesson in one of several fine travertine waterfalls. Exploratory Mission, Shenandoah Valley, VA. © Gordon Dalton

The next day was Sunday, so we all went to Church!:

CHURCH! The North Fork Tye takeout. © Gordon Dalton

It was good to make a couple laps with an old friend of the Pyranha family; Trafford McRae.
Here we are routing through “Cushion” in an Everest and a Burn III:
“Cushion” on Vimeo

All in all it was a stout start to creeking season in the mid-Atlantic. THINK RAIN!

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Pyranha Creeking Quiver: Shiva, Burn III, 9R!  © Gordon Dalton

 

 

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13
Oct

Below and Beyond – Anacondas and Condors 2015

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It’s been a while since we got back from the trip. It’s always great to have time to reflect. Can be quite a significant opportunity – a good chance to ask why did I go?

Dan Mapacho7

There’s lots of reasons why we do these things. As far as the collective goal goes we were hoping to do explore the possibilities offered by a couple of rivers. And in doing so raise the paddling profile of Peru a little. Personally speaking, expedition paddling is about the combination of wanting to visit places where no-one/hardly anyone has been AND can I then cope?

Dan Pomacanchis11

It was great to welcome James to the Below and Beyond family. The team is so important – pretty much the reason we paddle together.

Dan Queros Walk in11

The trip started as it went on – busy! We landed in Cusco, heads spinning with the altitude. Next thing we know we’re on a section of the Urabamba paddling alongside Pauls kids in a raft! Followed by the second(?) descent of the Rio Pomacanchis, second (?) descent of the Mapacho, a high water Tono, a high water (lower) Kosnipata, the Black canyon of the Apurimac and a very high water run on the Granite canyon of the Apurimac.

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But none of the above were why we were really there! The Rio Queros has been on my mind for 13 years now… Tales of remote Jungle, uncontacted tribes, Indian tribes that still life as the Incans did (or at least a close approximation!), epic walk-in (from 4500m) and paddle out (at 800m) and the possibility that I did the first (?) descent of the lower section of the river all those years ago! Unfortunately Paddington Bear ruined this trip for us – that and some serious mis-information! The Queros Indians – a mountain tribe, who have the closest genetic make-up to the Incans, live at 4500m. We agreed with them that they would porter for us the two days they said it would take to get to the limit of their tribal area – also the ideal put-in for the river. The first days trek was remarkable, utterly beautiful. We arrive at one of their villages where we rest at 3300m, to ready ourselves for the next day down to the put-in.

James Granite Apurimac24

It is there that they inform us that it will take a further (up to) 4 days to reach the river – and they had no food for that journey! Aaaaargh! We’ve only got 4 days food for 4 of us! That’s that then, we plan for the trek out. Bugger. It transpires that 4 years ago it was possible to get to the put-in in a two day trek, as they used to grow Maize in the area…. But – in recent years the Spectacled Bears would come out of the cloud forest and eat their crops! So they no-longer farm in that area, the paths have returned to Cloud forest, the bridges fallen and landslides destroyed the paths.

So, put the Rio Queros on the list for next time! On to the Rio Santa Tomas. The main reason for paddling the Black canyon of the Apurimac is that the St Tomas is a tributary. From the Apurimac we could get an idea of the flow in the St Tomas. Bit high but ok…

James Queros Walk in12

BIG drive to get to the put-in, we wanted to inspect as much as possible prior to committing – box canyon country! The river seemed pretty low at the put-in. Pretty quickly however things changed! A day and a half of some of the best boating I’ve ever done. Pretty committing, full-on (for me, I was at my limit). Paul, Dan and James were totally on it, cruising! At the last road bridge all the evidence was suggesting that I should get off – already at my limit, the river got steeper and went into longer, deeper box canyons. The others still had another gear to go. They commit. By the time I get back to Cusco and have a cold one in my hand, the boys are up to their necks in a quality sufferfest. More great boating, swiftly followed by inspection/portage/desert(very uphill) trekking with boats, etc. But the right call to go for it – it could have been amazing!

All in all a fantastic trip. Not exactly successful, unless success is; not getting hurt, laughing a lot, meeting some amazing people, going to incredible places, doing plenty of great boating and even better friends than before!

James Tonna6

Thanks to Pyranha for the boats – brilliant. Especially impressed with the way the (relatively small in comparison with the Burn XL and Everests) Large Burn coped with the exped loading.

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