{"id":24670,"date":"2026-01-29T18:22:18","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T17:22:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/?p=24670"},"modified":"2026-01-29T18:22:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T17:22:19","slug":"river-tay-wizard-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/river-tay-wizard-review\/","title":{"rendered":"River Tay Wizard Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>5 days in the Wizard\u2026 where do I start?<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"802\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05318.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-24671\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05318.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05318-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05318-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05318-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>A spontaneous trip to the River Tay in Scotland provided some consistent, awesome flows. Ranging from 3.6 to 5.2 metres, the river offered some incredible waves and play spots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Two Boats in One<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/kayaks.php?kayak=Wizard\">Wizard<\/a> is unlike any boat I have paddled before. Where I was initially apprehensive about trying this unique boat, the trip revealed it to be a positive mix of two boats. While the Wizard\u2019s length produces the speed required to catch a wave one could only dream of catching in a modern playboat, the surf remains light, nimble, smooth, and speedy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Old School or New School?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>An old school design with the joys of modern outfitting! I have always enjoyed the old-school, longer-style playboats. However, they typically have a lower knee position and compromise on foot room. This makes it difficult to have longer sessions and distracts from the magical feeling of surfing.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"802\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05384.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-24672\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05384.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05384-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05384-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05384-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The Wizard, on the other hand, not only comes with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/this-outfitting-is-elite\/\">Pyranha\u2019s new Elite outfitting<\/a>, but leaves enough room for river shoes! I have said it many times already, but the novelty of wearing shoes in a boat you can blunt, is the BEST FEELING EVER! I had a full 4-hour session in this boat, and the only noticeable soreness was in my cheeks from all the smiling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Steepest and Most Terrifying Wave<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Campsie Linn is an incredible wave, and this trip was my first time experiencing it. When in the right place, the wave allows for not only a great front-surf experience but also blunts and aircrews (although the latter I am in the process of dialling). However, a good wave usually comes with a downside, and for Campsie this lies in the \u2018Horror Hole\u2019 on surfers&#8217; left. As successfully indicated by the name, the hole is rather intimidating, and the aggressive whirlpools behind it make for an intense surf.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"802\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05453.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-24673\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05453.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05453-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05453-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05453-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The bow and stern rocker offered by the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/kayaks.php?kayak=Wizard\">Wizard<\/a> certainly gave me a sense of security when dropping in. It provides a confident bow that you can trust not to pearl on steep faces! While it did take me a day (and some persuasion from Joe), I began to lean into the feature and, once I had done so, control came easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Loose but Grippy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"590\" height=\"332\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Y8ymm09hRmw?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-GB&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Once again, this boat does multiple things. You can make use of the rails and drive it to carve. Or, if you would rather slide around in a front surf, you can do so by flattening the edge. This makes linking moves super satisfying! The hull is almost flat but with a curve in the middle. Perfect for a spin and grind without catching too much on its edges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I am blown away by this boat and cannot wait for others to experience it as well!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Wizard is unlike any boat I have paddled before. Where I was initially apprehensive about trying this unique boat, the trip revealed it to be a positive mix of two boats.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9007,"featured_media":24673,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":false,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6,7],"tags":[1828,1801,1826,1829,1601,1827],"class_list":["post-24670","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-playboating-articles","category-tests-and-reveiws","tag-campsie-wave","tag-pyranha-wizard","tag-pyranha-wizard-review","tag-river-tay","tag-whitewater-kayaking-in-scotland","tag-wizard-kayak"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/DSC05453.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9tk9G-6pU","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24670","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9007"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24670"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24670\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24675,"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24670\/revisions\/24675"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24670"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24670"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pyranha.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24670"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}