First time whitewater kayaking

Last weekend I took a whitewater kayaking class on the Rio Grande Racecourse, near Pilar, NM. It was a BLAST! My wife and I had previously kayaked at Lake Powell. In order to get the boats I wanted for Powell trip I had to buy one, which ostensibly was to be my wife's. With a kayak sitting in my garage it didn't take much to talk me into taking the class. It seemed pretty cheap, 200 bucks for 2 full day's instruction on the river. We had both taken classes in a pool from the same instructor and he did a good job. She really enjoyed paddling flat water in the lake but had no interest in whitewater so I headed up with her boat to the Rio Grande.

Meeting place at the Pilar Yacht Club


Sorry, I was the only one with a camera so no photos of me. Here is my (wife's) kayak, the orange liquidlogic:

The size was helpful on the river but it also brought the penalty of weight. We had to put in and take out at a couple of really steep parts of the gorge.


Here Kelly and Rob, our two instructors, monitor swimmers approaching from a rafting party.


Getting some instruction before heading out


The entire class was devoted to polishing 3 important maneuvers every kayaker should know: eddying out, peeling out and ferrying.

Eddying out is where you transition from moving current to the slack water.
Peeling out is how you leave that eddy, regaining the faster current of the river.
Ferrying allows you to cross the faster current without moving downriver.

Photos don't really show it so here's some videos:

This kid was really good, here he catches an eddy. Click and be patient while the 23mb video loads:


The biggest drop of the trip was Souse Hole. Here Kelly leads a couple of students through it. (38mb video)


A rafting party plays in the Souse Hole eddy while one of my classmates flips on the drop (70mb video)


Paddling for the takeout during a thunderstorm (13mb video)


We did a lot of repetition of those maneuvers on the same obstacles but that really helped me and my classmates refine our techniques. One guy went from flipping on flat water to nailing Souse Hole in 2 days. I definitely became much more confidant and skilled in handling the little plastic boat. I'm looking forward to doing it again, that is fer sure! :thumbup:

Looks cool Alex. What were you using for a Vid camera?

Cool writeup Alex,
My first time in a kayak was last month on the Snake River near Burley, Idaho. Water was mainly flat with a few minor rapids, but I love it! We have some great rivers in my area, many with challenging rapid sections……gonna dig deeper into this because it’s way fun, and a good workout too.

Ryan- it was an Olympus Stylus 1050SW point-n-shoot camera that also does video. It is completely waterproof:


That thing was slooooooooow after getting used to DSLR performance but I would never give it up as long as it still works. Everyone should have a rugged pocket sized camera. The camera that you are not afraid to take anywhere will take better photos than the best DSLR packed away in its waterproof case!

Jeff- if you are getting a workout kayaking you are doing it wrong! You really don't need a lot of muscle to handle a river. Have you taken lessons? Everything about kayaking is counter-intuitive. Learning about it from someone that knows > trial-n-error. The biggest workout was hauling the boats up the hill from the river.

Handlebars said:

That thing was slooooooooow after getting used to DSLR performance but I would never give it up as long as it still works. Everyone should have a rugged pocket sized camera. The camera that you are not afraid to take anywhere will take better photos than the best DSLR packed away in its waterproof case!

Click to expand...

Funny timing Alex, I was just yesterday browsing an announcement on DPreview with great interest, It comes in a color that matches the Jeep even.
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0907/09071701olystylustough6010.asp
I've wanted to replace my broken digicams for some time, to carry along while biking or boarding.

Great report btw!

Jared, one of the things I really like about the 1050sw is that it has a manually retractable metal lens cover. What good is a knockabout camera with a lens that you can't protect? Those electronically retractable internal lens covers are usually the first thing to break. This one is 150 bucks and mine is a really pretty blue.

I like mine even more now that I have read the DPReview waterproof camera comparo. What the public really needs are compact cameras with more sensitivity, not more pixels. The pics and video above are straight out of the camera, see if the image quality is good enough for what you plan to use it for.

Handlebars said:

waterproof case!

Jeff- if you are getting a workout kayaking you are doing it wrong! You really don't need a lot of muscle to handle a river. Have you taken lessons? Everything about kayaking is counter-intuitive. Learning about it from someone that knows > trial-n-error. The biggest workout was hauling the boats up the hill from the river.

Click to expand...

We were on the Snake River near Burley, ID, which is alot like the Colorado River, downstream from Moab. Flat water, no rapids to speak of. We crossed the river several times to paddle up some smaller tributaries, plus we had to chase down a couple of 18 man canoes (not a typo) and give them good soaking a few times, which is where the workout came from.

I had a great time, but would like to do more whitewater stuff. I scouted some areas on the Weber River this weekend and may rent a boat in Aug and join a party of veterans on a run. Stay tuned.......

I'm more of touring yaker myself, I stick to 1's and 2's and do a lot of fishing. Its great fun and good exercise.

Here's a great sight that highlights rivers in your area......still learning the lingo...."There is a sub-ledge that is boofable located just right of center. Look for large obvious notch in horizonal line and shoot the middle of it. It will sometimes kick left, into the maw, so be careful."



http://www.eddyflower.com/CountryDetail.aspx?StateId=2