12/02/2005
Pictures
A couple of photos, of me with the boat when I got it and rolling practice at Squam Lake. (That's a successful roll).
10/30/2005
Piscataquog
With the floodwaters of two weeks ago still running down New England rivers, especially dam-controlled ones, I was looking for one last time on the river before winter. I hooked up with the Contoocook group again, minus Ron, who was unfortunately out of commission for kayaking after hurting his shoulder on the beginner reunion trip, in addition to already being out of commission for hiking due to knee and ankle problems. Poor guy.
Anyway, the trip was the Piscataquog, just outside of Manchester, NH. It was a 2.5 mile trip, starting at 10 AM. I had to be in Waltham at 2 PM for a meeting for a group project for school, but with the short trip not too far away, I thought I could squeeze in one last whitewater fix.
Well, the plans didn't work out too well for numerous reasons. Daylight savings ended the night prior, so I decided to stay up for the extra hour. It ended up being a little more than an extra hour, so I was a little tired the next morning. Also, it took a little longer to get there than I expected, so it was 10:45 by the time we finished the shuttle and got going.
I didn't waste any time flipping, getting swamped surfing a wave in sight of the put-in. I rolled, but overdid trying to "save" it, doing a full 360 back into the water.
There were a few more tough rapids, including one ledge that extended from river left to the center where there was a nasty looking hydraulic. We pulled out on river left just before this, and I decided to ferry out to the other side, avoiding the ledge completely and getting to the other side of the hydraulic. I flipped on the ferry and ended up swimming, but I was relieved and surprised when I made it through to the right of everything. I also managed to flip turning into an eddy, which was a first,--I guess I was just tired--but rolled that time.
We got to a bridge a little past halfway and it was about 12:40. Unfortunately, I had to get out and hitch to the takeout to make it to my meeting. After about ten cars went by, I gave up holding my thumb out and was just jogging when an old boater picked me up.
I made it back by 2, but the meeting had been canceled and I had not received the email saying so. It was kind of a frustrating end to a subpar trip. Next year I'll use the extra hour for sleeping.
Anyway, the trip was the Piscataquog, just outside of Manchester, NH. It was a 2.5 mile trip, starting at 10 AM. I had to be in Waltham at 2 PM for a meeting for a group project for school, but with the short trip not too far away, I thought I could squeeze in one last whitewater fix.
Well, the plans didn't work out too well for numerous reasons. Daylight savings ended the night prior, so I decided to stay up for the extra hour. It ended up being a little more than an extra hour, so I was a little tired the next morning. Also, it took a little longer to get there than I expected, so it was 10:45 by the time we finished the shuttle and got going.
I didn't waste any time flipping, getting swamped surfing a wave in sight of the put-in. I rolled, but overdid trying to "save" it, doing a full 360 back into the water.
There were a few more tough rapids, including one ledge that extended from river left to the center where there was a nasty looking hydraulic. We pulled out on river left just before this, and I decided to ferry out to the other side, avoiding the ledge completely and getting to the other side of the hydraulic. I flipped on the ferry and ended up swimming, but I was relieved and surprised when I made it through to the right of everything. I also managed to flip turning into an eddy, which was a first,--I guess I was just tired--but rolled that time.
We got to a bridge a little past halfway and it was about 12:40. Unfortunately, I had to get out and hitch to the takeout to make it to my meeting. After about ten cars went by, I gave up holding my thumb out and was just jogging when an old boater picked me up.
I made it back by 2, but the meeting had been canceled and I had not received the email saying so. It was kind of a frustrating end to a subpar trip. Next year I'll use the extra hour for sleeping.
10/16/2005
W. Branch Farmington
The W. Branch of the Farmington River in the southern Berkshires of Massachusetts runs for two weekends in mid-October at the drawdown of a reservoir on a tributary. The drawdown release is 250 cfs and the normal run at that level is quite scratchy and technical. Well, this year, it rained for about two weeks straight prior to the drawdown. The weekend before I went, it was running 8000 cfs, flood stage. It went down early in the week, but still was well above 250 and started going up again Thursday and Friday when it started to pour once again. On Saturday, it was at 1750 cfs, seven times the normal level, and it was quite an adventure.
Because of the high level, we were able to put in high above the normal put-in and also above where the drawdown water from the tributary comes in. The rapids in this section were not terribly difficult, but the paddling was interesting. First we went through flooded out marshes, with the occasional easy drop. Then the river narrowed to no more than 30 feet across and entered the woods. It was obvious that it was way over its normal banks because it felt like we were going through the woods on a wide aquatic trail. There were no carved banks apparent, just the pine-needled forest floor on the sides. There was one interesting s-turn rapid in this stretch, with a pretty good gradient.
Pretty soon, the river opened up, and we were at the normal put-in. We went around a couple of easy bends and were told by our leader, Harland, an open boater, (the only one who had done this section) that there was a tricky spot coming up and to follow him. I was second in line behind Harland but did not do a good job of following him for myself and the three people behind me. At the aforementioned spot, he went to the river right side but I was a little too far towards the center. By the time I realized my mistake, it was way to late to avoid a huge hole. I tried to punch it, and made it about halfway up the foam pile before I started to slide back. The next thing I knew, my bow was on top of me as it flipped me bow-over-stern. I set up to roll, but I was in the middle of a wave, so my hands were still in the water, so I wet exited. (A side note: this is also how I ended up swimming on the West, panicking because I tried to set up in the middle of a wave and wet exiting instead of waiting to get out of the wave to roll. I need to work on this.)
I had a long, tumultuous swim. I banged into several rocks, escaping with only minor bruises. Also, the current ripped off one of my neoprene socks and I stupidly let go of my paddle. Artemis, a kayaker behind me who also flipped in the hole but rolled, chased after my boat and in the course of catching up to it, saw my paddle close by and grabbed it out of the water, for which I am eternally grateful. (The paddle cost 35% the price of the boat--not cheap at all). The sock was a lost cause.
After about a quarter of a mile of swimming, I finally made it to shore, where I learned that Artemis and another had rolled and another had swum as well thanks to my poor following job.
Nothing remarkable happened the rest of the way to the takeout, just more class II rapids with beautiful fall colors on both sides. Our takeout was just above a slalom course, which marks the beginning of the class III-IV section.
We headed back to our campsite at the end of this section to eat lunch before continuing from there where the river mellows back out to a II-III. On the way, we stopped at one of the roadside rapids, Decoration Rock, a 4-foot drop between a rock and the right bank. We witnessed an open boater flip right before the drop, then quickly grab a rock on the bank as his canoe went over the fall. It was a pretty impressive save and a microcosm of how the III-IV section was running.
At lunch, I said I was content to skip the afternoon run, provided we would do that section on Sunday, hoping to take a nap not having slept well the night before due to a cold. Others were pretty worn out from the morning run as well and because of that fact and the reports we were hearing about lost boats and people from the III-IV section, so we decided not to paddle that afternoon.
Instead, we recovered some boats and people. The canoe we witnessed going over Decoration Rock without its adroit paddler had lodged on a rock several miles below Decoration Rock, one of its ends having smashed on another rock. We set up a belay system so that someone could walk out to it carefully and hook it to a rope to bring it back to shore and recover the spare paddle and dry bags in it. We also retrieved a kayak that had run aground on a midriver island nearby, a more tricky operation because there was more current between it and the shore than there was with the canoe. During this time, we saw a group of kayakers go through and we decided to beat them down to the last rapid on the section, Bear Trap, aka Bear's Den and Bear Claw, a class III at normal levels.
It was a IV that day with all the extra water. It was cool to watch them maneuver through the channels, catch air off the huge waves and see one of them throw a clutch roll just before the final drop.
I did get a nap in before the buffet dinner at the nearby ski area. Topics of conversation at dinner included the carnage of the III-IV section, the (un)runnability of Decoration Rock in an open boat and how it was believed that someone got lost just below the slalom course. It certainly was an incredible day.
Sunday, we put in at the normal spot, quickly coming to the site of my big swim. The level was down to 1250 cfs (only five times the normal level!), but I stayed far enough to the right to avoid the hole. Artemis did go through it though, and made it upright after a brief struggle.
After lunch, we ran the forgone section of the day before, though most of the group stopped before Bear Trap. This section started right at our campsite with a pretty good-sized rapid, for which I had had sometime to study and come up with a line. I wanted to go right to left, avoiding some rocks and holes on river right, then move back to center to avoid a big hole on river left just before a bend to the left. It didn't work. It was pretty pushy, so I ended up staying to the right the whole way, which required punching several holes in quick succession. I made it through, but it was the toughest line possible, maybe a class III route through a class II rapid. After some more fast rapids, the run and the trip was over. It was an incredible time, well worth the 50-miles of bumper-to-bumper on the Mass Pike on the way out (when is it ever jammed solid past Sturbridge?) The Farmington runs every fall, but I feel quite lucky to have been able to run it at that level in my first year of paddling.
Because of the high level, we were able to put in high above the normal put-in and also above where the drawdown water from the tributary comes in. The rapids in this section were not terribly difficult, but the paddling was interesting. First we went through flooded out marshes, with the occasional easy drop. Then the river narrowed to no more than 30 feet across and entered the woods. It was obvious that it was way over its normal banks because it felt like we were going through the woods on a wide aquatic trail. There were no carved banks apparent, just the pine-needled forest floor on the sides. There was one interesting s-turn rapid in this stretch, with a pretty good gradient.
Pretty soon, the river opened up, and we were at the normal put-in. We went around a couple of easy bends and were told by our leader, Harland, an open boater, (the only one who had done this section) that there was a tricky spot coming up and to follow him. I was second in line behind Harland but did not do a good job of following him for myself and the three people behind me. At the aforementioned spot, he went to the river right side but I was a little too far towards the center. By the time I realized my mistake, it was way to late to avoid a huge hole. I tried to punch it, and made it about halfway up the foam pile before I started to slide back. The next thing I knew, my bow was on top of me as it flipped me bow-over-stern. I set up to roll, but I was in the middle of a wave, so my hands were still in the water, so I wet exited. (A side note: this is also how I ended up swimming on the West, panicking because I tried to set up in the middle of a wave and wet exiting instead of waiting to get out of the wave to roll. I need to work on this.)
I had a long, tumultuous swim. I banged into several rocks, escaping with only minor bruises. Also, the current ripped off one of my neoprene socks and I stupidly let go of my paddle. Artemis, a kayaker behind me who also flipped in the hole but rolled, chased after my boat and in the course of catching up to it, saw my paddle close by and grabbed it out of the water, for which I am eternally grateful. (The paddle cost 35% the price of the boat--not cheap at all). The sock was a lost cause.
After about a quarter of a mile of swimming, I finally made it to shore, where I learned that Artemis and another had rolled and another had swum as well thanks to my poor following job.
Nothing remarkable happened the rest of the way to the takeout, just more class II rapids with beautiful fall colors on both sides. Our takeout was just above a slalom course, which marks the beginning of the class III-IV section.
We headed back to our campsite at the end of this section to eat lunch before continuing from there where the river mellows back out to a II-III. On the way, we stopped at one of the roadside rapids, Decoration Rock, a 4-foot drop between a rock and the right bank. We witnessed an open boater flip right before the drop, then quickly grab a rock on the bank as his canoe went over the fall. It was a pretty impressive save and a microcosm of how the III-IV section was running.
At lunch, I said I was content to skip the afternoon run, provided we would do that section on Sunday, hoping to take a nap not having slept well the night before due to a cold. Others were pretty worn out from the morning run as well and because of that fact and the reports we were hearing about lost boats and people from the III-IV section, so we decided not to paddle that afternoon.
Instead, we recovered some boats and people. The canoe we witnessed going over Decoration Rock without its adroit paddler had lodged on a rock several miles below Decoration Rock, one of its ends having smashed on another rock. We set up a belay system so that someone could walk out to it carefully and hook it to a rope to bring it back to shore and recover the spare paddle and dry bags in it. We also retrieved a kayak that had run aground on a midriver island nearby, a more tricky operation because there was more current between it and the shore than there was with the canoe. During this time, we saw a group of kayakers go through and we decided to beat them down to the last rapid on the section, Bear Trap, aka Bear's Den and Bear Claw, a class III at normal levels.
It was a IV that day with all the extra water. It was cool to watch them maneuver through the channels, catch air off the huge waves and see one of them throw a clutch roll just before the final drop.
I did get a nap in before the buffet dinner at the nearby ski area. Topics of conversation at dinner included the carnage of the III-IV section, the (un)runnability of Decoration Rock in an open boat and how it was believed that someone got lost just below the slalom course. It certainly was an incredible day.
Sunday, we put in at the normal spot, quickly coming to the site of my big swim. The level was down to 1250 cfs (only five times the normal level!), but I stayed far enough to the right to avoid the hole. Artemis did go through it though, and made it upright after a brief struggle.
After lunch, we ran the forgone section of the day before, though most of the group stopped before Bear Trap. This section started right at our campsite with a pretty good-sized rapid, for which I had had sometime to study and come up with a line. I wanted to go right to left, avoiding some rocks and holes on river right, then move back to center to avoid a big hole on river left just before a bend to the left. It didn't work. It was pretty pushy, so I ended up staying to the right the whole way, which required punching several holes in quick succession. I made it through, but it was the toughest line possible, maybe a class III route through a class II rapid. After some more fast rapids, the run and the trip was over. It was an incredible time, well worth the 50-miles of bumper-to-bumper on the Mass Pike on the way out (when is it ever jammed solid past Sturbridge?) The Farmington runs every fall, but I feel quite lucky to have been able to run it at that level in my first year of paddling.
9/24/2005
West
The West River in southern Vermont near Stratton Mountain, runs every September during a reservoir drawdown. There is a class III section followed by a short class II section. With no formal class II trip, I arranged to meet some of the class III trip boaters at the end of the class III section and continue down. An open boating couple, the Hayeses, did this too and we carpooled.
Because we were meeting the class III group midway through their run, we did not have to arrive at the put in until noon, meaning I could get up at a reasonably late hour, which was nice. The drive was almost entirely backroads and very nice.
We arrived at the put-in/takeout and tried to find someone to shuttle us down to the class II takeout to no avail because everyone there was proceeding back up to the start of the class III section to either run it again or get their other cars. This development meant that we'd be hitching back to the parking area, easy enough to do with the horde of boaters at the West today.
The group from the class III section was about 20 minutes late and we got going pretty quick after they got there. The river was noticeably high, washing up onto grass on the sides and brown in color (but not in a polluted way). When I pealed out, I noticed it was quite pushy and that if I hesitated for a split second in deciding whether or not to ferry over to an eddy or wave, it was already too late. The first quarter mile or so was pretty much continuous rapids, solid class II, regular waves all the way across the river. Pretty quickly, I managed to hit a pourover; my boat lodged on the rock just beneath the surface and I got spun off of it at an awkward angle, flipping. I ended up swimming, but not for very long as I quickly got into one of the few eddies on the shore. (Stopping in an eddy on this run sometimes meant paddling over to a place on the side with a slower current and grabbing as big a handful of grass as possible). I got back in the boat and promptly hit another pourover, but this time I rolled. It was nice to just continue on down after rolling instead of flipping right back over as in The Gap.
After some more heavy water, we came to the biggest rapid on this section, Ducky Dump. We pulled out on river left just before this II+ rapid and scouted. There are some huge waves, and three large holes, two on river left and one on river right. There is a very easy sneak route hugging the left shore, which is how I went down the first time. After debating for a few minutes, I decided to hike back up and run it down the center, between the holes, over the big waves. Despite a near collision with an open boat, I made it unscathed. Going over the big waves was fun, as was seeing the big holes go by very quickly. There was one kayaker attempting to play in the river left holes; he rolled several times. We then paddled a short distance to the take out and we were done. The run was very quick, less than 2 hours, but it was fun to go in the slightly bigger water and get a roll kept me up for the rest of the trip instead of 3 seconds.
Because we were meeting the class III group midway through their run, we did not have to arrive at the put in until noon, meaning I could get up at a reasonably late hour, which was nice. The drive was almost entirely backroads and very nice.
We arrived at the put-in/takeout and tried to find someone to shuttle us down to the class II takeout to no avail because everyone there was proceeding back up to the start of the class III section to either run it again or get their other cars. This development meant that we'd be hitching back to the parking area, easy enough to do with the horde of boaters at the West today.
The group from the class III section was about 20 minutes late and we got going pretty quick after they got there. The river was noticeably high, washing up onto grass on the sides and brown in color (but not in a polluted way). When I pealed out, I noticed it was quite pushy and that if I hesitated for a split second in deciding whether or not to ferry over to an eddy or wave, it was already too late. The first quarter mile or so was pretty much continuous rapids, solid class II, regular waves all the way across the river. Pretty quickly, I managed to hit a pourover; my boat lodged on the rock just beneath the surface and I got spun off of it at an awkward angle, flipping. I ended up swimming, but not for very long as I quickly got into one of the few eddies on the shore. (Stopping in an eddy on this run sometimes meant paddling over to a place on the side with a slower current and grabbing as big a handful of grass as possible). I got back in the boat and promptly hit another pourover, but this time I rolled. It was nice to just continue on down after rolling instead of flipping right back over as in The Gap.
After some more heavy water, we came to the biggest rapid on this section, Ducky Dump. We pulled out on river left just before this II+ rapid and scouted. There are some huge waves, and three large holes, two on river left and one on river right. There is a very easy sneak route hugging the left shore, which is how I went down the first time. After debating for a few minutes, I decided to hike back up and run it down the center, between the holes, over the big waves. Despite a near collision with an open boat, I made it unscathed. Going over the big waves was fun, as was seeing the big holes go by very quickly. There was one kayaker attempting to play in the river left holes; he rolled several times. We then paddled a short distance to the take out and we were done. The run was very quick, less than 2 hours, but it was fun to go in the slightly bigger water and get a roll kept me up for the rest of the trip instead of 3 seconds.
9/11/2005
Deerfield, part 4 (The Gap!)
I felt back in command on Fife Brook once again today. The level was much lower than the previous trip with beautiful sunny weather. I had one really good surf at the first wave below Hangover Helper, which I saved at the end with a hard right-hand brace. This wave was noticeably smaller than two weeks ago. I had no flips until the tricky spot below the island, where I went over where the currents come back together. I was not shaken by this happening and I had already decided to run the Gap.
When we got to the take out just above the Gap, it was determined by the group that only I and one other would be running it. The other person was an older guy whose young son was with us today and whose name I forget. I told him it would be my first time running it and would be following him. Meanwhile, he helped his son to put away his gear and bring it up to the road. So I sat in my boat on the shore for what seemed like ten minutes but was probably only three, my state of calm slowly eroding. Finally he came back down and I took a deep breath and sighed and we peeled out.
In the lead-in waves, he took an interesting route around a big one. Trying to follow his line exactly, I did the same; it was a semi-circle about halfway up the wave, left to right. As soon as I got on to the downstream side of the wave, I flipped over. I set up quickly and rolled--my first combat roll at a very opportune time. I was stil moving towards river right and ended up hitting a rock above the Gap. For some reason, I tried to brace instead of grabbing the rock and I went back over. I was upright for about 3 seconds, long enough to hear someone say "Great roll." I decided not to try another roll here, following advice I had heard at the beginner's class which was just to stay in the boat if you flipped in The Gap and wet exit at the bottom. After looking at many pictures, I realized I was much farther from the heart of The Gap than I thought I was, giving me time to try some more rolls.
All and all, it was a good trip and I was very pleased to get my first combat roll, however brief the benefits.
When we got to the take out just above the Gap, it was determined by the group that only I and one other would be running it. The other person was an older guy whose young son was with us today and whose name I forget. I told him it would be my first time running it and would be following him. Meanwhile, he helped his son to put away his gear and bring it up to the road. So I sat in my boat on the shore for what seemed like ten minutes but was probably only three, my state of calm slowly eroding. Finally he came back down and I took a deep breath and sighed and we peeled out.
In the lead-in waves, he took an interesting route around a big one. Trying to follow his line exactly, I did the same; it was a semi-circle about halfway up the wave, left to right. As soon as I got on to the downstream side of the wave, I flipped over. I set up quickly and rolled--my first combat roll at a very opportune time. I was stil moving towards river right and ended up hitting a rock above the Gap. For some reason, I tried to brace instead of grabbing the rock and I went back over. I was upright for about 3 seconds, long enough to hear someone say "Great roll." I decided not to try another roll here, following advice I had heard at the beginner's class which was just to stay in the boat if you flipped in The Gap and wet exit at the bottom. After looking at many pictures, I realized I was much farther from the heart of The Gap than I thought I was, giving me time to try some more rolls.
All and all, it was a good trip and I was very pleased to get my first combat roll, however brief the benefits.
8/28/2005
Deerfield, part 3
On a beautiful Saturday afternoon, I drove out to Western Mass. to meet up with an AMC group to camp out that night and paddle Fife Brook the next day. It's about an hour and 45 minute ride on Route 2, which is a terrible road going from a divided highway to a 4-lane undivided road with lights, to a divided highway, to a "super-two," to a country road. Then it is part of Interstate 91 for 3 miles before turning into a rural 2-lane highway with good scenery. I am going to time the way home and then take the Mass Pike and I-91 next time to see if it is quicker, which it might be since it's 65 the whole way and no lights.
Anyway, I met up with the group at the campground and we went to dinner at a nice restaurant in the surprisingly nice town of Shelbrune Falls, tucked away on a bend in the Deerfield a mile off Route 2.
When I woke up, it had just started raining, and this continued all day. Of course, this is an all-weather sport, so we just went right about our business. This was the highest level the Deerfield at, 900 cfs release plus the rain. I swam twice in my new boat's maiden voyage, no rolls, once shortly after peeling out before Freight Train and the other time while trying to surf at Miami Beach, which is the last rapid before the island. The level was so high today that we were able to run the right channel at the island, which is usually too bony to run, so the left is the normal route. I think the left side is a little easier, especially at the end where the two currents reconverge.
I did not feel as comfortable with my boat as I had on the previous Fife Brook run in the rented boat. I think I needed one trip to get used to the smaller boat. I was thinking of running the Gap, but I'm gonna wait until next time so I'm more used to the new boat. This boat has an extra balance point on its sides, which I discovered right away at Hangover Helper, when I went about a third of the way over. I was disappointed I did not get a roll. I need some practice. I'm going up to Squam Lake with my family next weekend, so I'll bring the boat for some practice sessions.
It was a good day, as I met some new people, some of whom were canoers--although the preferred and technical term is "open boaters". I got some good surfing in as well, which was good as usual.
Anyway, I met up with the group at the campground and we went to dinner at a nice restaurant in the surprisingly nice town of Shelbrune Falls, tucked away on a bend in the Deerfield a mile off Route 2.
When I woke up, it had just started raining, and this continued all day. Of course, this is an all-weather sport, so we just went right about our business. This was the highest level the Deerfield at, 900 cfs release plus the rain. I swam twice in my new boat's maiden voyage, no rolls, once shortly after peeling out before Freight Train and the other time while trying to surf at Miami Beach, which is the last rapid before the island. The level was so high today that we were able to run the right channel at the island, which is usually too bony to run, so the left is the normal route. I think the left side is a little easier, especially at the end where the two currents reconverge.
I did not feel as comfortable with my boat as I had on the previous Fife Brook run in the rented boat. I think I needed one trip to get used to the smaller boat. I was thinking of running the Gap, but I'm gonna wait until next time so I'm more used to the new boat. This boat has an extra balance point on its sides, which I discovered right away at Hangover Helper, when I went about a third of the way over. I was disappointed I did not get a roll. I need some practice. I'm going up to Squam Lake with my family next weekend, so I'll bring the boat for some practice sessions.
It was a good day, as I met some new people, some of whom were canoers--although the preferred and technical term is "open boaters". I got some good surfing in as well, which was good as usual.
8/13/2005
Deerfield, part 2 and an acquisition
It's been a month and a half since I've been out on the river, but I did take the pond rolling course. I got lots of good instruction and practice and I feel pretty good about my ability to roll now. I am aware, however, that people often have difficulty rolling in whitewater (referred to as a "combat roll") because back in June a guy watching people go through The Gap told me he was having trouble rolling in the river despite being 100% in flatwater. We'll see how it goes today; I'm sure I'll have an opportunity to try. This is a reunion of my beginner trip as well as the other 3 beginner trips, which took place earlier in the summer. We will be doing the same section as the beginner trip, the Deerfield (Fife Brook Section).
I am also planning on stopping at Zoar Outdoor, a kayaking store near the river to check out boats. This would be a good weekend to buy a boat, on account of the fact that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has waived the 5% sales tax this weekend. We'll see how today goes.
Ron and I carpooled once again, seeing some familiar faces at the take-out, the usual gathering place for the run. Ken Green was there, as were a couple of other students from the beginner course, and so was Rob Stiles who ran the roll course.
Once everybody arrived, we headed up to the put-in just above Hangover Helper. Once again, we did some ferries across the swift current and waves at Hangover Helper. I utilized a narrow mid-river eddy to get out into the strong current and I did not flip once on the ferries. I tried a roll in the big eddy on river left, losing hold of my paddle going under and having to swim. I never actually got a roll attempt out of it, so I wasn't too unhappy about not rolling.
After spending what I thought was way too much time at Hangover Helper ferrying, we finally went downriver. I was catching lots of surfing waves none too small, having a great time.
At the first playspot, I got out of my boat and got my water bottle out of the back of my boat. In the course of digging around for the water, I pulled my sandwich container out from the back and noticed that it got completely soaked. I wrung it out and ate it right there, before the others ate their lunch. I got a couple of surfs on the wave at this playspot after I downed the sandwich--lots of fun.
We went down the river, with me successfully negotiating Freight Train rapid, the bottom of which is the usual lunch spot. There is a railroad bridge here, hence the name of the rapid. Since I had already had lunch, I had time to practice ferrying and peeling out of eddies here. There is also a rope swing underneath the bridge, which I went off a few times. Rob went off the rope swing in his boat, which was actually rather anticlimactic as he only dropped a couple of feet into the water and landed upright.
As the others got back in their boats after eating, I started surfing on the waves right under the bridge. I did not know it, but these waves are quite squirrelly, meaning they sometimes vanish or move laterally across the river. This happened while I was surfing on it, flipping me instantly as the others began to head downriver. I almost rolled, bringing my head up a split second too soon, resulting in a short swim. I was actually happy I swam because it gave me another chance to go surf there again. (I still didn't know these were squirrelly waves). I got a good long surf, then flipped peeling out (my fault). I missed my roll attempt again, not as close as before and swam again. Someone told me swims when you're trying to surf don't count, which made me feel better.
The rest of the way down, I continued to surf at every opportunity. I felt very comfortable with my eddy turns and ferries, for the first time feeling like I really knew what I was doing. I narrowly avoided flipping when Ken and I collided near a fierce mid-river eddy line below the Island, where the two channels come back together. This is the last rapid before The Gap and the toughest rapid (excluding The Gap) on Fife Brook, in my opinion.
After we took out, I drove down to Zoar Outdoor to try out a boat. Ron and I were a little early in the morning, so we stopped there and I sat in a playboat called the Vision 44. I had decided earlier that a playboat as opposed to a river runner because I had enjoyed surfing waves so much. The Vision 44 felt perfect--exactly the right size for me. I also liked the fact that the knees did not come up very high, meaning there is less resistance dragging below the water when attempting rolls.
After we took out, I took the demo Vision 44 down to the Deerfield, in a flat but moving section below the run. I took it out in the current and flipped on purpose and rolled right back up. It sure did roll easy, just as I expected. I fooled around a little more, then went back to Zoar, sold on the Vision 44 and ready to make the purchase. The one I had sat in this morning was the only one they had left, so the orange one became mine for two and a half weeks' wages.
So all and all, I had a great time on the river. The two swims did not count, and I was able to roll my new boat. I can't wait to take the new boat out and learn some playboating moves with it (although the latter will probably have to wait until next summer).
I am also planning on stopping at Zoar Outdoor, a kayaking store near the river to check out boats. This would be a good weekend to buy a boat, on account of the fact that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has waived the 5% sales tax this weekend. We'll see how today goes.
Ron and I carpooled once again, seeing some familiar faces at the take-out, the usual gathering place for the run. Ken Green was there, as were a couple of other students from the beginner course, and so was Rob Stiles who ran the roll course.
Once everybody arrived, we headed up to the put-in just above Hangover Helper. Once again, we did some ferries across the swift current and waves at Hangover Helper. I utilized a narrow mid-river eddy to get out into the strong current and I did not flip once on the ferries. I tried a roll in the big eddy on river left, losing hold of my paddle going under and having to swim. I never actually got a roll attempt out of it, so I wasn't too unhappy about not rolling.
After spending what I thought was way too much time at Hangover Helper ferrying, we finally went downriver. I was catching lots of surfing waves none too small, having a great time.
At the first playspot, I got out of my boat and got my water bottle out of the back of my boat. In the course of digging around for the water, I pulled my sandwich container out from the back and noticed that it got completely soaked. I wrung it out and ate it right there, before the others ate their lunch. I got a couple of surfs on the wave at this playspot after I downed the sandwich--lots of fun.
We went down the river, with me successfully negotiating Freight Train rapid, the bottom of which is the usual lunch spot. There is a railroad bridge here, hence the name of the rapid. Since I had already had lunch, I had time to practice ferrying and peeling out of eddies here. There is also a rope swing underneath the bridge, which I went off a few times. Rob went off the rope swing in his boat, which was actually rather anticlimactic as he only dropped a couple of feet into the water and landed upright.
As the others got back in their boats after eating, I started surfing on the waves right under the bridge. I did not know it, but these waves are quite squirrelly, meaning they sometimes vanish or move laterally across the river. This happened while I was surfing on it, flipping me instantly as the others began to head downriver. I almost rolled, bringing my head up a split second too soon, resulting in a short swim. I was actually happy I swam because it gave me another chance to go surf there again. (I still didn't know these were squirrelly waves). I got a good long surf, then flipped peeling out (my fault). I missed my roll attempt again, not as close as before and swam again. Someone told me swims when you're trying to surf don't count, which made me feel better.
The rest of the way down, I continued to surf at every opportunity. I felt very comfortable with my eddy turns and ferries, for the first time feeling like I really knew what I was doing. I narrowly avoided flipping when Ken and I collided near a fierce mid-river eddy line below the Island, where the two channels come back together. This is the last rapid before The Gap and the toughest rapid (excluding The Gap) on Fife Brook, in my opinion.
After we took out, I drove down to Zoar Outdoor to try out a boat. Ron and I were a little early in the morning, so we stopped there and I sat in a playboat called the Vision 44. I had decided earlier that a playboat as opposed to a river runner because I had enjoyed surfing waves so much. The Vision 44 felt perfect--exactly the right size for me. I also liked the fact that the knees did not come up very high, meaning there is less resistance dragging below the water when attempting rolls.
After we took out, I took the demo Vision 44 down to the Deerfield, in a flat but moving section below the run. I took it out in the current and flipped on purpose and rolled right back up. It sure did roll easy, just as I expected. I fooled around a little more, then went back to Zoar, sold on the Vision 44 and ready to make the purchase. The one I had sat in this morning was the only one they had left, so the orange one became mine for two and a half weeks' wages.
So all and all, I had a great time on the river. The two swims did not count, and I was able to roll my new boat. I can't wait to take the new boat out and learn some playboating moves with it (although the latter will probably have to wait until next summer).
7/02/2005
Contoocook
One of the instructors from last weekend, Ken Green, emailed this week wondering if anyone wanted to go paddling in New Hampshire this weekend. With no plans for the holiday weekend, I decided to go. We did a short section of the Contoocook River in Henniker, NH, very near the ski area Pats Peak. Ron, another student, and I carpooled and we met Ken and his wife and another couple at the put-in.
The first stretch of water was very easy. We again caught just about every eddy, but the current was so small that getting back out was easy. Once we got into Henniker, the current picked up and there were a few rapids. I flipped trying to get onto a surf wave and had a short, uneventful swim. A little farther down, I tried to get into an eddy on the side of the river, but it was a very small eddy and I trickled out of it. The side of my boat got stuck on a rock a little farther down and the boat started to tip. Certain I was going under, I let go of my paddle and pushed off the rock, freeing myself of it, but not the paddle. I hand paddled into an eddy a short distance down and watched my paddle swinging back and forth against the rock. One of the others rescued it.
Shortly after this fiasco, I noticed that one of my feet felt very loose on its footpeg. My leg was not pressed into the thigh braces anymore. We pulled out to scout the last rapid, which was running class III-, and I discovered that a screw that holds the track for the footpeg was gone and that water was getting into the boat. I considered skipping the final rapid because I did not know if I could do a hip snap fast enough on the broken side and the water made the boat heavier and less maneuverable. When we scouted, skipping it looked like a much better idea. At this rapid, the river bends around a broken dam on river left, but if you go too far right, you end up in some nasty rocks. You want to stay to the right however to avoid some holes in the middle. Precise moves that I decided to skip, which I think was the right decision considering the state of my boat.
It was not a great day with the swim, the paddle blooper and the skipped rapid, but it was better than sitting around the house all day.
The first stretch of water was very easy. We again caught just about every eddy, but the current was so small that getting back out was easy. Once we got into Henniker, the current picked up and there were a few rapids. I flipped trying to get onto a surf wave and had a short, uneventful swim. A little farther down, I tried to get into an eddy on the side of the river, but it was a very small eddy and I trickled out of it. The side of my boat got stuck on a rock a little farther down and the boat started to tip. Certain I was going under, I let go of my paddle and pushed off the rock, freeing myself of it, but not the paddle. I hand paddled into an eddy a short distance down and watched my paddle swinging back and forth against the rock. One of the others rescued it.
Shortly after this fiasco, I noticed that one of my feet felt very loose on its footpeg. My leg was not pressed into the thigh braces anymore. We pulled out to scout the last rapid, which was running class III-, and I discovered that a screw that holds the track for the footpeg was gone and that water was getting into the boat. I considered skipping the final rapid because I did not know if I could do a hip snap fast enough on the broken side and the water made the boat heavier and less maneuverable. When we scouted, skipping it looked like a much better idea. At this rapid, the river bends around a broken dam on river left, but if you go too far right, you end up in some nasty rocks. You want to stay to the right however to avoid some holes in the middle. Precise moves that I decided to skip, which I think was the right decision considering the state of my boat.
It was not a great day with the swim, the paddle blooper and the skipped rapid, but it was better than sitting around the house all day.
6/26/2005
Deerfield
The last two days, the AMC course hit the river. Saturday, we did a very short run on the Deerfield with lots of drills. Lots of eddy turns, which was mostly review for me. The others got their swims in right away. We did a lot of S-turns in between mid-river eddies, then ferried back across to the first eddy and went up and did the S-turn again. When the water came up (this section is dam-controlled), we went downstream, catching every eddy available. I finally flipped on a wave, much like I did on the Spokane. I'm glad I got mine in because at the very end there were two people who hadn't flipped and they were forced to by the instructors. The very last thing we did was surfing on a wave, which required crossing a fairly strong eddy line. I got on the wave, which was a blast and I was proud of myself for not flipping getting out of the eddy. With all the drills, we only did about a half a mile of river all day.
Sunday, we did the whole section, with plenty of drills along the way. The first rapid was called Hangover Helper. The water gets squeezed into the middle by rocks, so the current was very strong--perfect for ferrying drills and beginner carnage. Fortunately the rocks that squeeze the current form big eddies on either side so you have a big target to swim into if you flip--in theory. I flipped going across and managed to swim all the way past both eddies and had to work quite hard swimming against/across the current to get to shore. I need a roll!
The rest of the day was fun, with numerous surfing opportunites. It's really fun to have the water rush under you while you just sit on top of the wave not moving. There are all kinds of tricks that you can do on top of waves or in holes, but they are way above my level right now.
I was very tired at the end of the day when we took out just above a big rapid called Zoar Gap, or just "The Gap." It was lots of fun to watch people go through this rapid including our instructors and one of the students (who had a roll-a ringer). A very good weekend with much less anxiety than the Spokane.
Sunday, we did the whole section, with plenty of drills along the way. The first rapid was called Hangover Helper. The water gets squeezed into the middle by rocks, so the current was very strong--perfect for ferrying drills and beginner carnage. Fortunately the rocks that squeeze the current form big eddies on either side so you have a big target to swim into if you flip--in theory. I flipped going across and managed to swim all the way past both eddies and had to work quite hard swimming against/across the current to get to shore. I need a roll!
The rest of the day was fun, with numerous surfing opportunites. It's really fun to have the water rush under you while you just sit on top of the wave not moving. There are all kinds of tricks that you can do on top of waves or in holes, but they are way above my level right now.
I was very tired at the end of the day when we took out just above a big rapid called Zoar Gap, or just "The Gap." It was lots of fun to watch people go through this rapid including our instructors and one of the students (who had a roll-a ringer). A very good weekend with much less anxiety than the Spokane.
6/23/2005
AMC Class
Alright, back in Boston now. For my birthday, my parents signed me up for the AMC beginners' kayaking course. We had two pond sessions this week, Tuesday and today.
The Tuesday session was basically a review of what I did out West. Wet exits, strokes. Tonight we did some more advanced work with bracing, more than what we did in Idaho. A brace is simply a slap at the water designed to counterbalance your boat tipping over on the same side. You brace on the low side of the boat, the one that's going under water. When practicing, you do the tipping yourself with your hip pads. There are two kinds of braces, the regular slap and the sculling brace. In Idaho, we were not taught the sculling brace. Unlike the quick slap, the sculling brace can last indefinite length of time, allowing you to maintain your lean without flipping. To do it, you reach out with your paddle and with a lot of wrist torquing, push the paddle forward and back, with the open face leading the way in both directions (which is why the wrist works so hard). I thought this was really cool, but I'm sure my wrists will be sore.
Saturday and Sunday we will be on the river. I'm sure a lot of the first-time anxiety will be gone and I'll have a good day on the river, which is the Deerfield in western Mass.
The Tuesday session was basically a review of what I did out West. Wet exits, strokes. Tonight we did some more advanced work with bracing, more than what we did in Idaho. A brace is simply a slap at the water designed to counterbalance your boat tipping over on the same side. You brace on the low side of the boat, the one that's going under water. When practicing, you do the tipping yourself with your hip pads. There are two kinds of braces, the regular slap and the sculling brace. In Idaho, we were not taught the sculling brace. Unlike the quick slap, the sculling brace can last indefinite length of time, allowing you to maintain your lean without flipping. To do it, you reach out with your paddle and with a lot of wrist torquing, push the paddle forward and back, with the open face leading the way in both directions (which is why the wrist works so hard). I thought this was really cool, but I'm sure my wrists will be sore.
Saturday and Sunday we will be on the river. I'm sure a lot of the first-time anxiety will be gone and I'll have a good day on the river, which is the Deerfield in western Mass.
5/01/2005
Spokane
Alright, this is it. One of the things on the list to do while living out West was to learn whitewater kayaking. I've been on 7 rafting trips, loving it, but wanting the autonomy kayaking provides. Nothing worse than going by a big wave in the raft cuz the other people don't paddle well enough to steer. Also, with rafting you are restricted to rivers the rafting companies run, which is actually quite a small percentage of the possible runs.
Today was the day. As much as I've been looking forward to this, I was a bit nervous. We did some practice at the YMCA pool, covering the basic strokes, wet exits and just getting started with the roll. The strokes were easy for me, because of all the canoeing (flatwater) I did at camp way back and at my grandparents' house on a lake. Wet exits are straightforward. The roll is real tough and I only got about half an hour of practice. My second attempt miraculously was successful, but that was the only one.
Once we got to the river, we were immediately taught how to do an eddy turn. An eddy is basically an area behind any kind of obstruction where the water actually flows upstream. When rafting, eddies are the rest stops and getting in them is a piece of cake, just go straight in. In a kayak, an eddy is a trecherous spot waiting to flip you. To avoid flipping, you raise the edge of your boat away from the oncoming (new) current using your thigh braces. To pull into the main current, this is the upstream edge and to pull into the eddy it is the downstream edge. They had us do an eddy turn right off the bat. I went first reluctantly and flipped. Wet exit. The other students did too, including my friend James.
Eventually, I kind of got the hang of it. I flipped 5 times, no rolls. 4 of the flips were coming out of eddies, none going in because the eddy usually has a much weaker current. The other was when I went over the side of a wave instead of the top and it rolled me off its side. After this, I got even more nervous as we approached each rapid. I had gloves on, but I'm sure my knuckles were white. James actually threw a couple of rolls--very impressive.
This was a class II river, with one or two class III's. I had some fun in the waves, but my first-time anxiety made it a tough first day. Next time I hope I'll be more comfortable.
The section we did was the Spokane River between Barker and Sullivan Roads, ending right at the Y.
Today was the day. As much as I've been looking forward to this, I was a bit nervous. We did some practice at the YMCA pool, covering the basic strokes, wet exits and just getting started with the roll. The strokes were easy for me, because of all the canoeing (flatwater) I did at camp way back and at my grandparents' house on a lake. Wet exits are straightforward. The roll is real tough and I only got about half an hour of practice. My second attempt miraculously was successful, but that was the only one.
Once we got to the river, we were immediately taught how to do an eddy turn. An eddy is basically an area behind any kind of obstruction where the water actually flows upstream. When rafting, eddies are the rest stops and getting in them is a piece of cake, just go straight in. In a kayak, an eddy is a trecherous spot waiting to flip you. To avoid flipping, you raise the edge of your boat away from the oncoming (new) current using your thigh braces. To pull into the main current, this is the upstream edge and to pull into the eddy it is the downstream edge. They had us do an eddy turn right off the bat. I went first reluctantly and flipped. Wet exit. The other students did too, including my friend James.
Eventually, I kind of got the hang of it. I flipped 5 times, no rolls. 4 of the flips were coming out of eddies, none going in because the eddy usually has a much weaker current. The other was when I went over the side of a wave instead of the top and it rolled me off its side. After this, I got even more nervous as we approached each rapid. I had gloves on, but I'm sure my knuckles were white. James actually threw a couple of rolls--very impressive.
This was a class II river, with one or two class III's. I had some fun in the waves, but my first-time anxiety made it a tough first day. Next time I hope I'll be more comfortable.
The section we did was the Spokane River between Barker and Sullivan Roads, ending right at the Y.
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