07
Aug
The British Universities Kayak Expedition are just about to set off on another mission into the Jungle to paddle a couple of rivers. So far weve paddled some fantastic runs (including what we believe to be the 2nd descent of the Rio Calderas), and had a couple of epics in the jungle. Updates and photos are on the team blog.
05
Aug
Words by Adam Goshorn
Photos by everyone on the trip, but mostly Joey Jarrell
Six friends and I awoke before dawn to float the last few miles to the take-out of the Colorado River at Diamond Creek. It was December 18, 2009 and it was the completion of my first trip through the Grand Canyon (see trip report HERE). Chris Gallaway produced a mini-movie about our winter 2009 trip and it is one of the segments featured in the new DVD “Coming Home†from Rapid Transit (see trailer and ordering info HERE). Less than six months later I found myself back at Lee’s Ferry about to spend another two weeks this incredible place. The following is my day-by-day record of our June 2010 descent.
04
Aug
The Seiler brothers running one of many waterfalls on the N.F. American River “Royal Gorge” photo: Robby Hogg
Sunday morning July 10th 2011 I awoke with a plan. After catching word from friends the previous week about the classic California class 5 overnighters’ finally “dropping in” to runnable levels, a dream inspired me to hop on a plane to go kayak some of the best rivers on the planet!
29
Jul
Virginia was blessed with a wonderfully wet spring this year but now we’re solidly in the late-summer dolrums. Hot, humid days like these make us think of liquid refreshment in many forms; whether from the river or from a frosty pilsner glass. Luckily this area is seeing a veritable deluge of new brewpubs sprouting up like mushrooms after a rain. Little old Nelson County, for instance, now has a total of three microbreweries within about a 12-mile radius, all conveniently located near quality destination creeking. Not bad for a place that only has one stoplight in the whole county. Here are my recommendations of beer-and-creek pairings for this multi-course creeking feast. Bon apetit!
First Course:
The first selection harkens back to last year but the taste is still fresh no doubt.
“Blue Hole” on the South Fork Moormans River is probably the most popular swimming hole/hiking destination near Charlottesville. As someone who spent many a day here as a kid it was nice to come back about 15 years later and score the first descent of this stout drop:
The hole at the bottom of this drop looked pretty burly but a small seam near mid-right allowed me through. The rest of the run was decent IV+ to the lake. The South Fork Moormans turned out to be an ideal antidote to what would otherwise have been a blown-out day of driving around trying to find something low enough to paddle. (The area’s schools had all closed due to the flooding!). Don’t expect this one to run much. Harris and I also scored a run on the neighboring super-steep “Middle Moormans,” also known as Pond Ridge Branch.
Pair it with: Starr-Hill “Northern Lights†I.P.A The Starr-Hill brewery is located in Crozet, VA just minutes from the Moormans River. The fact that this IPA is now available in cans makes it a shoe-in for pairing with an Albemarle County first-descent, or any descent in the area for that matter.
Second Course:
The Main course! Belly up to the table for a big buffet of boofing. A heaping plate of hucking! Nelson County is completely laced with awesome micro-creeks. When this place goes off you could score four or five different creeks in a single day, if you have the stamina. It’s like the Crested Butte of the East but with warmer water. Running four of these creeks in a day constitutes a true “Full Nelson.”
Below: This is what the start of a great day looks like. The Tye Forks takeout, Nelson County, VA. We’ve been lucky enough to have quite a few “worship services” here lately.
Here Trafford lights up one of the smaller drops on the North Fork Tye. This little drop happens to be one of the best boofs on a creek full of big boofin’:
Below is “Marbles,”on the North Fork Tye.
The North Fork’s southern sister is – you guessed it – the South Fork Tye. They even share the same take-out at the church. Like the NFT, the SFT is three miles of almost non-stop super technical granite boulder gardens. “Fodderstep†is the biggest drop on the South Fork Tye. The picture below captures only the top half of this bigger-than-you-think waterfall/slide.
 After a couple of laps on the Tye Forx you might still have enough energy to make the 10-minute jaunt over to the South Fork Piney. This one starts off with a stacked series of four chutes and slides known as the Cascades:
Bouncing down one of the Cascades at the start of the South Fork Piney.
The South Fork of the Piney is one of my favorite runs in this area. One cool thing about it is that one of the South Piney’s major tributaries is an outstanding class V creek run in its own right. Shoe Creek only runs following a major rain event (look for the Piney to be stomping or even too high), but when it does go it is well worth the effort of hiking your boat up a few miles into the National Forest’s Priest Wilderness Area for this pure and seldom-seen Nelson County gem. Here’s Trafford textbooking the biggest drop on Shoe Creek:
Pairing: The wilds of Shoe Creek and the Priest Wilderness go well with a handcrafted ale from Wild Wolf Brewing Co. This is their temporary home in Nellysford, but this November they’ll be moving to a much cooler, historic old schoolhouse just down the road. Very close proximity to Paul’s Creek, the South Rockfish, and all the other Nelson runs make this a good stop for wandering area creekers.
But don’t stop now. Most mere mortals find themselves ready for a cold brew and some dry clothes at this point, but the spry and spirited huckster heads west with the setting sun, over the ridge to nearby Statons Creek for another half-mile of steepin’ before calling it a day.
Above and below: Two views of “Chunderslide” just a few paddlestrokes into Statons Creek.
Below: If you really activate your rocker you can sky off a shelf at the bottom of this drop about half-way down Statons Creek:
Above: Gordon drops into “Johnny Wises’s Hole,” Statons Creek, VA.
Below: Another view of “Johnny Wise’s Hole.”
Recommended Beverage: A day like this is best topped-off by Blue Mountain Brewery’s “Full Nelson†Virginia Pale Ale. Nothing tops off a day of clapper boofs like a  can of “Real Virginia Beer†in your cold, wet hands. Like our first selection, this super-hoppy barley pop is also available in cooler-friendly cans.
Third Course:
After that smorgasborg of soul food I’ll leave you with the tastiest treat of all – a “First-D†Dessert. The Buffalo River proper has been on the radar for a while and a few of the crew have run the North Fork Buffalo, a class III-IV semi-roadside run that rarely has enough agua to float a boat. But I’d been waiting for the right conditions to score a run on the forks above that III-IV section. This spring finally brought those conditions and I convinced Trafford and Trevar to rally south for this promising exploratory mission. It’s a tough call to give up a guaranteed day of fun on known creeks and instead head into the hinterlands for some unknown run that may involve hours of hiking, scouting and wood-dodging. You might lose out and have to endure a portage-fest while your buds have the time of their lives two drainages west. Props to Trevar and Trafford for cowboying up. We scored two class IV-V- first-descents on the East and West Prongs of the North Fork Buffalo, followed by a run-out on the class III-IV North Fork proper, and all agreed it was worth it.
Above and below: The East Prong North Fork Buffalo. The water was a little lower than optimal but we found enough action to make the hike-in worthwhile this time. Cool, clean mountain water and hard, rounded granite boulders.
  Recommended: Anything from Devil’s Backbone Brewery. Not available in cans or bottles (yet) - but that’s OK. After an epic exploratory like the Prongs of the North Buff you and your crew can easily take care of a full growler of the Backbone’s tasty jug juice. Try the “Ale of Fergus” or the “8-point” I.P.A. The “DBBC†is located in the heart of Nelson County creeking territory and has killer views, outside seating, and a kayaker-friendly atmosphere.
Below: I’d been waiting to nab this “first-D†for years and finally got it this past spring. More on this creek later.
Â
Think Rain!
28
Jul
At 9am, after driving along a spectacular mountain road with the rising sun, our mighty Laguna pulled majestically into the Vallouise campsite, nestled in the French Alps where the Gyr and the Onde coalesce into the Gyronde – because the French are creative like that.
Eighteen hours of driving, ferrying and snacking (along with the occasional unplanned excursion due to sub-optimal navigation) had landed our group of four in a well-known paddling hotspot around the Durance drainage. Better still, eight of Southampton Uni Canoe Club’s alumni and friends were there to meet us in the morning sunshine for breakfast, before planning out the first day’s paddling.
A gentle warmup on the Gyronde gave the three Alpine first-timers a flavour of what was to come. The slalom course was quickly followed up with a blast down the Onde, taking just fifteen minutes, with no trouble – things were starting well.
Our first evening, like those after it, found us taking in the stars and numerous stubby beers. Twelve hours in, I was already loving it – great food, spectacular continuous III-IV rapids, fine company and breathtaking scenery.
In the days that followed, our tour took in the Durance Gorge, the Middle Clarée, several runs of the Lower Guisanne, the Lower Guil, the Gyr, and countless runs of the Onde (well, when the get-off is pretty much in your campsite, you would too!). Rivers generally passed without incident, though the author took a couple of rolls on sections a little shallower than is ideal… See the video for headcam evidence, along with a sphincter-loosening capsize on the incredible Gyr!
France was serving us well; our French car, however, was not. Eight days after our arrival, half way to the Ubaye, disaster struck:Â
A French mechanic echoed the diagnosis of our friend George: “Turbo… kaput.â€
All was not lost. Though the last of our holiday companions were departing as our car gave up the ghost, we met four top guys who adopted their fellow British paddlers, taking us to some get-ons over our last couple of days in their van. Their kindness was repaid, as we spent a day and a half dislodging a pinned boat of theirs from the Gyr – long live the paddling community!
Sadly, our time was drawing to a close. To cut a long story short, our journey home took 36 hours, involving a taxi driver who firmly believed he was at least as good as Colin McRae, an absolutely gutless Vauxhall Astra (though we at least convinced the hire company not to give us a Twingo) a second taxi driver who smelled awful and rudely got a flat tyre a mile away from the ferry port, a walk, a ferry ride, a couple of hours at Dover whilst they found a replacement for our hire car (which had been given away) and a weary arrival in Southampton, were John and I didn’t have any keys to any house anywhere in Southampton.
As for the car, boats and paddling gear…? We’ll let you know when they make it back to the UK.
And you know what? It was still a bloody brilliant trip.
28
Jul
This year’s 40 year anniversary of Pyranha has me reminiscing about times gone by and all of the fun that I’ve had in Pyranha boats over the last 15 years. I thought I would take a little walk down memory lane through my progression of various boats with some photos and video clips – it’s taken me over a month to put it together, but here it is. Some of the photos and videos are kinda old and crusty, but they’re still fun. Sorry it’s a bit heavy on the Green, but I have a lot more photos and videos from there than anywhere else.
My first Pyranha boat was a Creek280 that I got in ’96. It was one of the earlier ones into the US – with the old polypro rope grab loops, before they went garden hose. I paddled the hell out of that thing for years before I finally paddled it to death. In a region covered in other boats, the Creek280 was really unique around here.
Here’s my trusty Creek280 riding high atop the rabble on my truck. It looked so short back then!
The Creek280 also carried me safely through my knuckle dragging phase. This was before the kayak-specific hand paddles used now – back when we used the little webbed neoprene gloves available in surf shops at the time. Here’s a video clip of some hands paddling in that boat:
Hand Paddling Gorilla – Creek 280
In my early days I was an avid c-1 paddler, and in 1998 I got a hot new boat – the Micro240 – to convert over to c-1.
I immediately set out on a road trip, bringing the micro as a kayak so that a friend and I could share it. The boat was so good that I was really pleased with it, pleased enough that I credit this trip with being the beginning of the end of my c-1ing. Here’s a little video clip of me kayaking Penis Buster Parfait on Cheesman Canyon in Colorado on that trip:
As soon as I got home from that road trip, I wanted to try out the Blade. I borrowed a demo for a day on the Upper Gauley and loved it. Here’s a shot where I’m splatting the boof rock at Sweet’s Falls, first time ever in a Blade:
A few weeks later I got myself a Blade, and really loved paddling that boat for about a year. Here’s one from the Notch at Gorilla on the Green in the Blade:
The following spring I headed for California to do some paddling, and finally took the Micro240 along as a c-1. Here’s a shot on the North Fork of the Tuolumne in the Micro240 c-1:
We also got some video that day – here’s a clip of a few rapids:
North Fork Tuolumne – Micro240 C1
I was now getting pretty deeply into my years-long love affair with the Micro240. It took me to amazing places, including over the biggest rapid I’ve ever run. Here’s a shot from the first of 4 drops that make up High Falls Gorge on the West Branch Ausable in NY, October, 1999:
In ’99, I also got a hot new boat called an InaZone. Now here was a seriously fun boat! I started in the 220, which I somehow never got any pictures of, realizing fairly quickly that the boat was a bit too small for me. It wasn’t long before I swapped it out for a 230 and really got into some vigorous play!
Here’s Frankenstein on the Green – not sure if it’s a 230 or 232, they were pretty similar looking.
When the 232 came out, I switched right into that one and kept on having fun – here it is at Sunshine on the Green:
In 2000 I also picked up a Mountain300 for creek racing, which I still have around today. What’s not to love about the pink bow cap?
Contemporary to the Inazone 232 was a really radical ride – the ProZone. If you were looking to throw ends while your feet were in agony, this was your boat! But man, did it ever paddle great. This boat really took my playboating up a notch and expanded my horizons for downriver play. Here’s a great clip with a lot of ProZone action, pulled from my 2001 video about the Green River – Playin’ in the Back Yard:
Green River Play Segment – Prozones!
Meanwhile, I was still loving that Micro240. What can I say – I was reluctant to give that boat up. The H:2 came along and I never made the switch, although I did really enjoy it on a 4 day self support trip on the Middle Fork of the Salmon in ’01 – it was a great surfer, even with 4 days worth of gear:
The short boat revolution was on then, and I got right in the game. I picked up an original S:6, still one of my favorite boats I ever paddled. Although I don’t have any pictures of it, I do have a video clip from a very cold Middle Fork Salmon trip that I paddled it on in 2002. Flatspins!
When the H:3 came along, there were no Micros any more. I began a love/hate relatioship with the new boat, taking a couple of months to adjust to the crazy edges. Adjust I finally did, though, and made the transition to where I absolutely love all of the things a nice set of rails will do for you. Here’s a shot of my H:3, once I’d mastered it, at Sunshine on the Green on race day:
And also a fun clip of the H:3 on Callaghan in B.C.:
Now we get to my favorites ever!! In 2003 I got a new playboat called the I:3. This boat had all the play of the ProZone with none of the pain, and it boofed like a dream. It became my all around go-to boat, fun for light creeking in summer, fun for surfing, fun for everything! Here’s a shot of me running Gorilla in my 221. I still have this boat and paddle it occasionally. This shot is fun because it was taken on my wedding day!
Remember when Pyranha made canoes for a year or two? Here’s me in the Pyranha Prelude, having a try at Go Left on the Green. I still have a Prelude and have been paddling it a bit this summer.
Moving into modern times, we come to the next boat which was love at first stroke. BURN, baby! From the moment I first sat in it, I knew this was the boat for me. Still love it – best creeker ever!! Here’s a shot from Gorilla, first day I ever paddled a Burn:
The Burn really helped take me to a new level. Here it is helping me have a sweet run my first time off Spirit on the Little White:
One thing I loved about the original Burn was how fast it exited drops. You could just stick those rear edges in and carve where you wanted to go. How about a clip from Chile – first drop on the Upper Palguin:
Four fun filled years later, the 2010 Burn followed up in style, giving me some smooth rides through old favorites and new treats as well. Here’s a slo-mo video of Gorilla, shot from the driver’s seat of my 2010 Burn:
Finally we come to the latest new Pyranha toy, the Varun. Super fun surfing with some river running length, this boat has been a blast on the rivers of the Southeast this summer. Here’s a link to a video that I threw together of Andria and me Varuning the Nolichucky on the summer solstice:
Now I’m eagerly waiting for the next toy – the Loki – to arrive – fast slicey play here I come!
Many thanks to Graham and all of the crew at Pyranha for 15 years of fantastic paddling in all of the boats I’ve enjoyed!
Here’s hoping the next 15 years are every bit as good-
28
Jul
Coming up to spring break this year I hadn’t paddled much at all since Green Race, so I was very stoked to see everything running just as break started. The large amount of rain limited the amount of rivers we could paddle and we knew it would have to be something small…. Living less than 40 min from the Jocasse watershed I had been eyeing Bearwallow creek for several months but couldn’t ever get a good idea of how much rain it would take to get it going, I barely knew where the putin and take-out were and had not done any scouting on the run. Thursday night Scott Magley and I got out the topo maps found a solid putin and take out, estimated our trip would be about 4 miles of paddling with a 1 mile hike in and a 2 mile hike out. After studying carefully we made the decision: If the rain hit we were going to Bearwallow….We ended up getting slammed with rain that night and woke up about 6:00 a.m. , checked gauges, and saw everything in and around Jocasse was blown out…Robbie called while we were in route and asked if I was boating I told him the plan and he met us at Gorges State Park. We suited up and began the 1 mile hike down to the creek. Upon arriving, the river appeared to be a medium low flow (the perfect level for a first descent). We put in at an eddy bellow a 25 footer that landed on a slab, it was 2 strokes to the top of the first slide ( a chunky little 40 ft slide with nasty undercut half way down). We ro-sham-bo’d for to see who would run first, Scott got it and we all peeled out of the eddy feeling great….but non of us could possibly imagine what lay ahead….The river began as some stout class IV boogie then mellowed out for a while before winding past a few a log jams (all but 2 navigable by boat) then bottomed dropped out as we encountered our first big rapid, a massive wall checkish slide that got our blood pumping….from then on it was non stop. We began encountering massive slide after massive slide,every corner we went around had another huge rapid after it. This kept up for a long time and the sun had began to fall low in the sky, the temperature started to drop, and the gradient still hadn’t let up. We began to worry that wouldn’t make it out of Gorges State Park by the time the gates shut and we would be forced to spend the night on the river with minimal overnight gear. The sun had dipped almost behind the trees when a reached a flat section…our hopes soared but they were quickly destroyed when the river gorged up and what appeared to be a 100+ foot horizon line popped up. Up until this point we had done a shockingly small amount of portaging for a steep creek first descent (2 rapids and 2 log jams). Normally one portage doesn’t seem like a big deal but we were cold, extremely tired, and the sun was setting fast. This portage was by far the hardest of any that day and after the we made it to the bottom of the rapid we were completely spent. We decided to push on even though we had no energy left and after a few more solid class V rapids (which seemed like class 3) we finally reached the takeout road. We shouldered our boats and began the uphill hike out. After 2 miles we reached the truck, utterly spent but smiling.( I don’t think anyone in our group has ever been so happy to see the shuttle car). We made it out of Gorges State Park just before the gates closed and observed an incredible sunset on the way out, the perfect end to an incredible day of paddling.
The following pictures are an account of journey:
Early Morning in the Jocasse drainage
The hike down.
Scott starting off the day for us.
Boogie slide.
Mini-Baby-Gorilla
“Not Another Rapid Named Wall Check”
Bottom of “Not Another Rapid Named Wall Check”
Top of the rapid bellow “Not Another Rapid Named Wall Check”
First Big Portage
First big portage from the bottom. (would be good w/o log)
Me on “Money Shot”
“Scott’s Slide”
Awesome 15 ft to 8 ft boogie drop (starting to get dark)
The top of the massive 100 ft drop. (second big portage, that tree in the background is about half way down)
The bottom 3rd of the massive portage.
3rd big portage.
Robbie seal launching in after the tree
More “Class III boogie”
Slide leading into the last mini gorge
Slides leading out of the last mini gorge. (the water was getting low at this point)
Robbie looking stoked to be at the takeout.
……………..
So the final count over 4 miles at 300+ ftpm comes to: 3 major rapid portages (due to wood on all but one) and 2 log jam portages. I’d say that’s pretty incredible for an un-run micro creek of that gradient. What’s even more amazing is every rapid but 2 would go if there was no wood and a couple guys with hand saws could clear 90% of the wood out of this creek in a day or two. Being 95% runable (if wood free) and possessing one of the smallest hikes and steepest gradients in the Jocasse drainage I think this creek has strong potential to be a great run.
peace and good lines,
Mac M.
25
Jul
After spending most of the spring and early summer training for and competing in the the freestyle world championships, I had a few options for places to go paddling in July. I decided it was time for some paddling ‘just for fun’ and the best option would be to fly out to the Northwest and meet up with Demshitz for a couple weeks. Dave and Nicole picked me up at the airport in Portland and had boats waiting for me- the full rockstar treatment. Our first stop the next day would be the Little White Salmon. Having never paddled in Washington, getting on such a classic run right off the bat was a great start to the trip, and of course, in true Demshitz fashion, we rolled down the creek with a stout crew- something like 16 people at the put-in.
Dropping Spirit Falls.
24
Jul
Recently we lost one of our good friends, a team paddler, and all around a great person, Stephen Forster. Â For those that were fortunate enough to know Stephen knew that he would brighten any eddy he was in and he always brought his big smile. Â This year Demshitz were in Montana when we got the terrible news so we went to the Springdale Wave on the Yellowstone River and surfed for Stephen. Â This session and video is dedicated to our buddy Stephen Forster. Â Check out the video and make sure to take advantage of everyday you have.
