Kayak Hot Dogs

DIY Jackson Kayak Back band replacement.

2011-12-20T07:09:00.004-07:00

How to install a new JK back band usingthe classic Perception Java Creek Boat.

Kayak design has come a longway in the past 10 years especially in the area of outfitting. Myfirst Perception Dancer had a nifty piece of foam for a back band andmetal foot braces, the rest of the outfitting comprised of randomscraps and of course some duct tape. The goal of good outfitting is to fit you in the kayak quicklyregardless of your dimensions with the use of back bands, footbraces, hip pads, and thigh braces. Back bands are one of the areasof outfitting where brands have been most creative.

It is important that back bands are adjustable in order to add much needed lumbar support to the paddler and promote good posture. Today, there are various ways kayak designers have incorporated technologies from other sports. Liquid Logic's Bad Ass system and some other top brands utilize technology from the ski boot industry to adjust back bands with a ratchet system. Jackson Kayak has taken the different approach of the cord and cleat system found on many sailboats. Ratchet back bands seem a little more flashy for the gadget heads out there while JK bands appeal to those who admire simplicity. The cord/cleat system is lightweight and involves few parts while the ratchet system can be bulky especially when the manufacturers locate it too close to where your spraydeck can rub on it. Both systems can fail and will over time, the cord of the JK system will wear and frey loosing it's grip while the plastic catches on the ratchet strap will wear down as well resulting in slipping. We have all experienced the slip when going for the big freestyle move or mid-way through a boof stroke, it sucks! Your kayak turns into a rowing machine and any needed support for strokes is lost. I choose the JK system since I can replace it easily, even in the middle of a jungle in Ecuador and still make it to the takeout. This article will help you add or replace a Jackson Kayak back band to your favourite kayak. The Perception Java Clay Wright signature series creek boat, a favourite in my Ecuador fleet, was in bad need of a back band and I was poised to update it with a Jackson Kayak back band Here is how I did it.

Remove old back band if one exists, if you are replacing a ratchet system you may want to mount the cleats in the same place the ratchets were mounted. Don't use the same area if the original ratchets were causing spraydeck wear.

Locate a place to mount the cleats, this should be somewhere in front of the paddler accessible to the hands, and if possible in-line with the metal rings on back of the Jk back band. Note if the cord is in a place that it will rub the hips of the paddler a re-routing tube will be needed to defend against rope burn. A re-routing tube can be a 3/4” ABS plumbing pipe with edges melted down to a smooth surface and can be located behind or through the seat hip area that is usually mounted to the boat.

If mounting the cleat in an old mounting location try to use at least one of the previous holes and insure there is ample room for the lock nut on the backing. I would stay away from rivets as they are not as strong as a nut and bolt combo.

If there are no holes you have to drill new ones choose a drill bit the same size as the bolt so you can use the plastic for threading. In the case of the Java, I had to burn a inch diameter hole with a soldering iron in the back of the plastic moulded thigh brace in order to get a locking nut on the bolt holding the cleat in place. PS. Do not inhale.

Hot tip! If you have limited room to place the locking nut to meet the bolt, tape the nut to your fingertip and poke a hole in the tape to match the nuts hole. The tape can be removed after or kept as a sticky washer.

With the Java, I used a drill to make angled holes through the thigh brace to guide the cord into the backing of the cleat. During the installation it is important to keep in mind friction points where the cord may wear prematurely. Melting the hole edges is a good way of ensuring minimal wear.

Another important factor is the angle of the cord in relation to the paddlers hips. If the cord is in the way of the paddler it will cause rope burn. I used a foot long piece of tubular webbing that I ran the cord through for a cushy ride.

Feed the cord through the cleat first and then follow it through the thigh brace holes. Before feeding it through the webbing be sure to burn the ends of the webbing to prevent fraying. After it passes through divert it around the seat if needed. Run the cord through the metal back band rings and then back to the seat where you want to anchor the cord securely.

Test the system out and listen for wear points which should be corrected to avoid constant replacement of cord. Wear points can be corrected by feeding the cord through ABS plastic tubbing which should be secured.

Next, you have to secure the four pieces of shock cord located on the rear of the back band to the kayak. Such shock cord is designed to place the band on your back where you need it and keep it upright to prevent sitting on it every time you enter your kayak. I drilled holes in the cockpit rim to secure the top shock cords with a simple knot after passing it through the hole. Then I ran some cord through the rear foam centre pillar to secure two bottom cords. When drilling the cockpit rim be very careful, you do not want to drill through both levels of plastic causing a leak.

Put on your favourite river, pull the cords tight and push it into the cleats with your thumbs while pushing on your foot braces with your back securely into the band. This ensures the back band cord will not slip. Now Boof it!

Notes on Backbands

Some bands suck, mainly the ones with only one ratchet located in front of the seat, I am not going to mention any names but this brand is now made in China. First of all thinking that one ratchet adjustment is sufficient is ridiculous, it only tightens one side of the back band while the other is “secured” by a webbing cleat which slips. Also, the placement of the adjustment webbing at the very top of the band instead of the middle causes the band to tighten downward on a angle, dumb.

Back bands that are locked in place notallowing you to left them up in order to properly store overnightequipment in the stern should be avoided or replaced.

Ratchets that rub on the inside of yourspray deck are not very well thought out and of course should beavoided, unless you want to replace your deck every season. If youcan see the ratchets poking up through the spray deck it will wearthe deck.

Back bands that are adjustable only atthe back of the band are not the easiest to work with and analternative system should be used.

Hope this helps!! Please feel free tocomment with any suggestions or complaints. This article is based onmy over 15 years of white water experience and 7 years of retailexperience where I have sold almost every brand of kayak available inNorth America. That being said if you have a different experienceand suggestions that will help my readers let er' fly.

For more information on Jackson Kayak Back band retrofit kits. Check out!

See you on the river!

Chris Ryman

Gear Review- Stohlquist safety PFD's The X-tract and Descent

2011-12-14T16:37:00.000-07:00

The X-tract in action boofing it up in Ecuador

Ever since the demise my trustyLotus whitewater PFD (personal flotation device) I have been sportingthe Stolhquist brand. The nature of my business not only insists Iwear a PFD three quarters of the year but I also have the chance tosample various other brands. When I first realized I wanted to be akayak bum I purchased a Lotus P-vest from Trailhead in Toronto. Notreally knowing much about what I was looking for I simply asked forthe best they had. I enjoyed a good number of seasons on the Ottawariver with the P-vest and a few other Lotus play vests but knew I hadto upgrade when I moved to BC for some gnarly creeking. This is whenI was introduced to the Stolhquist X-tract PFD.

I moved to BC in 2004 and neverlooked back. Being a big water boy from the warm waters of theOttawa I experienced a sensation similar to gasp reflex when I firsttried my hand at BC boating on Skookumchuck creek in the EastKootenays. I realised that creek boating was for me and the days offloating relaxed for kilometres in between rapids were over. It wastime to upgrade some gear and get safe. I purchased a red StohlquistX-tract from a store named Wildways on the banks of the Slocan river. After doing some research on the vest I was certain I made thecorrect decision.

The X-tract is comfortablesimilar to the many play vests I had retired in the past. The PFDsits right where I want it--nice and low and not impeding my upperbody movement. The high visibility stripes on the shoulder strapshave come in handy on a few unscheduled night take outs. Thecentring loop at the back of the vests' quick release system is greatfor ensuring your pig tail (cow tail, tether tow, etc) does not dragdown low potentially causing a hazard that can get snagged on themany random pieces of wood in the creeking world. The quick releasebuckle located at the front for the paddle beaner on the end of yourpig tail is genius; with one hand I can free my beaner ready to latchit on to an unfortunate friends floating paddle. Side entry makes iteasy to get in and out of the vest with a simple zipper and buckle. Other pullover models leave you feeling like mom just forced grandmassweater over your head leaving you dizzy and a pair of eyebrows likeBurt off sesame street. One disadvantage of the zipper system iswhile cold weather paddling you might have to wait to get into thehot tub to undo it when it freezes solid. Overall the simplicity ofthe vest is key, not a lot of straps to tighten, simple cutprotecting a large portion of your back with ample padding on thefront. A great entry safety vest for the aspiring creek boater orrubber rider. Any improvements needed on this great vest wereintroduced with the new Stolhquist decent.

The decent is hands down thebest safety best on the market. Stolhquist maintained the side entryfeature and instead of adjustable shoulder straps added elasticity tothem for a snug fit. New features include the wrapture form fittingfoam that caresses your torso like a drunken hug from a buddy, yup,“I love you too man”. The new Descent also incorporates thecinch system that is by far the best way to securely fit a vest bysnugging down the front panel while the rear panel embraces yourback. If fitted properly pulling downward on theses two straps isall you need for final adjustments before putting on. A majorimprovement to the paddle carabiner quick release allows you tounclip the buckle with an upward movement of the biner itself. Alarge front pocket is a great addition for those who want to carrythe accessory Bullet throw rope although the actual rope in thisproduct is thin and not very finger friendly so stuff a shorterthicker rope if possible. There is also ample space for other itemslike a tasty snickers bar, extra floatation bladder, write-in-therain notepad, or even pieces of an extraction kit. I suggest havingyour kit in your kayak to avoid over -weighing your vest and otherpotential mishaps. I have seen first hand someone rushing to savethe day and losing their kit to the river gods after trying to get itout of their vest on water, sorry Bubbles bad idea good safety ismethodical not rushed. Thefeature I appreciate most of the Descent is the padded and abrasionresistant shoulder straps. Not only is this totally awesome forportages with a loaded boat but I can first hand attest to thefunctionality of the “armour” incorporated into the vest. Assoon as I received my Descent in the mail from my star rep Ross I wason the road to White Salmon WA to paddle some early season juice withmy bros. On the third day out we were with Stohlquist team paddlerTao Berman on a super high Little White run when I realised howawesome the PFD was. I was sweeping the crew when the group of fourpulled into a three boat eddy and I was left to treadmill paddle onthe eddy line. I lost my position and drifted backwards into a ledgehole just as Tao was explaining the next drop. I rolled back uplightning fast just in time to tuck under a log and briefly stopuntil the force of the water slowly crept me under the log. MyDescent was rubbing the log with the armour protecting my back andshoulder and I had my first souvenir of a log stain, better than thealternative of a ripped drytop and gouged skin. I ended up runningthe blind 20+ footer painless with ease thanks Stohlquist!

The Descent being true to it's name on Lynn Creek near Vancouver

Overall the two vests have yourbases covered in the Safety PFD world. The X-tract is simple,affordable and long lasting. I am STILL wearing my red x-tractoriginal as my primary guide vest in Ecuador. There is an expressionthat gear and kayaks go to die in Ecuador which believe me is truebut I am still floating in my X-tract. The Descent is a little moreflashy a little more expensive but the fit and functionality is worthit. As you are shopping around for a safety PFD consider the AstralGreen Jacket too, I have many friends who enjoy it. We all havedifferent body types and personal fit is something to consider. Stayaway from any safety vest that has adjustment buckles at the top ofthe shoulder straps, this is not well thought out and veryuncomfortable unless you never have to carry your boat on shoulder. Stay very clear of any vests that do not have at least inch thickwebbing connecting the shoulder straps to the body of the PFD. Integrated harnesses are pretty neat but no substitute for the realthing. Overall, think about what you are looking for in a safety PFDweather it be comfort, functionality, visibility, or even price.

See you floating,

Chris Ryman

For more information...

check out the Stolhquist website

2011-12-12T10:24:00.001-07:00

Boofing Madness in Ecuador!

We arrived into the country inNovember and we have been boofing our way across the Quijos and Napovalley since. A big crew of Vancouver paddlers were first toexperience the stoutness of what Ecuador has to offer and they filledtheir booties with delicious whitewater and of course a few beers.

The crew logged over 10 different runs in 11 days and only had onemandatory hike out, one big water chunderfest on the Rio Oyacatchi, and as a result a fewswims. After putting on the Urcusici, a tributary to the Upper Jondachi the small creek flooded half way down resulting in a 2 hour jungle hike through tall sharp grass, thorns and knee deep mud. One of the crew members picked up a sponsorship with localenergy drink company-- V220, hence his new nickname V2Bentley(pronounced Bey-Dos-Bentley).

The next crew from England werehappy to chill on some of the more moderate rivers in the country butdefinitely represented the masters category well, bagging 10different rivers and a few bootie beers as well. The lads were alsojoined by two lovely ladies from Germany who styled various riverruns including a BIG water day on the lower Quijos section and toppedthe day off with a tour to the San Rafael Falls.

Lead guide Chris Ryman has been working hard to coordinate up to three separate river groups at a time to ensure our "we deliver the paddling you want" policy. His pregnant wife Annie has been cooking up a storm and hosting at the new lodge, the Ponderosa. The team also welcomed Australian young gun Rilley to the fold, while welcoming back Local guide extrodinaire Abraham and Rock solid super guide Dave Gore. No team would be complete without Abby Dent serving up local information and exciting adventures to the lagunas, zoo's and other Tena favourites. All in all the team is the best we have ever had in Ecuador and ready to rock a few more tours before returning to Canada for the plentiful powder of the British Colombian mountains.

For more Information on Kayaking in Ecuador contact us HERE

Off to Ecuador, land of epic whitewater and incredible culture!

2011-11-07T08:32:00.005-07:00

Well it is that time of year again-I am heading off to Ecuador for another season of hosting all inclusive kayak tours. Our British Columbia operations are put on hold for the winter months leaving the snow behind and experiencing the magical whitewater and vibrant culture of Ecuador. I can almost taste the fresh fruit and smell the tropical air thinking about it. Ecuador is in my opinion the best winter getaway for whitewater thirsty paddlers especially if you want the most bang for your buck so to speak. Get the most of your time off and paddle new runs every day while having your food, accommodations, logistics, boat rental, guiding and all the stuff in between taken care of. All you have to do is PADDLE! Whether you crave big volume, technical creeking, or pool drop Ecuador has it all.To book a tour or get some information check this link out!
The Dirtbag Fiesta Tour 2010. from Carl Jacks on Vimeo.

Here is a great video from good friend and guest of our famous Dirtbag Fiesta Tour last season

VIDEO

For some more stories check out these links!

EcuadorKayaking

Upper Misahualli

Rio Hollin

Youth Development

Tena River

Endangered Creeks

Quijos River

Papallacta

Adventure In Ecuador

See you on the WARM water!

Chris Ryman

The most hard core creek race ever!- The Callaghan, July 26, 2011

2011-08-18T10:34:00.007-06:00

Hector styling a Callaghan Drop

The Callaghan Creek race has been in my sights for a long time. Endless Adventure usually attends a few white water festivals throughout the year but never a full on creek race making it a hard sell to the marketing department (my lovely wife). This year I got the green light to promote our Ecuador tours and represent our company at the event. The plan was simple -- Hector my Harry Potter look-a-like kayak instructor and rad paddler would partner me in the race. We leave Thursday night and plan to practice on the Callaghan a few times before racing it on Saturday. Weeks leading to the event Hector and I got a few free passes to go and paddle Summit and Koch Creek for “practice”. We managed to get on Summit at near flood levels and certainly got the feel of consistent gnar paddling. Some may say the “practice” runs were just a way of getting out paddling for fun and some may be correct but either way we were mentally preparing for racing some class 4+/5 and needed it.
I was experiencing a pretty hectic week leading up to the race with our summer season coming into swing and my wife's parents visiting with my seven year old niece. I had to complete the “honey do” list before I left which involved various items that were all being checked off. It was a surprise and unplanned task that really got me prepared for the coming weekend's events. I just got back from a long day of kayak instruction and retail jail when I was informed that my Dad, who lives in the basement suite, may be in need of my help. I walked down to see how the old man was doing when I found him inside with his kitchen with furniture strew about the apartment, he was doing some major cleaning. After a quick scan I noticed his fridge being absent from the mix. My Dad informed me that the fridge was outside and he had been cleaning it with his trusty super duper high horse-powered gas power washer. Hmm, I didn't really notice it coming in so Dad accompanied me outside to explain what happened. He had the fridge stationed just outside his patio on the edge of a pretty steep hill that rolls down about 200 feet to the Columbia River, the hill is mostly wild cottonwood trees, raspberry shrubs, and some old garden plumbing pipes. Apparently, my dad was giving the fridge a thorough cleaning with the washer when the force of the water blasted the fridge over the bank of the hill rolling down until it stopped against an old shed about a fifth the way down. My dad managed to get some old rope around it and hook it up to a come-a-long that was at the end of it's chain, the fridge dangled resting on an old water pipe waiting for rescue. I have had experience extracting wrapped canoes, rafts, and pinned kayaks but the fridge was a first, why don't they have solid grab loops anyway, does this not happen to anyone else? I was up for the challenge so I got some webbing and went to work. My dad did a great job on setting up an anchor and getting it most the way up but I had little faith in the 20 year old rope holding it in place so I used the webbing to secure a new hold on the fridge and repositioned the winch to get it to the surface of the hill. What does this all have to do with our Callaghan Creek Race in Whistler you may ask? Well considering the weekend's three pinned boats we experienced it all weaves together to a trip I will always remember.

We left on Thursday night after saying goodbye to our loved ones and checking on the status of our victimized fridge. It is a superb feeling to be heading out on the road with my trusty Subaru Forester, a couple of fridges on the roof, I mean kayaks, 300 pounds of gear, food for a few days not to mention a to go Boston Pizza that my awesome wife ordered for us. Hector was sitting pretty in the shotgun position DJ-ing some hip hop and electronic beats, pretty much standard for a paddling trip. I was poised on getting to Hope that night at very least so we could rally an area paddle in the morning. We were making good time and once I convinced Hector to put his stinky layers outside in his kayak the smell was greatly improving.

Hector and his stinky gear

Dirtbag Camping!

We rolled past Silverhope creek near Hope at around one in the morning it was now time to find some dirtbag camping. I noticed a little creek with a logging road going over it and I decided to head on up for some camping recon. The road took us up to a clearing with numerous downed logs around an we set up camp in minutes. We had a little fire, which was no problemo given the abundance of wood, and drank a beer beside our cozy fire. 5:30am came pretty quick and we awoke to the fact we were in the middle of a HUGE clear cut. The lads would be out slaying more trees in the next hour so we snuck out and headed to the house of Ryan Bayes. Mr. Bayes was just waking up when we rapped on his door, he had to work pretty early that day but was keen to let us use his kitchen for breaky and brewed us some coffee. Ryan Bayes is a stand up guy and THE man to contact if you are paddling the Frasier Valley. Before I crunched my first piece of bacon, Ryan had us set up with some paddling partners and a run on the Seymour Canyon. We arrived at the put in to meet up with Annie, Denny, and Bill, the level was just under 3 perfect for a chill run. After a quick paddle with friends we were itching to get to the Callaghan and maybe get a run or two in before the race the following day.
The drive up to Squamish was beautiful. I was starting to doze a bit at the wheel and Hector pretty much falls a sleep any chance he can get so I made the call to pull over just outside of Squamish at a cool rock climbing wall. We made up some gourmet italian sausages on the camp BBQ and chilled for a good hour resting. Feeling recharged we sped up to Greg Dashpers house in Squamish a little after three in the afternoon and spent some time drinking coffee and catching up. I had not seen Greg since his name was Diesel back when we all first arrived in the promised land of BC. I was so excited to get the goods on Callaghan creek from someone that paddled it almost every day. We rallied for our first run around 5:30 and the creek was stomping high! I was feeling a little crazy to think I could race the Callaghan at that level and was starting to question the whole deal. Stomping the drops and continuing my streak of not rolling sure helped my confidence by the end of the run. Hector decided to go out for another while I rested my body for the next day. That night we feasted on pasta at Greg's house with some more famous italian sausage and had a few brews with old and new friends. It was that night that Hector shed the unwanted guise of Harry Potter and emerged as Canadian Icon Bubbles from the Trailer Park Boys. Since I met Hector in Ecuador he was consciously trying to become Canadian in appearance. Sporting a mullet, lumber jack shirt and a fear of bathing he was half the way there, now that he was being referred to as Bubbles the transition was complete.

Bubbles

Race day, wake up at 7ish, fire up an awesome breaky of eggs, french toast (not eggy bread), avocado, and of course a lot of bacon, Listo! We made the call to get at least two runs prior to the race and it was a good one. Thankfully, the level had come down a little making the sections in between the falls and larger drops less scary. On our last “practice” run before the race a boater from Vancouver that had been on the run quite a bit and was thinking of racing it later that day showed up. Mikkel and his team mate Mark Basso joined Bubbles and I with the semi local paddler. Everything was going peachy until the unnamed boater had a little dance in a massive hole that left him and his kayak separated. His swim was brutal, we lost site of him several times before he was pulled out of the raging whitewater. Mikkel and I chased his boat down and at one point his kayak hit a rock and rolled up to expose his throw line attached to the back of his seat. I pulled out my best talon claw and was able to grab the rope while signalling to Mikkel to eddy out. I tossed Mikkel the rope but he did not have enough time to exit his boat and anchor the rope safely so we watched the boat float down stream. Mikkel was keen so he got back into his boat and we were on the chase again. Right before a gnarly drop aptly named Old Dirty Bastard the boat self pinned just above a river right log jam. I saw the flash of red from submerged kayak and eddied out right behind it with the rope dangling down stream. Mikkel watched from the adjacent eddy on the river right shore. I sketchily got a carabiniere on the dangling throw bag and Mikkel launched his throw rope to me so I could clip it. I then joined Mikkel in the eddy and we proceeded to try and pull the boat loose. No amount of pulling would work from any angle, that boat was pinned real nice. After a few attempts of mindless tugging Hector and Mark were coming down stream to meet us. We frantically tried to signal them into the above eddy since there was a rope from our eddy to the pinned kayak blocking the line. Mark was coming fast and did not get the memo on which eddy we were referring to so we had lift the line up over his head as he was approaching. Hector pulled into the eddy above and the swimmer was visible portaging down the same side of river. After a brief safety discussion we decided the best course of action was to set up a 3:1 mechanical advantage from a high anchor since the kayak needed to be pulled from above. With four guys pulling it did not take long before the boat popped free. With the kayak pendulumming into shore Mikkel gave it a slight tug to land it in the right eddy when the rope came loose. Basso ran down to grab the boat just before the huge log jam and we got some hands on it. The throw rope was “secured” to a 3 mm accessory cord located behind the seat of the boat. The cord holding up after all that tugging and a Z-drag was unbelievable. With the paddler and boat reunited he decided he had it in him to continue on after his vicious swim through class gnarly big volume creeking. We made it to the race with minutes to wolf down some cheesy tortillas and head back up to the put in.

Organizer Steve Arns Dropping the bigger of the two drops

Mark Basso in the moment

Race time! About half the intended racers dropped out of the event before the competitors meeting. I was pretty keen to race despite the fact that the race organizer asked me 5 times whether or not our team would race, not very confidence inspiring. Simple format-- A team of two leaves the start eddy and the next team leaves three minutes later. You have to safety for your own team but there are spectators set up along shore with throw bags and one safety boater was elected after he decided not to race. Hector and I were racing in the fifth position while the safety kayaker followed the fourth team down. GO! Heart pumping, eyes wide, and adrenaline maxed, here we go. Hector lead from the start since he was a couple of runs up on me leading to the race. Everything was going well, our plan was certainly not to sprint race but to make it down in a controlled method and do so upright and safe. The first fifteen footer went real smooth with both Hector and I nailing our boofs. Shortly before approaching the next 20+ footer I noticed a flash of red in the river and the safety boater standing near his pinned kayak looking tired. By the time I knew what had happened it was time for me to launch over the bigger drop.

Pinned JK VillainS never to be seen again.

I ran that puppy the same as I did the previous 3 times but landed on a boil which lurched me back into the curtain. My face was underneath the curtain looking up, the sensation of a thousand midgets (little people) punching me in the eyes and face was all I could think about. Something I had not felt since my days in the Mexican Wrestling Federation. I pulled the hugest sit up I could muster to clear my face of the cascading water and after a few moments of complete vertigo I was able to empty enough water from my brain to continue. Allrigthy, back at it-- sit up, forward leaning, pulling water, giver! Our next foible occurred ODB, a rather large hole at the bottom was munchin on Bubbles just as I was about to boof it. I could see a large orange hull getting worked as I boofed on top of it's stern probably releasing Hector from the hole. He rolled up eyes at the back of his head and face red looking like he had just taken a drink from a fire hose. We took a few seconds to chill and regain composure and we were back at it. By the time we reached the finish line I was spent, happy faces, frothing beer cans and a half dozen camera's met us at the takeout. A feeling of completion and accomplishment swept over me and I was fired up!
While others drank beer and waited for their times to come in, Hector and I decided to head back up to the river with organizer Steve Arns in hopes of retrieving the pinned kayak. We arrived to even higher water on the Callaghan as the hot sun had brought down some more pow in the form of class V whitewater. We tried hard to get something on the grab loop of the boat and set up a mechanical but the force of the water and the nature of the pin made it impossible. The red Jackson Kayak VillainS was going to hang out for a while, the bow pinned against a rock the stern as well and a log holding the side in. Experience would predict the kayak coming out in pieces before the water actually drops enough to retrieve it.
Hector, Steve, and I headed out to dinner with a bunch of the other racers to enjoy mass amounts of pulled pork. The night brought out the party pants and everybody was feeling the groove. It seemed that every paddler had the same idea and brought a case of beer and a random mickey of the hard stuff perfect ingredients for the sausage soup that was brewing. Without a doubt just as things were winding down we imported some Ecuadorian culture to the party with a dancing circle. Dashper on the ipod providing the right mix and Bubbles showing us the latest in brake dancing technique-- dizziliy spinning in the gravel dance floor. We decided to leave the party when there were only three ginger irish lads left playing with an axe, check please.
Day Three-- Time to explore the region and make the most out of the day. Step one-- go out for a enormous alcohol absorbing breakfast with three different kinds of pork to prepare for the three different creek runs planned, yes we were going tackle the Whistler Triple Crown- Callaghan, Upper Cheak, and the Soo. Upper Cheak was first on the list after some motivational speaking to get some of the more groggy headed paddlers present. Arriving at the takeout with a motorcade of small 4X4's loaded with plastic was a phenomenal site, with over ten paddlers the shuttle confusion increases but we all figured it out and were still on track to finish the mission. Wow, what a fantastic run, starts with a waterfall and finishes in endless boogie water sure to please any creeker, next up another run on the Callaghan. A smaller group of paddlers came out for this run as most in attendance were still battling last nights demons. This was the run to clean up all our lines and hit every boof possible since it would be a while before we would revisit. A brief stop at the pinned Villain above the bigger drop only reconfirmed out diagnosis- the kayak was fish food. We continued on downstream and nailed it with true Kootenay, the ice cream count had Hector in the lead owing about 12 ice creams (one for every roll) and I was still staying upright with a count of 0. Now it was time to tackle the Soo with the little scraps of energy we had left.

Big Drop on the Soo

The Soo is a little further north of Whistler near Pemberton and the drive was gorgeous. Mikkel, Bubbles, and myself were chauffeured by John Mason while two young rippers followed. We arrived at the put in and got right to business. The level seemed pretty high with the abnormal hot weather and the rapids were looking stout despite the fact that the Soo is considered the less difficult of the three. Experience was lacking on the trip with only Mikkel having run it before years earlier. The crew picked our way down stopping at an impressive rapid with a few boater hungry holes. Some debate on the line to take ended in all of us taking a different one and me ending my clean streak with a roll. There were a few rapids left but with the higher water all of them seemed to flush out and the end was in our sights. About a kilometre from the take out a log perpendicular from shore clothes lined one of the young rippers and grabbed onto his kayak serving up another rescue scenario. The swimmer made it to shore and his boat eventually wiggled free with only a bootie claimed by the river gods, or so we thought. The rest of the run to the take out was un eventful so we lazily chased his boat down river. On a wide open stretch with no obstacles present but a few exposed rocks the boat floated to them like an old man to a Canadian Tire sale. Pinned boat numero three!!! After a few creative attempts spearing the boat free Mikkel live bait swam out the the eddy behind the boat and got a beaner attached to the grab loop. Pulling the kayak free was difficult but made possible with three of us while Hector safetied in his kayak below. Being a Pyhrana boat, it was twisted and mangled from the force of the water but amazingly not cracked. A few drop kicks and punches got the kayak almost to it's original shape enough to paddle the rest of the class II to the take out. Triple Crown doneski, No Big Deal!

Pyranha Plastic!

Mikkel and Peter going fishing for Pyranha

Taking down camp and wolfing some left over food was a tad depressing, we were leaving the mecca of big volume creeking and heading home to our gentle Slocan River. The plan was to meet up in Abby at Bayes' house to watch Trailer Park Boys the movie in order for Hector to embrace his new role. The trip there was painful with weekend traffic, aggressive city drivers, and Bubbles' less than stellar navigation techniques. I am pretty sure that the process to become a kayak instructor in England is much more intensive than learning to drive or read maps. We pulled up to the house at about 11:30 after patrolling the neighbourhood and making every wrong turn possible. At one point I grabbed the map from Hector's hands, crumpled it up, and threw it in the back seat as it was clearly no use to him. We got out of the car and proceeded to practice our mixed martial arts on each other. After a few minutes in a head lock I decided to let Bubbles free as staff murder is not usually my style. We were greeted by Ryan, Tristen, and Sandra who were all well lubricated so the addition of our mickey of Tequila was appreciated. After a half hour of Trailer Park Boys we were ready to turn in.
The morning came fast and we headed to SilverHope creek to get one last run in before embarking on the long journey home. Levels were lower than awesome but it was just what we needed after a super long huck fest weekend. We left after the run feeling satisfied that we indeed paddled as much as humanly possible in the four days of our boof fest. Back to reality, private course in the morning, retail jail in the afternoon, dreaming of Whistler kayaking another day. For all those concerned, the fridge is all good and still chillin'

Silverhope Creek

See you in the gnar,

Chris Ryman

Top 5 Reasons to be a Kayak Instructor.

2011-07-29T08:43:00.006-06:00

Ahhhh, the life of a kayak instructor. Most who don't know for themselves would say we have it pretty easy. Well, thats not always the case. With any job we experience highs and lows but one thing is for sure with kayak instructors - most are passionate about sharing their love for the sport. There are huge benefits to being a Kayak Instructor but sometimes things don't go according to plan and there are the few routine tasks that make the job less appealing. Overall, life is pretty good if your sitting in your boat doing what you love sharing it with others. Most people sign up for a kayak course with some background knowledge of what this crazy sport is all about, many want to get in shape, some want to face their fears, and others are intrigued by the lifestyle. As a kayak instructor it is important to BE kayaking, this coming from someone who has revolved their life around the sport. I am here to tell you that I love being a kayak instructor for many reasons but also have some moments when I wonder if the so-called “normal career” is a greener side of the fence. Here are some of the reasons I do what I do...

1.The passion for the Sport-- From the first time I went White Water Rafting I knew I wanted to be in a kayak. I remember clearly watching the safety kayakers on the Ottawa River from the comfort of my raft thinking, geez I'm having a good time but those guys are living it up. The grace and fluidity of their movements in a dynamic environment caused my imagination to wander in the limitless 3D realm of whitewater. Today and everyday I appreciate my ability to pursue my passion on a daily basis and more importantly, share it with others through my instruction.

2.Maintaining a healthy lifestyle-- I have made the claim many times that since I have picked up a paddle for the first time I have never had to pick up a weight lifting bar since. I was a bit of a chubby kid growing up, let me just say I liked to eat, a lot! After my grade 9 year I decided to do something about it and started weight training, by grade 10 I was feeling great and realized the many benefits of a healthy lifestyle. When I started paddling I took my workout outside and my physical fitness was on auto mode. I am pretty addicted to paddling now but when I started I was crazy for it, I would forgo sleep to paddle. Working long hours managing a restaurant and raft guiding during the day I found myself waking at five am to hit the river and “train” as I had ambitions to be a rodeo star. Now that I am instructing more, I make sure to find time for “pleasure boating” on the side. I firmly believe that a good kayak instructor has to be active outside of the clinics and perfect their skills further. A good kayak instructor has to model a lot of important aspects of the whitewater lifestyle, safety, stewardship, health, and of course FUN! The formula is simple, maintain health physically and it transfers to your mental health too. Kayak Instruction is a package deal that allows you to strive for both.

3.Being a Mentor-- There are few things more rewarding than having someone look up to you as a role model. People of all ages interested in kayaking look to the kayak instructor to answer all questions kayaking related, to teach the skills they yearn for, and to simply BE kayaking. There is a stigma around instructors to be all things kayaking and hold that position twenty-four/seven. I notice this more with the awesome youth I teach, it is a pretty cool feeling to notice the spark in a young paddlers eye as you demonstrate the eskimo roll, you have them hooked and they will stop at nothing to achieve kayaking success! Over the years I have mentored youth that now are my paddling partners, it is amazing to see the results of our combined hard work as they grow as paddlers and surpass you in some skills and concepts. Learning from your students down the road after they have taken what you can offer and expand on it is an incredible feeling. I run youth development programs in Ecuador and BC donating my time and skill to developing kayakers at young impressionable ages. There are few rewards greater than being able to see someone grow as a person and a paddler and gain a respect for you similar to a sibling or close relative. Teaching the youth can keep you young and challenge your maturing and sometimes stubborn ways. I notice I am a little more “down” with the times and aware of new and exciting aspects of pop culture and the youth movement. Staying fresh is important for anyone looking for a positive future.

4.Self Improvement-- As the art of kayak instruction evolves with the sport so should the kayak instructor and their course material. Learning is an important part of our lives, once we stop learning we stop growing and start to depreciate. Engaging with other instructors, re-certifying your credentials, and self research are ways kayak instructors can stay with the times, ensure quality instruction, and stay stoked about what they are providing. I have to say there have been a number of people that have come through my courses after some experience with other instructors that taught them skills from the stone age. Not sure if it is laziness or ignorance but keeping current with your skills and knowledge base is essential and uplifting.

5.Meeting new People-- Having a position where you get to enjoy the company of new people on a daily basis is fantastic. Not to mention the fact that such people are there to experience something that you feel passionate about and are probably in some way alined with your interests. I have made excellent connections with some of my kayak students and appreciate the friends I have made through instruction. I had to opportunity to fly in a Helicopter after a kayak student picked my up at my campground and flew me up to scout a creek I had been eyeing. It was an opportunity of a lifetime I would probably not have been presented with otherwise.

To conclude, I have to say that I am stoked to teach Whitewater kayaking and hope to do it as long as I can. I have worked on the Ottawa River, in Costa Rica, Ecuador and numerous areas of British Columbia. I would not change anything for the world even though the early stages of my “career” have been virtually penny less. I now own a outdoor adventure centre in BC that teaches kayaking, sells kayaks and gear, and offers river tours, rentals and exotic paddling vacations. I love my life and have no regrets. Thanks to all the students that have waded into my classroom, the friends I have made kayaking, the opportunities I have been given, and of course my wonderful wife for putting up with my dingy days and forgotten wallet during early date nights. I hope everyone gets a chance to sit in a kayak and float their problems away. Kayaking is the gateway to your soul and reconnection to nature. I love it.

See you on the water!
Chris Ryman
Owner, Operator, Kayak Instructor
Endless Adventure
Endless Adventure International Ecuador Tours

8th Annual Kootenay Whitewater Festival

2011-06-21T13:16:00.003-06:00

A Whitewater weekend packed with exciting events, prizes, concert and a LOT of paddling!

Kootenays- Borderline Boaters is stoked to be presenting this year Kootenay Whitewater Festival from June 25th to the 26th, hosted at Endless Adventure in Crescent Valley. The weekend starts off with some meet and greet at the Endless Adventure campground and leads up to some exciting paddling! This is an intermediate paddle fest with a variety of clinics for all skill levels, including beginners.

The weekend starts off with a river run and clinics, followed by lunch, land games and more paddling in the afternoon. Dinner on your own then back in action for The Evening Entertainment ~ opening act Roy Has Fire, featuring Almanak and Wrapping up the evening with DJ ELF . Pilates Sunday morning with Live It Up Fitness, then a river run, Team Ball Race and Boater Cross for the rest of the afternoon. Finishing the weekend off with prizes and give-aways.
Guided river runs on the some of the West Kootenays classics. The Kootenay Whitewater Festival is for intermediate paddler and the clinics are available for those that want to brush up on their skills. Endless Adventure will be hosting a Playboating clinic on Saturday, a Creaking clinic on Sunday, and the Basic skills and rolling clinic both days. The clinic are an additional $30 each.
Early registration is before Thursday June 23 for a discount of $10 at Endless Adventure, or register at Endless Adventure on Saturday June 25, $60 for the weekend which includes lunch both days, t-shirt, prize, Party, camping. Don’t be late! Registration and sign up goes from 8:15 to 9:00am! For more info about the festival or other events, feel free to call Endless Adventure at 1-877-FUN-8181 or email info@endlessadventure.ca.

ECE Trip Report: Canyonland, May 2011.

2011-05-25T16:43:00.018-06:00

Our plans were simple. Hayden and I would start our 4 day long weekend with a little 1st D action down the recently cleared Upper Enterprise Creek. Situated between the small lakeside communities of Slocan City and Silverton, rubber-necking highway passer-byes on route to the much greener whitewater pastures have long been frightened off by the character of this run; and for good reason.

After working winter long cutting out the wooded maze that prevented anyone from safely navigating this short (2.5km), continuous and highly technical grade V boulder run, words cant truly describe the final feeling of putting on this soon to be classic, West Kootenay steep creek.

Here then are a number of pics from our initial trip down Enterprise Creek and a selection of other West Kootenay treats visited during our wild circle tour of the North West Kootenay region, an area I now like to refer to as "Canyonland, BC."

Day 1: The put-in rapid on Enterprise Creek. This view from the shuttle quickly weeds out who is putting on or not. Technically, no canyons exist on Enterprise's upper run. However, this all changes quickly should one venture below the Hwy 6 bridge take-out. A previous exploratory effort led by Mikkel St. Jean-Duncan, Chris Ryman and myself many moons ago dared to discover this fact for ourselves. I'm sure plans to re-visit Enterprise's lower canyon section with several large waterfalls will once again fester over the coming while. Looking downstream from the put-in on Enterprise Creek. This pretty much sums up the entire run.Enterprise Cr. put-in eddy. Dont miss your 1st boof!
Nothing special. Just some of the boulder bashing to be found on Enterprise Cr.
Day 2: ECE scout, Poplar Creek Canyon. Grade IV whitewater, Class V hiking. A few river wide logs and early season snow conditions near the put-in prevented us from challenging this 1st D. AXOR (Glacier/Howser IPP proponents) are in progress with plans for an IPP on this wild creek. The only other boater we ran into. Shuttle style points need to be awarded here.Day 3: The Incomappleux Canyon. Level was about medium, give or take. Gearing up for the Incomappleux. A few minutes later we were met by Craig Pettit, director of the Valhala Wilderness Society who was wrapping up some field work in the Incomappleux Valley. Craig has been very busy working to protect this ecologically sensitive area via the Selkirk Mountain Caribou Park Proposal. According to the VWS, the Incomappleux region hosts "A population of about 85 endangered mountain caribou, primeval Inland Temperate Rainforest with trees up to 1,800 years old, hundreds of species of lichens, rare plants, core habitat for blue-listed grizzly bears and wolverines, and spawning grounds of the bull trout of Kootenay Lake and the Arrow Lakes Reservoir." Needless to say, Craig had yet to see any paddlers challenge the Incomappleux's canyon. He kindly offered to help us out by shuttling Hayden and I up to the massive warm-up rapid put-in site about 1km up river. He then later proceeded to shoot some wild pics of Hayden running the canyon with a massive telephoto lens, from high up on the canyon's newly re-constructed FSR bridge. Unfortunately, Craig had to leave before we could obtain any of his pro pics. He did, however, promise emailing them to us in the near future. Hayden making his line through the crux of the Incomappleux canyon.And the Incomappleux Canyon lets one free! As of July 2003, The bodies of three ill-prepared expedition mountaineer/IK2 paddlers have yet to emerge from the upper reaches of this powerful river. To this day only a torn PFD, a drybag of video equipment and a shred of outer-layer material have been found. Having previously hiked into the remote upper canyon section of this river, one can only ask, "What led these professional adventurers to think they could paddle down a grade 5/6, glacier fed river at the height of summer in fully loaded inflatable kayaks with little to NO previous BC wildwater experience?" The final exit rapid on the Incomappleux. Deliciously trashy on this day.
"I just styled the Incomappleux and all I have is an awkward smile to show you."Day 4: Putting in after portage #1 on the upper-middle Kuskanax in Nakusp, BC. Still trying to figure out what level works for this massive drop because we're sick of walking around it. Obviously HIGH water wasn't quite it.GAME ON! Hayden drops in on the upper-middle Kuskanax.Sunset over Arrow Lake, Nakusp, BC. Until the next adventure in Canyonland. All photos taken by Carl Jacks, ECE team paddler, North West Kootenay region.

St. Leon Creek: First Run (Swims) of the Season

2011-05-14T13:04:00.012-06:00

As a rule of thumb, I try to avoid putting on a grade IV+ creek after 2pm. Post lunch blood sugars begin to run low, circadian rhythms start to shift, sloppy paddling takes fold and minor incidents lead into epics that bring you back to town after the beer stores have closed. An exception to this rule is when one rises at 1pm after working a night shift with plans to jump on one of the west Kootenay's most notorious steep creek runs the first time this season. Furthermore, I would be joined by 2 good friends, one of which who has yet to run the goods on Nakusp, BC's St. Leon Creek.

Having spent many hours in the weeks before clearing new deadfall after a particularly heavy winter, St. Leon Cr. was good to go. And with local weather finally warming up, St. Leon's low volume, big drop character had also ripened up to a primo level. Thus on Tuesday, May 10, our group of 3 would be the first to chase this Kootenay classic, but not without a wee bit of a post 2pm paddling shit show.

By the crack of 3pm, Hayden's VW van had made the push through the unexpected spring logging road mud bogs to the upper parking lot. While Phil and Hayden unloaded I instantly launched into lumberjack mode clearing a proper put in trail that I had been meaning to make over the past 4 years. 45 minutes later covered in sawdust and sweat, our group was ready to fully gear up. Before long I realized that a communication error with Hayden had left me without my paddle – this would become the first sign of trouble brewing on our group's horizon. Thankfully, I had brought my spare breakdown; however this upset would leave our group without an extra blade should anyone happen to drop their paddle over the course of St. Leon’s short but bumpy descent. Thinking nothing of it... we turned on our game.

By 4pm we had bobbled down to the edge of St. Leon's classic first double drop feature (still missing a creative name). Having yet to venture this far up the creek during my wood clearing efforts, we discovered that a new river-wide cedar had blown over into the pool between the two falls making any attempt to run both drops in one clean sweep frustrating. We thus spent the next 20 minutes lowering the height of the fallen tree with a strategic cut to allow pulling ourselves over it without getting out of our boats. A return trip in the coming weeks will attempt to fully remove this pesky new wood.

By 4:25pm Hayden had just boofed the stylin’ centre line with impressive results. This was Hayden's first time back on St. Leon since summer 08 when our crew was filming with Mikkel for his premier ECE film. Needless to say, Hayden was beaming over the notion of being back on St. Leon Cr., one of countless BC waterways currently being assessed for the potential of independent, run-of-river power production. Following Hayden, Phil and I's lines were less impressive but equally enjoyable after we both missed the centre boof ramp, getting heavily whitewashed by the left side curtain.

Cleaning the 2nd section of double drop and cruising over a few 100 meters of uneventful boulder bashing goodness, our group had now approached the infamous Super Slide feature, first discovered by fellow ECE mates Randy Speers and Chris Ryman during their inaugural exploratory descent of St. Leon in 2005. Seeing as this was Phil's initiation run on St. Leon, I was looking forward to see what reaction Super Slide would produce in him. Smiles aside, it was obvious Phil's French-Canadian ass was puckering to the point of pushing poutine out of his cold, constricted pores. Did I mention that we were all under dressed for this first time out occasion? Having had geared up in the hot sun before descending into St. Leon's cold, shadowy bottom, this mistake would prove to be yet another sign of danger looming on the horizon.

As expected, Hayden manned up first running the unorthodox, double kinking centre line where a cash-n-carry sale on spinal columns was beckoning him in a pool of Robaxacet deep at the bottom. As Hayden plummeted, Phil and I heard three distinct sounds high up from our photo vantage point. Two being his boat bumping huge out into mid air and the third, a visceral tone emerging from Hayden's body coming to rest after landing this stout drop.

Feeling my spine’s maturing age, I opted for the more conservative right line that still manages to dish a fine lumbar squishing upon landing, an impact that can by reduced considerably by inflating my Jackson Happy Seat bean cushion. This little trick allows me to keep running this crazy drop with minimal back injury, and for that reason keeps me coming back to my beloved Jackson Villain Kayak.

Phil, the last to go, followed suit styling the much preferred right line but landed in the pool with more bow popping speed than a rear wheel drive, V12 powered rickshaw running on nitrous-oxide. Wildly out of control, Phil skipped across the pool straight into a downstream rock where he came to rest in an upstream broach position. Left without his breath from the drop he just blasted out of, this new found predicament quickly flipped him over in the rapid, loosing the grip on his paddle and opting for his skirt pull strap. Like a beaten up spawning Gerrard Trout, he slapped around through the downstream rapids as his boat was cast adrift. The entire scene was pretty hilarious but knowing that a dangerous wood choked corner was awaiting him I quickly signaled to Hayden that it was time to reel this big fish back in. Phil's swim now became the first of many mishaps that would follow him through to the end of our run.

Once the pieces had been thrown to shore, Phil informed us that he had bumped his knee pretty good during his swim. With my boat and paddle just downstream, I kindly offered to make the short hike back up borrowing his paddle and running his boat down to him. Little did I know that Phil uses a very awkward left twist feather that once on the water, quickly turned my strokes into blade skulls and braces into blade cuts. With Phil and Hayden rooting me on as I messily paddled by, I attempted to eddy out just above the dangerous corner in question but instantly ended up capsizing on the calm eddy line. Fearing any attempt to roll would waist precious time and send me into the wood filled drop I instinctively pulled my deck and scrambled to shore. Grabbing Phil's boat, I was unable to hold his screwy paddle and watched it disappear over the drop. Now things were getting stupid. The time was nearing 6pm.

Wet n' cold, increasingly hungry and cursing at our double misfortune, we began to assess the situation. Without a spare paddle, a bummed knee and a steep hike out, Phil considered the idea of hand paddling given that only a few more features remained between our group's position and the final slot canyon about 1km downstream. Furthermore, I assured Phil that my recent wood clearing efforts would make the option of hand paddling less stressful for his sake. Just then I caught a micro glimpse of a faded blue Werner blade from under the water's surface before us. We still have no idea what was holding it there but we thanked blessed St. Leon for handing back Phil's lame paddle and allowing us to continue on with our grinding journey.

By this time, we had been on the water far longer than expected. Our level had also risen considerably given the warm late day sun was doing a good job of attacking the surrounding low elevation snowpack.

Now there is something to be said about paddling a rising flow compared to a more predictable, post peak descending flow. Aside from all sorts of new wood debris joining you in your downstream descent, the water's hazy brown color becomes more difficult to read and omni-present flow fluctuations influence bizarre disturbances. This realism made St. Leon's less favored boulder mank a hectic mess that tested our now cold, shivering bodies. Within 200m's of starting again, the stream’s increasing pushiness had once again caught Phil's boat control off-guard, flipping him upstream into a set of rocks that resulted in him taking another short swim and loosing his boat to the strong current. Having luckily chosen to wear his drysuit this day his spirits were still heavily dampened. His entire body aching with newly forming bruises and a message broadcasting "Tabernac" throughout the entire forest, Phil was now forced to walk the canyon’s edge as Hayden and I plundered on. We eventually re-united our pea-soup eating friend with his hung-up boat a couple hundred meters downstream.

With sponges squeezed and skirt rands snapped, we were back on the water, but not long before Phil had found a hole with long, horizontally submerged piece of wood that propped him up in a contorted side-surf position. Sensing another swim on the horizon, Hayden jumped to action, pulling to shore and freeing Phil with a quick rope toss. Paddling to shore and throwing his gear into the woods with anger, Phil was done like a day-old beaver tail pastry.

Choosing to walk the rest of the way out, Hayden and I were left to clean the remainder of the run up until the final slot canyon where some treacherous wood still remains despite my efforts to partially bust it up the week before. I anticipate the high run-off flows expected this season will soon blow this wood out given that I was able to cut into a few key pieces, fingers crossed.

Once reunited, our group walked another freshly cleared portage trail around the final slot canyon with Hayden and I opting to run the classy 25' exit fall. Hayden was again overflowing with excitement to get a feel for boofing this beautifully clean waterfall in both his new Prijon Pure and his tiny JK Allstar that he had energetically carried up to the falls from the take at the start of our day. His determination to boof a playboat off this drop had long since been crystallized in his DNA, thus no one interjected when he set forth with this ridiculous idea. And frankly, I wanted to see what would happen to the bugger while pulling off such a stunt. His final execution however proved uneventful aside from resurfacing with a partially imploded skirt that wet his new robin's egg blue Sweet fleece jumper suit. I was more than happy to document the event with my new camera but quickly learned that it had been water logged after Phil's 2 swims. It appeared that after handing it over to Phil above the Super Slide he had closed my pelican case with the carry strap in the rubber-seal thus allowing for some water to leak in. Fearing the worst, I chose not to turn the camera on and promptly pulled the battery. The unit is currently sitting in bowl of rice with more fingers crossed that it fairs out all right.

As Phil walked the rest of the trail to the car, Hayden and I shot the remainder of the run without a hitch. I chose to grant myself some serious style points for nailing a new boof out onto a hanging log that I intentionally left in the 6' pool drop proceeding the waterfall (see the pic below from our 08 trip to get an idea. The log is shown in the bottom left). With a higher flow one is able to pull off this impressive boof to log-slide maneuver; however, a longtime river-wide woodpile in the pool after forced paddlers to take a more conservative line in order to avoid getting stuffed. Thanks to my recent wood clearing efforts, this final drop has now been resurrected.

All in all, our first run of the season down St. Leon proved to be a real workout resulting in 3 short swims, one wood encounter and 3 very cold and tired boys. Paddling St. Leon creek at the highest flow I have yet to sample, our group is excited to return when things begin to settle down out there in those mountains. In the meantime, Phil is going to work on his boat control, Hayden his play-boat boofing and me, my left-twist slalom paddle strokes. Over and out amigos.

Carl, ECE paddler.

Whitewater Kayak Festival Tour of Western Canada with Endless Adventure

2011-04-22T15:29:00.011-06:00

Every year the crew at Endless Adventure embark on a summer festival tour promoting the sport of kayaking, our Ecuador adventures, and just plain having fun! This season is no different, we are heading out on the road to meet and greet as many paddlers as possible.

The Vancouver Kayak Club Chilliwack Festival April 29-May1, Chilliwack River BC.

This is a first for Endless Adventure and we are stoked, here is what the club has to say about the fest this year. For the fourth year running, this laid-back social and fun weekend event has established itself as a kick-off party for Western Canada’s whitewater enthusiasts. The beautiful Chilliwack Valley offers several excellent class II – IV river runs with boulder gardens, pool drops, and surfing waves for paddlers of all interest and skill levels, including the famous Tamihi Rapid.
Meet new and old paddling buddies, demo the latest in gear and boats from our sponsors, and enjoy the free shuttle service to/from the Chilliwack River. Always a spectator favourite, all paddlers are invited to compete in the downriver race and other popular on-river contests.

In addition to the amazing paddling, the festival has been known for its silent auction and raffle where sponsors have donated some awesome prizes, such as boats, spray decks, paddles, helmets, PFD’s, and other kayaking related products and services. The paddler’s social with live music by the band “Switch” has been a crowd favourite during past years. Festival registration includes two nights camping, one dinner, and two breakfasts; as well as a free T-Shirt if registered by April 17th. For more info or to sign up follow this link
Endless Adventure International will be donating a High Roller Ecuador Kayak Package at this years festival, come on out and make your bid for the coolest winter kayak vacation around!! for more information on the trip check out l

Three Rivers Rendezvous Pincher Creek Kayak Festival, May 21-23. Pincher Creek, Alberta

The EA crew attended this fine fest last year, it is truly all about paddling the good stuff in the frigid temps of Alberta. Not for the light of heart, bring your best puffy jacket and a dry suit.

The World Famous (in Alberta) May long weekend Pincher Creek Paddlefest is coming upon as with gusto. Nikki, Mitch, Talia and I will be on hand to help with demoing boats, instruction and maybe even some guitar tunes around the campfire.
For more information click

Professor Paddle Ball, Wenachee Washington USA. May 30/31

Endless Adventure normally attends the Wenachee River Festival, this year we are heading south a little early and hitting up the Professor Paddle Ball, one of the best festivals in the West! Here's what the crew down in Washington has to say about it...
This is the annual grassroots whitewater gathering on the Wenatchee River sponsored by ProfessorPaddle.com, Western Washington's premier whitewater kayak online community. This year's event, on May 30th and 31st (the weekend after Memorial day weekend), will feature a rodeo, down river race, chili cook-off, and numerous opportunities to paddle the world class Whitewater in the Wenatchee drainage. As a volunteer-supported grassroots event, this event attracts whitewater enthusiasts from all over the northwest and beyond, and is a great chance to reconnect with friends as well as meet new people to boat with. It will be a great party with plenty of action for boaters and non-boaters alike.
Endless Adventure International will be donating a two for one trip for an Ecuador All-inclusive kayak vacation.
For more information on the fest check out

The Shindig Festival, Sturgeon Falls, Manitoba, June 3-5th

We stopped by this fest on our premier voyage across Western Canada and it did not disappoint!! There is a reason they call it Friendly Manitoba!! These dudes and dudettes really know how to put on a festival! Here is the invite straight from the Manitoba Kayak Club....

Come join us for our annual Shindiggg held in June. Our annual summer festival has been growing in recent years. In addition to the crew from Manitoba, we are happy to host a number of out of town paddlers from around Canada and the USA for a great weekend of paddling, games, fireworks, a great Saturday dinner and party with DJ, and a wicked Sunday morning breakfast from WAV paddling. We're looking forward to seeing you all this time around. Can't wait! Who will win the MWC Shindig Champion championship belt?

Endless Adventure will be donating a Beginner Immersion Week kayak clinic this year at the festival.
For more information click here.

The Kootenay Whitewater Festival, Crescent Valley BC (near Nelson) June 25/26th at Endless Adventure

Jd on Koch Creek, a kootenay classic!

We are super stoked to host the Kootenay Festival for another year. The weekend starts off with a river run followed by lunch, land games and then off to the playboating competition, “Brilliant Bash For Cash”. Dinner on your own then back in action for THE SHOW evening entertainment ??TBA. Pilate s Sunday morning, then a river run, Team Ball Race and Boater Cross for the rest of the day.
The Kootenay Whitewater Festival is for intermediate paddler and the clinics are available for those that want to brush up on their skills. Endless Adventure will be hosting a Playboating clinic on Saturday, a Creaking clinic on Sunday, and the Basic skills and rolling clinic both days. The clinics are an additional $30 each.

The Nakusp Music Festival Kayak Demo, Nakusp BC, July 15-17.

Endless Adventure has been a proud sponsor for the last three years and we are honoured to be asked back this year! We set up shop at Saddle Mountain High Beach in Nakusp and allow Festi goers a chance to cool down on the lake a demo kayaks for FREE! We also donate a kayak package to a lucky winner. This year the fest plans to be a hit with the following head liners- The DOOBIE BROTHERS, Kevin Costner & Modern West, SOUL ASYLUM, Spirit of the West, THE SHEEPDOGS, Honeymoon Suite, SPENCER DAVIS GROUP, Canned Heat, and much, much more!!!!!! For more information click here!

The Callaghan Creek Festival and Extreme Race, Callaghan Creek, BC mid July TBA

Chris Ryman and crew will be taking the challenge of the Callaghan Creek Race this year and enjoying the festival that accompanies the race. Callaghan Creek is a pretty intense run with great drops and exciting rapids, one of the most exciting creek races out there!
Goals for this event are:
First, come out and enjoy Callaghan Creek and the surrounding area with us, watch or compete in the race, and enjoy the festival and (hopefully) the live music.
Second, help us bring as many people together as possible to create a visible show of support for saving this incredible river. The more people we can get to the fest, the more visible it will be to the people of the area and the town of Whistler that Callaghan Creek is worth saving.
Third, all profits from admission fees and donations to the festival will go to organizations fighting hard to save BC's creeks from run of river hydro development.
For more information check out

The Kananaskis Festival, August 12-14m Canoe Meadows, AB

Point Break, a great play spot on the Kan, also the site of the 2010 Canadian National Team Trials

This is one of Western Canada's biggest kayak festivals and we will be there year after year. KWF is a gathering of whitewater kayaking enthusiasts for a weekend of total FUN. It’s a chance to get out on the water, take a clinic or go on a guided run. If you’re interested in a little friendly competition you can enter events such as the freestyle rodeo, boater cross, team ball race and much more. There’s also lots going on off the water as well; BBQ, throwbag toss, live music, massage, demos, yoga, auctions….. Oh there are always some surprises….!! Look out for team koot kayak this year focused on crushing the competition in the ball race!
For more info

The Brierleys Festival August 20/21, Rocky Mountain House, Alberta

a little "king of the wave"

Although we don't usually attend this festival we proudly support it with prize donations and promotion!
The Brierley's Whitewater Classic is a whitewater festival on the North Saskatchewan River just West of Rocky Mountain House. Activities organized for the weekend including beginner kayaking tutorials, fun river events, and hole & wave ride competitions. For more information check out.

See you on the river!

Chris Ryman

ENDLESS ADVENTURE- KAYAK SALE!!

2011-03-29T15:22:00.009-06:00

Spring has sprung, what better time to dust off the paddling equipment and try out some new Jackson kayaks! Endless Adventure is having their annual spring sale. Buy any new kayak and receive a one time %20 off all in-stock gear from Sweet Protection, Astral Buoyancy, Werner Paddles, WRSI Safety, Stohlquist, Level 6, Aquabound, Snap dragon and more!

Even more! We are hosting a Customer Appreciation BBQ and FREE kayak demo April 16th at Rock Island, Trail, BC. You can welcome to visit us for some tasty BBQ and try out some new designs at Western Canada's best playspot!

Below is a list of current stock. We can also order custom colours, models in carbon/kevlar ready in as quick as two weeks!

model	Colour	type	MSRP	Sale	Sold
Villian LG	Red/Yellow	creek	$1,199.00		SOLD
Villian LG	Blue.green yellow,red	creek	$1,199.00
VillianSm	yellow	creek	$1,199.00
Super Hero 2011	yellow	creek/learning	$1,149.00
Super Hero 2010	green.black.white	creek/learning	$1,149.00	900
Super Hero 2010 Linear	blue.white	creek/learning	$1,149.00	800
Mega rocker demo	green.	creek	$1,199.00	800
Hero 2011	blue.white	creek/learning	$1,149.00
Hero 2010	red.yellow	creek/learning	$1,199.00	900	SOLD
Hero 2010 linear	red	creek/learning	$1,199.00	800	SOLD
Monstar 2010	black	play	$1,199.00
super star	blue and white	play	$1,199.00
all star	green.	play	$1,199.00
all star	red	play	$1,199.00
all star	white.orange.yellow	play	$1,199.00
star	red yellow green	play	$1,199.00
4fun	blue	river running/learning	$1,149.00
fun	white.green.red	river running/learning	$1,149.00
2fun	yellow	river running/learning	$1,149.00
Fun 1.5	Blue.green yellow,red	kids	$699.00
side kick	blue	kids	$699.00
little hero	orange. Purple	kids	$699.00
shooting star	purple	kids	$699.00

Brand	Model	Colour	MSRP	Sale
Jackson	Day Tripper 10 -2010	yellow	599	449
	Day Tripper 10	yellow	599
	Day Tripper 10	green	599
	Day Tripper 12	mixed red/purple	699	549
	Mini Tripper	green	399
	Journey 13.5	yellow	1299
	Journey 13.5	red	1299
	Journey 14	red	1299
	Journey 14	blue	1299

Heritage	Featherlite 12	orange	650	500
	Featherlite 14	yellow	799	650
	Featherlite 14	orange	799	650
	Featherlite 14.5 tandem	yellow	929	779
	Featherlite 14.5 tandem	yellow	929	779

LiquidLogic	Remix XP 9	yellow	979	825
	Remix XP 10	orange	999	850
	Remix XP 10- Demo	orange	999	850

Order your custom colour kayak or Carbon/Kevlar mix now!

Review- Jackson Hero by Endless Adventure

2011-03-29T14:37:00.010-06:00

A mere few hours before I was to embark on a kayak adventure a shipping truck pulled up to Endless Adventure bearing shiny plastic gifts. Ten minutes later I was staring at the new Super Hero and Hero and a slick looking new Rock Star by Jackson Kayak.
Seeing as I was about to head to the West Coast of BC with my friend Carl for some creek boating I choose to bring the Hero along for a try. We met up with Ryan Bayes of Western C&K who hosted us to some awesome Whitewater in the area.

In all we paddled four creek runs in 3 days including Norrish Creek, Lynn Canyon including a 20+ footer entry, the Seymour Canyon, and Lost Creek. I was able to test the Hero in steep creeking, bigger volume creeking, technical drops and some chill class II/III. I have been paddling the older version Hero while kayak guiding in Ecuador and loved the design. The new Hero seemed to be even more responsive, a trait I enjoyed from the older model. I also noticed the aggressive edges and amazing initial stability of the Hero. The planning hull did tend to slide me off line if I wasn't paying attention but an easy draw stroke brought it back into play effortlessly. Surfing was a blast, literally, I was able to edge transfer, front surf, side surf, and spin. The newer model is a bit shorter too making play boating moves more attainable like wave wheels and even loops! I have spent the last three years learning these tricks with the Hero on bigger volume runs and the new kayak outperforms on all playful accounts. On the bigger volume creeks the Hero had the speed to charge holes and being the lowest volume kayak on the run I also noticed how the Hero subbed out going through holes and re emerged in an even manner. Boofing was awesome in the new Hero, being lightweight the kayak would fly off boofs effortlessly, landing was a little more or a challenge since a slight presentation of an edge on landing would put you in a unstable position. As far as my advanced creeking machine goes I will have to paddle the model a little more to get used to some of the new boat quirks and really enjoy the Hero as a tight and technical creeking weapon. The small stature and aggressive edges of the Hero open up some great possibilities for the expert creeker looking to make the most of their favourite run. You can zig-zag across the river and hit ALL the boofs you ever wanted.

9 of 10 pugs prefer the Hero!

I also demoed the Hero on some class II/III water too and this is where this kayak design flourishes! Floating into eddy lines and boils sideways, dropping into little holes off edge, manoeuvring around shallow rocks, I tried to get myself into trouble numerous times with no luck. The Hero is just plain stable and confidence inspiring in moderate water. I could not believe how forgiving the edges are and how generally user friendly the kayak is. Comfortable, lightweight, stable, surfing ability all the prefect ingredients for the class II/III+ kayaker. As I said about the 2007 Hero design if you are planning to have just one kayak and want to explore many types of whitewater the Hero is where it is at!

Hero Videos

Lynn Creeks Twin Falls
Jackson Kayak Hero Promo Video

Numerical Rating

Speed 6 out of 10
Stability 9 out of 10
Carving 8 out of 10
Surfing 7 out of 10
Comfort 10 out of 10
Playful/FUN 10 out of 10

OVERALL 8 out of 10

SPECS

Hero- $1,149 (Elite) – $999 (Super Linear)
Length: 88” (or 7’ 4”)- 223cm.
Width: 26″- 66cm
Height: 15.0” – 38 cm
Volume: 76.5 gallons- 289 litres
Cockpit: 35″ x 20.5″-89cm X 52cm
Weight: 39 pounds – 17.7 KGs
Target weight range: 115-190 pounds- 52KGs-86 KGs

Super Hero- $1,149 (Elite) – $999 (Super Linear)
Length = 93” (or 7’ 9”)-236cm
Width = 27″- 68cm
Height=16″- 40cm
Volume =90 gallons- 342 litres
Cockpit: 37″ x 21.5″– 94cm X 54.6cm
Weight: 42 pounds-19 KGs
Target weight range: 155-290 pounds- 70KGs- 130 KGs

Come on out to our Customer Appreciation FREE BBQ and kayak Demo at Rock Island, Trail on April 16th 1pm.

NEW Jackson Kayak Designs at Endless Adventure available now! Call or stop by our Crescent Valley BC location. You can also order your own custom colours or even Carbon in most JK kayaks with only a two week waiting list!

CONTACT:

Endless Adventure
1286 HWY 6N
Crescent Valley BC
V0G 1H0
877-386-8181

See you on the water!
Chris Ryman

Ecuador Update Jackson Kayak – Whitewater, Recreational, Touring and Fishing kayaks

2011-03-18T15:18:00.000-06:00

Check out what Team Jackson Kayak members said about Ecuador and Endless Adventure International!

Ecuador Update Jackson Kayak – Whitewater, Recreational, Touring and Fishing kayaks

A New SuperHero flies into Ecuador!

2011-02-12T09:48:00.008-07:00

Team Jackson Kayak members Marty Cronin and Brian"Frenchie" Gardel get their boof on with Endless Adventure International.

After a whirlwind travel from across the continent JK Team members arrived at our base camp in beautiful Borja. As my driver pulled up with the boyz I noticed a shinny new red SuperHero in the back waiting to be boofed. Marty and Frenchie seemed stoked to get going and the going we would get as our first run on the three day agenda was the Upper Jondachi! After suiting up Frenchie with a new Villain S I grabbed a Villain for myself and we were on our way to the river at the crack of noon. We arrived around 1:30 and met up with one of our guides Abraham Herrara, his girlfriend Natalie on crutches, and a little Chihuahua named “Snakebait”. Actually, the dogs name is Henry but given where we were and the size of the dog, Marty coined him a new name. We decided to put in on the Urcusiqui, a tributary to the Upper Jondachi that bypasses a gruelling hike through steep mud after all paddlers present chose kayaking over walking; big surprise there.
The trib was not exactly a warm up as we were faced with endless three to six foot angled boofs into tiny pools right from the start. The low volume creek was enclosed by a canopy of bamboo, and other crazy jungle greenery that made the creek seem even smaller. Small to medium sized round boulders were scattered about with water channels smoothing over them offering up the chance to boof our butts off literally. What a trip it was for the boyz, just paddling the trib would be enough to fill their paddling booties but we had more to come with the infamous Upper Jondachi.
Marty lining up a boof
Abraham getting a facefull
Frenchie on the Jondachi
Marty smiling for the camera!

As we entered the Jondachi from the trib the volume difference was substantial not only that, the water colour changed from clear to slightly muddy, always a good sign in a jungle river that can flash flood in seconds. If the first drop was any indication of our day we were up for a beauty, a seven foot boof with two channel options into a pool before another four foot drop. After seal launching the first rapid below the normal put in we were full on no looking back. We had one more portage just more than half way down due to a couple badly placed logs that ixnayed one of my favourite drops. As we were finishing the portage we put our boats down on a gravel bar on the river left to asses our next move. A few seconds later we noticed our boats floating and the gravel bar quickly disappearing, it was unanimous decision to get the heck in the river as fast as we would. It was not the first time this river has spiked on me and we were all very fortunate that it did when we were on the bottom half of it. The high water was a blessing after putting in so late we actually pulled out at the bridge before dark. The adventure did not end there as most don't in Ecuador. Abraham's girl did not make the take out to pick him up and the possibilities of a non spanish speaking woman in Ecuador with bait for a dog on crutches no less, were swimming in our minds. We decided to drive to Tena and with phone service start making the desperate calls to solve the mystery. Luckily, Natalie was able contact my dear wife Andrea with her last call on a low battery phone. She was stranded at the put in with a dead battery phone and car as well Abe was on on route to save the day with the Bomberos (firefighters) to find brave Natalie crutching her way along the highway with little dog by her side. What a wild warm up for the jungle overnighter on the Hollin River we were to experience the next day.
The Spiders that guard the entrance to the Hollin.
Seal launching the IK
Frenchie stylin the entrance waterfall
Me giviner

The Hollin River is one of my favs in Ecuador. First of all it starts with a twenty footer and numerous class IV-V drops, one of them into a cave. The scenery is fantastic with tonnes of waterfalls cascading into the river on both sides, colourful butterflies and birds and the best campsite I have ever been to. I arranged for an Inflatable Kayak to support the trip with camping equipment and of course party favours for a night around the campfire. EAI guide and cook Abby Dent came along to guide the IK and prepare meals with Andy Nowatski in the front paddling his heart out. I could write a blog on the adventures of the IK alone. Since the run starts out pretty gnarly the swims were stacking up as Abby and Andy were trying to figure out how to manoeuvre the class III craft through class IV+. I noticed Andy looking upstream after a the first swims contemplating the jungle hike out. Andy is one tough mother and I has been dragged through many adventures with a positive survival rating so he stuck with the mission. We were all pretty excited to see we were at camp after what seemed to be a long day of paddling. After about an hour of setting up camp and getting the fire going we were ready to relax and exchange stories of which were mostly kayaking dominated.

me and Abby preparing Pasta with pepperoni sauce and garlic bread on one of the finest kayak tables around!

Camp at the Hollin

We sat circled around a fire and gazed at the stars with one of three fine drink options to warm our hearts and prepare us for a night of sleeping in the jungle. The next morning Marty enjoyed some fly fishing while we all relaxed in the picturesque scenery of camp. A class V rapid pounding into a wall that leads into a sieve, a hundred foot waterfall, lush jungle in the background, and a sandy beach to sleep on and chill. It was a hard place to leave but we were set for a long day of paddling.
One of the many waterfalls pouring into the Hollin
Team IK getting some downtime!
Another beauty IK drop

one of the may boofs on the Hollin

The following day was perfect, great weather, great lines, with great friends. We saw Morpho butterflies, kingfishers, and even fish on our low stress meander through the jungle. After getting off the river at sixish we ended the day properly with a gigantic steak at The Marquis Restaurante (Pee-wees). Marty and Frenchie were on there way for more adventures and I was counting my last days in this spectacular country of Ecuador.

See you on the river,
Chris Ryman

D.I.Y Kayak Backpack for under $25

2011-01-09T05:30:00.002-07:00

How often do we find ourselves shouldering our creekers up some long, crappy river access trail, or worse, up and out of some steep canyon followed by some great distance back to a shuttle vehicle. In spite of every one's battered and blistered shoulders, THIS ALMOST ALWAYS SUCKS!

Last fall a few friends and I met with some Vancouver locals who were heading out to paddle North Van's short but infamous Seymour Canyon run. While the unseasonably low water levels failed to provide any sort of sheer excitement, I at least ended the day feeling intrigued about a contraption that was being implemented by some locals during the 30+min trail crawl up to the Canyon's put-in.

Having seen and heard nothing but negative stories about most other Sherpa pack inspired, kayak carrying designs, my once kindled interest in owning such a device has long since flush drowned in some dark and dirty back eddy here in the Kootenays. Instead, many of us continue to opt for the standard 'alternating shoulder' kayak carry method. And why not? It's easy and free to own, and when one shoulder gets tired, we switch to the other... Ain't that reasonable? Naw really, If our shoulders could speak they would certainly tell us to f-off after a few minutes of this general abuse.

Now, if the pictures haven't already clued you in, here then is the skinny on how to build yourself one of these handy-dandy 'DIY kayak-backpacks' that have more or less redefined how I am going to carry my boat over those long, steep portages where low overhead brush is at a minimum.

Your shopping list:

2x Replacement Duffel Bag Straps from MEC/REI ($6 ea.)

4x Black Diamond 'Mini Micron' (or similar) luggage carabiners ($3 ea.)

1x Section of scrap throw rope (if needed) for building 2 seat mounted gear loops. (JK and a few other manf.'s do not currently come with any rear seat loops leaving us to get out a cordless drill and a coat hanger for rope guiding). ~Notice the dried blood left in my boat after I tore my knuckle off while reaching under the seat to feed rope through the holes I had drilled. Obviously, your kayak MUST also have 2 grab loops on the back-deck in order for this system to work successfully.

TOTAL COST: $24 + HST (12% Campbell Severance Pay Tax)

You may find that most duffel replacement straps come with heavy swiveling, latching mount mechanisms that I.M.O are the weakest part of the entire system... so bye-bye they go...

However, these mechanisms also conform to the strap's general flat shape, thus you may want to do some work to 'reform' the webbing so that it seats appropriately on each carabiner. In my case, the BD Microns each came with a 1" key ring that I was able to slip over the folded and biner'ed strap ends. This helps hold the freshly folded over webbing loops in place at each carabiner... Dammit, just look closely at the pic's and you should get the idea. Each folded strap mount will eventually 'break in' to their new shape after a simple portage or two.

Next, clip in to your seat and back deck grab-loops and adjust the straps to your torso and shoulders prior to putting the whole thing on your back. TIP: the longer the straps are set, the easier it is to put the unit on your body.

And, there you have it! Once sorted out, you will notice how balanced the boat feels while portaging, especially when the stern is slightly loaded with one's trusty safety gear, breakdown paddle, a chainsaw and a six pack of PBR.

"Hey, now where's that beer I put down?"

Carl.

The Lower Papallacta-STEEP CREEKING IN ECUADOR

2010-12-25T09:14:00.007-07:00

Almost every creeking community has a pinnacle steep creeking run that challenges the best of boaters. White Salmon, Washington has The Little White, The West Kootenays has Upper Pingston, and Whistler, the Callahan, etc. Such runs exist after numerous gruelling attempts in the past by boaters who saw a line and knew it could be done. In Ecuador, where I have the pleasure of spending my winters and showing the line to tonnes of stoked paddlers, we have the Lower Papallacta. This run is seriously full on, bring your A+ game on this one for sure. If steep continuous creeking floats your boat put this one on your bucket list.

The run starts pretty fast, no chance for a warm up on this baby. The put-in is directly above a bridge with a steep staircase of holes ending in two potential pin rocks. If you are lucky and the water is at a medium or lower level you may have the luxury of eddying out after the drop. Take a breather because the next two kilometres are continuous and steep with big boulder boofs, giant ledges and of course ass-kicking holes. About three kilometres into the run is a very consequential rapid, the best landmark is a large table top rock on the left and one of the many horizon lines. The rapid starts with a tongue and a piton rock on the left, all the water pushing right and four slots at the bottom, the two on the right mean, at the very least, a pin, possibly broken legs or worse, so yeah; go left fighting the current the whole time, next up a series or stern squirting holes. Yeee haw!

I would love to tell you that it starts to cool down a bit at this point but that is not the case. The run continues to surprise with even more big, steep rapids and crazy must make moves. For example, some of the names of the rapids are -- “Trust the pillow”, “It get's better”, and “Boof Alley”. About half way down the river it does actually calm down a little bit, you will know you are there because you will see a cow pasture on the left and a gravel bar on the right, take this time to empty your boat if you are not paddling a Jackson, hehe. Seriously your brain may start to hurt at this point from being overwhelmed with the continuous, committing nature of the run. Have a granola bar and some V220 (Ecuadorian red bull on steroids) the fun doesn't stop here. For the remainder of the rapid the river channelizes a bit and you will experience some STEEP LONG drops with numerous boofs. No problem hitting the centennial boof mark on the Papallacta as there are classic one to three metre boofs EVERYWHERE! One of the last drops is especially awesome, it is one of those rapids that you may not run if you have a boo at it. The total drop is about twelve metres high in three stages. It all starts out on the left with some sweet little boofs and techie moves, the next drop is best run with a hard drive centre and a two plus metre boof into a series of arm ripping holes. Right before the end of the run and the confluence of the Quijos river there is a challenging class IV+/V drop called Quijos-Huyco. After a thrilling entry rapid you find yourself staring at a horizon line on the slot second from the left. At lower levels the smooth slanted boof rock is showing on the right side, the line is to drive centre of the slab rock and boof straight into a huge black rock downstream, take this three metre boof with a righty, land with a left pulling away from the pillow. Then next move if you are on it, is a second two metre boof to the left over a typewriter hole, eddy out and pinch yourself. I suggest you run Cheese house too if you have the energy, it makes for an easier shuttle and it's a nice cool down but still a challenge.

There is one memory that stands out from my numerous runs on the Papallacta. The first time I ran the Pap was my second day in country with Marco Colella, he had run it the year prior and I was itchin' for some creeking. In preparation of our acclimatization Marco and I decided to drink mass amounts of water. I mean we were chugging water steady the whole drive there. So after the most demanding run of my life we were wiped, I swear I felt like a kid in the back of a family car on a long ride asking papa Marco --”How much longer?” To which he should have replied -- “I'll turn this car around!” After a couple of hours of given' er we reached the confluence rapid. Marco turned to me and asked if we should scout the upcoming class IV+, to which I replied; “no I am too tired lets just go!” Not the smartest answer of my boating career. We pretty much ran the rapid backwards, upside down and on the wrong line. We rolled up at the bottom and for some reason my hands were stuck to my paddle, I tried throwing the paddle but could not release. I turned to Marco and he had one hand locked on the the shaft of his paddle and the other crimped into a perma-claw. We looked at each other in astonishment and in unison shouted; “My hands are stuck”. Apparently, if you drink a load of water without also consuming salt you imbalance your potassium/sodium levels and you may experience muscle cramping. We were informed of this after running the next section, Cheese House, in absolute total pain, by Marco's dear personal trainer wife Jenny. So, the moral of the story is this -- Do not make haste decisions because you are to tired to get out of your boat and have a look, and drink lots of water but make sure to balance it out with some extra salt on the fires or some good ol' salty Ecuadorian Gatorade.

Disclaimer time! This is merely a story based on my experiences on the river, it is NOT a guide book. I have been paddling for over 15 years, instructing for 13, and running the shit for over 6 years. For this reason I am able to run the Papallacta. Since the Twitch videos, starring the likes of Tao Berman and Marco Colella, creek boating has hit the mainstream and many class III paddlers are thirsting for more and taking the huge leap to becoming a class IV+ paddler. Creeking on the level of a class IV+/V is a serious commitment. You are putting your life on the line and the life of your friends every time you hop in your boat on a serious creek run. DO NOT take this lightly. I suggest nailing your local class IV creek run without rolling about 90% of the time before you take the next step, rolling on class V can be lethal. You may not be a class V boater if you are rolling down creeks and surviving them instead of styling them. The ability to huck a big waterfall into an easy pool does not make you a class V paddler. I also suggest you adopt the Colorado rule, s/he who rolls the most on any given run buys ice cream for the rest of the paddlers. Practice your low brace! As Tao says; “Rolling is bad, you should not spend anytime upside down on anything above class IV+” Thanks for the advice Tao I have made this my mantra while creeking, since then I have paddled the Papallacta without any rolls, something I am super proud of.

See you on the river,

Chris Ryman

Aventuras in Ecuador.

2010-12-14T08:03:00.013-07:00

A good friend of mine likes to use the expression “Aventuras in Ecuador” to describe the random and totally unexpected experiences a traveler will encounter. For instance, the friend in question, Jim (pronounced “Him”) was just hanging out at the local Ecuadorian disco one night and asked a pretty woman to dance, now he lives with her and son in Tena living the relaxed life. Now that is a full on life changing aventura in Ecuador. As Jim would agree, the best adventures happen with you just go with the flow. I write this blog after spending three days at Canoa beach where my only daily plan was to drink coffee at the Surf Shack and then let the adventuras present themselves. Day one started midway through my second press of coffee when the owner asked if I wanted to drive shuttle for him another paraglide pilot. Hmm let me think, 4X4ing in Ecuador, not yet checked off the ol' bucket list- Bring it on! Within twenty minutes I was staring over Canoa from the highest point in town, trying to rub the white out of my knuckles due to the over clutching of the “holyshit” bar of Bills Land Cruiser that rocketed us the to the top. As the boys were preparing to fly I was being totally entertained by horrific stories of paragliding crashes and screaming widows at funerals. Thanks for that Bill, ixnay on such stories near my wife, as I really want to get into the sport someday soon. The aventura was far from over, now I had the pleasure if driving the little truck that could down the super sketch class IV+ rutted sandy slope. Yee haw, whose got the “holyshit” bar now sukka? BTW, for some awesome long term or weekend stays in Canoa check out Greg's Hotel right on the beach.

Over the last few years here I have improved my ability to let is flow and learn to free myself to such adventures. This year alone I was able to drive on several occasions, The first time was coming back from Kayak practice with my youth development kids after our driver decided to try out the sport of kayaking mixed with the sport of swimming, the two should rarely be combined. Sopping wet Sisto asked me to drive the truck back with six kayaks in the back and an equal number of kids spilling out of the cab. I made sure to honk the police on the way by and flash them a peace sign. It may seem like a trivial thing to drive a truck but, to most Ecuadorians their truck is a baby and hard to trust a gringo with despite the fact that most gringos have an extra three generations of driving experience engrained in them. To prove the point, I am pretty sure I hold the first decent in successfully backing a truck into our boathouse without at least a two or three point-turn.

Unplanned exists on river runs or rapid shooting (for you old skoolers out there) is also a great source of aventuras in Ecuador. One time four of us decided to run the Papallacta at near flood levels, not really the most thought out plan considering it can make your sphincter shrink even at low levels. So two kilometres or 5 minutes later we decided to hike out. The hike was a fairly steep cow pasture and it just so happens that one of our paddlers was hiking a shiny red kayak on his shoulder when a not so friendly bull noticed. We all stopped dead in our tracks and waited for disaster. A moment later a four foot, three inch one hundred year old lady ran out of nowhere wielding a stick and made that bull cower like a sweater wearing Jack Russel facing a Pit-bull. After thanking the woman for our lives we were on our way promising to never bring the red kayak along on such doomed to be sketchy adventures.

As you may have noticed, the above aventura examples have bloomed without the help of alcohol, please young impressionable readers take note; you do not need the old bad idea juice to have a great time. A few years back we just happened to be in San Francisco de Borja during their anniversary celebrations. On a side note, you can pretty much travel across the country and stop at different small towns along the way being exposed to the craziest parties you can imagine. There is always something to celebrate in Ecuador and they are the professionals at it. The Borja celebrations started with a thirty-foot high bonfire of bamboo and lots of oil products at around nine o clock.
After the official start of the party, friendly locals were handing out free samples of Aguardiente, a warm mix of fruit juice, cinnamon, and cane alcohol. I call this ritual paying the subscription to “Gringo Television” All the locals have to do is keep the free hooch pouring and they can enjoy the constant entertainment of the gringos making total asses of themselves. Gringo TV did not disappoint that night, one of our good friends from a place called Newfoundland (consider the MTV version of gringo TV), decided with some coaxing that it would be a good idea to join the youngsters in the inflatable jumpy castle. After some uncoordinated back flip attempts and various other style-points scored he was punched in the face by a 9-year-old boy causing his lip to bleed. After being ejected from the play park he went on to have various other unknown adventures that ended in the final resting place of my driver Wilos ditch.

There are almost too many adventures to recite in detail but I will lay out a few for you briefly -- Getting a shuttle ride in the back of a police truck after a day of paddling. Being on a parade float in kayak gear holding a fishing rod with a recently dead trout on it. Swinging from a tree with three other monkeys. Hosting a free kayak and rafting day for the locals and having a surprise 400 people show up. Passing out on concrete stairs on new years eve fifteen minutes before twelve. Being on a river that rose 2 meters with only fifteen minutes warning. Almost getting arrested four days prior to leaving the country after retrieving MY kayak from a bandit guide from Tena. Bringing school supplies to a poor jungle school in the middle of nowhere and sitting in on the class, sharpening pencils and meeting really great kids. Witnessing the prize bovine of 2009 projectile poo on a friend of mine. But the most important aventura of all is the daily encounters I have with the wonderful people of this country and sharing the country and kayaking with my beautiful wife, friends and guests.

See you on and off the river!
Chris Ryman

New ECE video for 2011 - Deep Runs the Canyon

2010-12-01T02:31:00.027-07:00

This third installment from the West Kootenay, BC based Endangered Creeks Expedition (ECE) attempts to capture the most compelling of all whitewater paddling landscapes, the canyon. In BC, run-of-river power projects tend to threaten canyons which often lie downstream of major points of diversion or dam construction. Left to the wind, these unique places can suffer irreversible damage through altered seasonal flows, debris build-up and water warming trends. With their turbulent depths pumping cool air in the height of the summer, a canyon's micro-climate sustains diverse forms of vegetation, insect and animal life. Interfere with this flux and you alter a system that's been operating far longer than a forty year power purchase agreement.

Motivated by the potential of losing these areas to destructive run-of-river developments, members of the ECE set out to document some of the most remote sites in the West Kootenay region. Similar to previous ECE films, Deep Runs the Canyon exposes awe inspiring scenic beauty while being challenged by dynamic flow obstructions and ever-pressing logistical access issues. Using whitewater kayaks as their vehicles, the ECE collective once again reaches new depths in their quest to contribute to the defense of BC's least explored environments.

Background:
Currently, the BC Government is poised to transfer ownership rights to over 700 of our wild and scenic waterways. This could mean the building of hundreds of independent power projects in watersheds throughout the province, without any adequate review of the environmental or community impacts. This will result in incalculable damage to wild and scenic rivers through road building, habitat destruction, water-diversion and a maze of new power transmission lines.

An advance video teaser edit from this project is available here: http://www.daintydeathy.com/films.html

NEW Grade 4/5 Creek Run coming to the West Kootenays in 2011

2010-11-22T01:16:00.007-07:00

SO,
As a humble RN who has been working primarily night shifts between Nakusp and New Denver for the past 6 months, I find myself having a fair amount of spare time during the day to spend exploring the many creeks in this area. One such creek has kept me coming back on numerous occasions now as there are far too many reasons why we can’t ignore the thing anymore. In my opinion, this steep creek classic hosts quite possibly the best grade 4/5 boulder garden boof fest that I have yet to see in the Slocan Lake basin. Have you guessed which creek I am referring to yet? Keep reading then...

With the cooler temps dropping water levels way off now, I have kept myself busy removing the few wood jams that plague this run. I would say wood is 75% responsible for having prevented this creek from being added to the kootenay creek boaters’ hit list, season after season. The remaining 25% can be attributed to the sheer laziness of us west kootenay paddlers who more often than not are far too complacent with the few creeks that we currently paddle - And dare I say it, of the few quality west kootenay creeks that we do frequent year after year, few exist within an hour's drive of our local paddling shop and pseudo pre-trip meeting place, Endless Adventure.

So what can I say about this new creek run that I am doing such a fine job of hyping up? Well, first off, IT IS GOING TO BE OFF THE HOOK once it returns to life this coming spring... It will by far be THE BEST run in the Slocan valley after it gets flagged and cleared, and there is so little work to do... Just a few wooden big boys remain in just the right (or wrong) places... For sheer reference, the run itself will paddle similar to the Little White Salmon "Gettin Busy" section with some hefty class V boulder drops that actually GO! There will most likely be 2 portages that I can see so far. This is due to some manky boulder fields that have neither rhyme nor reason. But from what open lines that remain (mostly above the bridge and running for about a kilometre or so) they will be absolutely SICK!!!! Sluice box slides, meatballs, monster boulder boofs tucked in with tight eddy pools and optional line staircase gorilla drops in all the right places... Still haven’t guessed what creek I am talking about yet...?

As a method of off season training and for environmental reasons, I have been choosing to cut much of the wood out with a 32" hand held bow saw. However I will soon have to resort to a power-saw running biodegradable bar/chain oil to keep things tidy out there in the ol’ woods.

If you still haven’t guessed what creek I am talking up yet, here is your first and only clue.
Before long we will “Boldly go where no man (or woman) has gone before..."

See you in 2011 suckers!

PS: I will have a beautiful new trailer for my next ECE (Endangered Creeks Expedition) inspired film up online in a week or so. LOOK FOR IT AND SPREAD THE HYPE as I want this thing to get a real buzz going before the drone of any power saws take over!

Over and out,
Carl - aka - tripper

The Upper Misahualli- A Classic Jungle Creeking Experience

2010-11-16T05:14:00.007-07:00

Picture for a moment floating down emerald flowing water with lush plant life arching overhead. New and distinctive smells are enticing your senses while a symphony of birds provide the score. You let your hand drag in the warm crystal clear water. Children swim and sunbath in the tropical heat while parents do laundry. This my friends is jungle kayaking at it’s best -- The Upper Misahualli.
Most paddlers visiting Ecuador will have this run on their wish list for good reason. With multiple put-in options, the Upper Miss is a fantastic run for timing and varied grades of whitewater. If you want more challenge put in higher up to the San Francisco or Lodo section. For an easier put in try from the town of Cotundo as an alternative, you miss about 5 rapids that can be a slight step up.

Overall, the Upper Miss is exactly what you might expect of a low volume creek in the jungle. The setting is so fascinating it is often hard to pay attention to your intended line as you rubberneck at every new sight and sound. The river meanders through giant boulders with moderate flat sections followed by steep gradient. Most drops involve zig zagging around smooth rock and with the option to boof two to four footers into small pools. If your boof stroke is not perfect don’t fret, but the end of the run you will have ample practice.

With the exception of the top section, most rapids can be scouted easily with a quick hop out of your boat. One rapid in particular towards the bottom of the run is a great idea to scout. Elbow rapid, named by a good friend who discovered what running it upside down does to your elbows, is worthy of a scout. The drop is not pretty by any means and is a great challenge to run it without hitting a rock especially at low water levels. The next few sections before the take out are more spread out and less intimidating. A new malicon has been constructed changing the last few rapids into giant swim pools for the locals to enjoy. On the plus side, you have the ease of taking out with nice concrete stairs and entertainment as you see the local families enjoying the magic of the river.
I highly suggest the Upper Miss for an entry-level creeking experience in Ecuador, if the river looks too intimidating, try the Tena for a warm up. Bring you camera, a smile and get ready to experience not only great creeking but also a big dose of Ecuador culture.

See you on the river,

Chris Ryman

Grand Canyon of the Stikine Video

2010-10-15T11:44:00.006-06:00

As usual most of my blogging has been for Wavesport and Level Six if you want to stay up to date with what I am up to your best bet is to keep an eye on those blogs. Anyways here is my 2010 wrap up video including most of my footage from our trip down the Grand Canyon of the Stikine at the end of August.

Thanks from Endless Adventure!!

2010-09-11T11:43:00.004-06:00

Endless Adventure would like to extend a huge thanks to all of our loyal customers over the 2010 season, thanks to you we had an amazing year. We are also excited to offer all-inclusive kayak packages to Ecuador through our new expansion- Endless Adventure International. We could have not grown without the support of our local community, friends and family.
This season has been our best yet with new programs like our 5-day Kayak Beginner Immersion Week and our Youth Kayak Development Program. Our youth program worked tirelessly to train and support young paddlers wishing to compete in freestlye kayaking. This year we sent 4 juniors to the Canadian Freestyle Team Trials with our own Nick Barisoff placing 6th in Canada while Coach Ryman placed in the top ten mens division.

We have also seen growth in our women specific programs like our Weekly female paddle night; women on water, and our womens week kayak course. Through the efforts of our mostly female kayak staff we have seen a vibrant and growing women paddling community. Way to go ladies, next year we will see even more women getting out on the water.

July was youth month at Endless Adventure with new exciting programs encouraging kids to get outdoors and experience self propelled sports. Our Youth Kayak week was a huge success with youngsters learning the way of the kayak. For the first time ever we ran a 5-day intermediate kayak course that introduced important safety and rescue skills to young paddlers wanting to take the next step in the wonderful world of kayaking. Our Kids Eco camp enjoyed its second season fully booking two 5day programs. Kids learned about sustainability, ecology and the importance of enjoying low impact sports and activities.

The Endless Adventure Team also traveled across western Canada competing in events and promoting the Kootenays at Whitewater festivals. We brought our kootenay spirit to Clearwater BC, Kananaskis AB, Pincher Creek AB, Wenachee WA, Tofino BC, and Enderby BC, and since then we have seen a increase of paddlers coming to see what the Kootenays has to offer!

Over and above our exciting programs, Endless Adventure enjoyed a successful season teaching people of all ages to kayak through pool sessions in Castlegar, weekend courses, private lessons and school groups. Endless Adventure joined the whitewater rafting scene in addition to our increasingly popular inflatable kayak tours with $29 rafting trips during every weekend in August. We also go on board with the Stand Up Paddling craze renting boards and selling equipment, stay tuned next year for our new line of SUP clinics.

What is next for 2010/2011? After a 6-week program of learn to kayak pool clinics starting in September we head off to Ecuador for 3 months of all inclusive kayak and beach tours catering to all skill levels of paddler. What better way to enjoy your winter vacation than kayaking the remote jungle rivers of Ecuador or leaning to paraglide at one of the most beautiful beaches in South America.
Thanks again for an amazing season!

See you on the river,
Chris Ryman

Brierley's Whitewater Classic

2010-08-28T11:24:00.003-06:00

The 9th Annual Brierley's Whitewater Classic was once again, a fun filled event...despite the 3 days of rain over the weekend. The event started with a morning registration at the Brierley's site, and a hearty pancake/sausage/egg breaky at the Parks Canada Rocky Mountain House Historical Site. After scarfing down a gut bomb of sausage, the crew gathered for an intermediate Blue Bridge to Brierley's run, while the beginner group headed off for an instructional float from Brierley's down to the Rocky Water Treatment Plant. Meanwhile, Eric Albert, Ryan Carroll, and Gerald Hendrichs set up the huge sound system at point blank range of the lower hole at the Brierley's for the main hole event at 2:00 pm. Spectators horded shortly thereafter, obviously attracted to the area by the blaring tunes. With great eddy service, and the hold being right around 100 CMS, people were well within their comfort zone to test and observe great tricks by kayakers and C1ers alike. Cartwheels, McNasty's, Godzillas, and impressive displays of no handed loops by some of our younger members really boosted the energy level of the entire event.
Endless Adventures was very generous in donating a Level 6 Duke Drytop for the event. The winner of the drytop was one of our younger paddlers, Grant Hunter. Grant started off the year with side surfs, progressed to flat spins, and went right into doing no paddle loops! Fitting that he won the drytop, being that he started off the season with a cheap spraytop which he converted into a semi-drytop after gluing in his own gaskets. Good job Grant!

Despite the poor weather and cold, wet gear, spirits remained high throughout the second day. Surf clinics, and a progressive move for the beginners into the intermediate Blue Bridge run dominated the morning. At 2:00 pm the hole riding event resumed, but was cut short due to a rapidly moving storm cell that rocked the area with lightning, hail, and a sheet of rain. The Brierley's campsite was flooded almost instantaneously, but in true paddler fashion, many resumed back to the hole once the storm subsided, for a hole riding clinic hosted by Chip Powell.

We would like to thank all our sponsors, especially Endless Adventures for their generosity. Your good will to the paddling community does not go unnoticed.
Cheers,
Eric Albert
Assistant Event Organizer

Locals Only Sneek Peak

2010-07-09T15:39:00.002-06:00

When Kelsey asked me to help him with his movie "Locals Only" I was stoked, I could be a part of a cool project without all the work it takes to finish such a big project. In short I get to help with all the fun stuff, paddling and filming and I don't have to do any of the boring part soliciting sponsors and finishing the project. Here is what Kelsey has to say about the film.

Or you can just check out the pre-teaser he has put together.

The Shuswap Paddle Party.

2010-06-11T13:41:00.009-06:00

Wandering into the grounds of the Shuswap paddle fest was like tumbling down the rabbit hole. I quickly realized that the event had more emphasis on the party than the paddle. Tents strewn across the grounds with limbs hanging out the doors were an indication of the previous nights exploits. Artful signs were posted on trees with a concert line-up that resembled fests like Shambala or Koots Roots. The concert stages were freshly constructed out of neighboring cedars. The main stage was awesome, a two tier stage complete with backdrop and lights. The DJ booth looked like the turntables were inside a huge shark mouth with carefully carved teeth made of wood. Giant Chinese gold cats and all kinds of funky trinkets were placed randomly near the stages. There were two teepees near the stages, one housed a few leather couches and a glass top coffee table, the other a shoe swap and costume trunk room for festies to dress up and upgrade their footwear. I had a good chuckle to myself when I saw the glass table in particular, imagine being in a forest in the middle of nowhere and coming upon a rustic looking teepee with a $3000 living room set inside it, what a trip. The other side of the grounds had two food concessions and a baseball diamond with tents starting to pop up in the outfield.
After getting my feel of the fest that was about to explode into my eardrums I checked out the rodeo site on the banks of the Shuswap. A judging booth on one side and a rather large kicker ramp whose lip was about 12 feet from the water surface that made my lower backache just looking at it. This fest was going to be one to remember for sure. The Endless Adventure team set up camp and a demo area halfway between the grounds and the river where the rafts set up shuttle. We had a great spot in the woods with our tents set up and a slew of new Jackson Kayaks for anyone to demo for free. Throughout the morning festies started setting up camp all around us and filling the baseball diamond and surrounding area. It was noticeable just what kind of party this would be when most of the cars arriving were not pulling kayaks out but rather hula-hoops, spring-loaded stilts, costumes and other party ware.
The first event was the ball race starting at the crack of noon only 2 hours after the supposed time. The format was a 3 boater team with one beach ball, first ball to make it from the put in to the kicker ramp wins, only rule was no skirt pulling which I am pretty sure was ignored. Soon after the start of the race three swimmers left their kayaks and I was dodging a yard sale as well as aggressive local boater to try and find our ball. James Roddick, Kelsey Thompson and myself were trying hard to get our ball down the river amongst the assault of hacking paddle blades and pushy big water. At one point James had to bail on the race to help a struggling swimmer, a move that sealed our victory. There were two other balls in the lead with golden girls, the Enderby locals and ours who were doing a great job at being a pain in the ass. One paddler ended up tossing our ball into an impossible eddy I could not attain soon enough taking us out of the lead. All I could do was wait in the lower eddy while the two teams tangled each other up. Sure enough James came down to rescue our ball after saving the swimmer and we were back in the game. While Kelsey caused problems for the two leading teams, James and I knocked our ball past the finish line barely bothered by other paddlers. A sweet victory thanks to the added karma from James’ heroics.
The next event was the freestyle rodeo, a loosely judged competition giving paddlers approximately 2 minutes in the hole to throw down. The feature was kayak shredder with only about 6 inches from the pit to a nasty sharp rock. Loops ended with a loud thud as sterns slammed into the rocks. The men’s division outcome was typical with a Jesus look alike pro boater taking first followed by a few locals. I give my props to Kootenay local Carl Jacks who would have won for sure if effort and obscured facial expressions took the cake. Nice rides Carl-you were really given’r.

The highlight of the competition was the women’s event. There were some sickkkk female paddlers in attendance throwing loops, cartwheels and tricks I have never seen before. I was inspired by the amount of quality chick boaters in attendance a true indication that the sport is finally shedding its machismo ways. After the competition some hucksters were hitting the kicker ramp the result a mixture of stylin aerial moves and loud smacks as flat hulls contacted flat water at high speeds. Spectators lined the shores to watch the events or line up for $25 rafting trips thanks to Shuswap paddle adventures and Ian Stibbe. Everyone was warming up for the nightly musical acts and the vibes were flowing. Our crew decided to go out for a paddle and take some tentative paddlers down the run. What a sweet stretch of whitewater, a big water feel with numerous play waves and pushy eddy lines. Andrea cleaned the run in her trusty IK while the hard shell boaters surfed the heck out of the features.

Unfortunately, I am not able to report on the Saturday night events after a nap turned into a marathon sleep with my honey. Despite the thumping baselines vibrating our tent poles and occasional visits from concerned friends we slept like we needed it. The next day looked like a war zone with dirty-footed festies passed out everywhere and remnants of what must have been an amazing night. Super bummed we missed out but ready for a day of paddling and partying we made the best of it. After another sweet run on the river we hunkered down into party mode awaiting one of our favorite performers and friends Josh Martinez. The night of partying was one to be remembered; amazingly festies still had the energy to throw down some party. We were about to go for some chill time in the costume teepee when we met up with Mr. Martinez who was gearing up in some greasy attire for his upcoming set. Josh did not disappoint at all, he fired up the crowd one last time with his cleverly engineered words and catchy beats. Thanks again Josh Martinez and all the organizers that made it happen, a truly grass roots event and a hell of a good time.

Much thanks to AMP Andrea Miller Photography for all the great images!

'do it for the love'

2010-06-10T11:21:00.002-06:00

A quick teaser Blair Trotman threw together. We've been getting out a lot on some of the Alberta Classics including Sheep and Cataract.

'do it for the love' Teaser from Blair Trotman on Vimeo.

Wenatchee Area Rivers!

2010-06-02T17:13:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago my good paddling partner Carl and I ventured to Cashmere to meet up with Marco Colella for some early season boating. This was unlike most paddling trips we have experienced, instead of shopping for cases of cheap beer we were playing cars with Marco’s 4 year old son Cino. Late night campfires were replaced with some reading and lights out by 10. Our off river activities although tamer than normal were no indication of our on river exploits. We paddled hard! For those who don’t know Marco Colella, he is an avid paddler from back in the day who still gives er. He is also one of the most exciting paddlers to follow down some chuggin class IV/V. Marco treated us to some sick lines and a non-stop sampling of the finest whitewater in Washington State.
Carl and I arrived in Cashmere to meet up with Marco and paddle Icicle creek. Our first day we paddled Icicle 3 times at varying speeds, we took it pretty conservative the first two runs and the last run Marco and I sped down the creek in 33 minutes, yee haw. Icicle is a continuous class IV-V boulder fest with a few drops of concern and lots of fun boofs. Be sure to scout anything that looks serious, a swim on this particular run would be long and painful. Ricochet is one of the coolest rapids I have paddled; take a good look at this one. Done properly Ricochet is a series of boofs one after another setting you up for endless stylistic moves that you may look back on thinking-”did I just do that?” Horseshoe drop is to be taken seriously for sure. The hole at the bottom of this 8-foot drop will munch you up and not necessarily spit you out. The entrance is the key, a must make move through a strong reactionary sets you up for the final plunge. Done improperly can result in dropping the ledge on the vicious right side and having your ass handed to you, if you take the reactionary too far left and you run the drop backwards. Unfortunately, I found this out for myself on my fifth attempt. The water was a little higher and I came screaming into the entry with too much of an angle. I was instantly spun around and about to drop backwards into a nasty. This very moment I recalled Marco mentioning what to do if you end up backwards- basically you end up having to back paddle like a demon on you left side and hope you can squeeze off a boof. Thanks for the heads up Marco, I surely heeded the advice and was able to get out of the hole after a short but scary side surf. Had I not made the backstrokes I would have plummeted into the hole on the right side and probably swam. The next good drop looks like you are going to finish the drop by taking your head off on the river left rock formation, trust the drop and all will be good, you may get your eyelids peeled back a little but the rush is incredible. Some other drops to note is the Box and various unnamed treats. The run finishes with some good old’ boogie water an easy take out after the fish dam.

Along with the Icicle creek fest we also got on the Tumwater section of the Wenatchee. Carl decided to demo Marco’s Large Villain after the piton master punctured another hole in the nose of his Magnum, RIP Riot. Marco and I chose to paddle playboats for the extra challenge. The run starts with The Wall, a short and steep section of offset holes and ledges. The run then kinda turns into a lake before a 15-20 foot dam, we ran it on the right off a kicker, a little scraper but fun, don’t run it sideways. The Next biggy is Chaos, what a cool rapid. POW was the highlight, blindly following Marco- we charged down the run pretty much getting hammered in every major hole of the run. The second hole gave us all the most trouble and Carl got real intimate with it. Marco and I both ended up going underneath the hole, I was laughing like a madman, a strange response I have to danger, after I emerged to the surface. As soon as my Allstar broke surface Marco came up right beside me with his bow floating up under my armpit our laughing faces were 4 inches away and we had two more big holes to take. Carl decided to practice his side surf in the hole not being able to avoid the shitshow Marco and I had created by essentially blocking the hole. We managed the next two holes and I pulled a sweet boof to avoid pulling a Carl in the bottom hole. From the eddy we could see Carl getting violently side surfed and were preparing for a swim. I guess Carl got tired of the creekboat rodeo moves he was hitting up so he opted to submerge his bow in the upstream and get launched out of the hole. After the rapid that most would scout Marco informed us that only a handful of people actually run on the right side to challenge the huge holes. Word to the wise here- you may side surf for eternity in some upstream turned holes, the only way out is to ender up and load up some buoyancy force by pushing your bow or stern into the hole so you get launched out when the buoyancy releases.

Overall the Wenatchee trip was a total delight; we paddled hard and made the best of our two days. We had planned to get on the Top Tye run but were denied due to lack of water, there are many other runs in the area worth mention but we got our fill of some great roadside paddling and will be back for more. For info on any Wenatchee area paddling contact Marco Colella through World kayak or Crossfit Cashmere.

Wenatchee Area Rivers!

2010-06-02T17:12:00.001-06:00

A few weeks ago my good paddling partner Carl and I ventured to Cashmere to meet up with Marco Colella for some early season boating. This was unlike most paddling trips we have experienced, instead of shopping for cases of cheap beer we were playing cars with Marco’s 4 year old son Cino. Late night campfires were replaced with some reading and lights out by 10. Our off river activities although tamer than normal were no indication of our on river exploits. We paddled hard! For those who don’t know Marco Colella, he is an avid paddler from back in the day who still gives er. He is also one of the most exciting paddlers to follow down some chuggin class IV/V. Marco treated us to some sick lines and a non-stop sampling of the finest whitewater in Washington State.

Carl and I arrived in Cashmere to meet up with Marco and paddle Icicle creek. Our first day we paddled Icicle 3 times at varying speeds, we took it pretty conservative the first two runs and the last run Marco and I sped down the creek in 33 minutes, yee haw. Icicle is a continuous class IV-V boulder fest with a few drops of concern and lots of fun boofs. Be sure to scout anything that looks serious, a swim on this particular run would be long and painful. Ricochet is one of the coolest rapids I have paddled; take a good look at this one. Done properly Ricochet is a series of boofs one after another setting you up for endless stylistic moves that you may look back on thinking-”did I just do that?” Horseshoe drop is to be taken seriously for sure. The hole at the bottom of this 8-foot drop will munch you up and not necessarily spit you out. The entrance is the key, a must make move through a strong reactionary sets you up for the final plunge. Done improperly can result in dropping the ledge on the vicious right side and having your ass handed to you, if you take the reactionary too far left and you run the drop backwards. Unfortunately, I found this out for myself on my fifth attempt. The water was a little higher and I came screaming into the entry with too much of an angle. I was instantly spun around and about to drop backwards into a nasty. This very moment I recalled Marco mentioning what to do if you end up backwards- basically you end up having to back paddle like a demon on you left side and hope you can squeeze off a boof. Thanks for the heads up Marco, I surely heeded the advice and was able to get out of the hole after a short but scary side surf. Had I not made the backstrokes I would have plummeted into the hole on the right side and probably swam. The next good drop looks like you are going to finish the drop by taking your head off on the river left rock formation, trust the drop and all will be good, you may get your eyelids peeled back a little but the rush is incredible. Some other drops to note is the Box and various unnamed treats. The run finishes with some good old’ boogie water an easy take out after the fish dam.

Along with the Icicle creek fest we also got on the Tumwater section of the Wenatchee. Carl decided to demo Marco’s Large Villain after the piton master punctured another hole in the nose of his Magnum, RIP Riot. Marco and I chose to paddle playboats for the extra challenge. The run starts with The Wall, a short and steep section of offset holes and ledges. The run then kinda turns into a lake before a 15-20 foot dam, we ran it on the right off a kicker, a little scraper but fun, don’t run it sideways. The Next biggy is Chaos, what a cool rapid. POW was the highlight, blindly following Marco- we charged down the run pretty much getting hammered in every major hole of the run. The second hole gave us all the most trouble and Carl got real intimate with it. Marco and I both ended up going underneath the hole, I was laughing like a madman, a strange response I have to danger, after I emerged to the surface. As soon as my Allstar broke surface Marco came up right beside me with his bow floating up under my armpit our laughing faces were 4 inches away and we had two more big holes to take. Carl decided to practice his side surf in the hole not being able to avoid the shitshow Marco and I had created by essentially blocking the hole. We managed the next two holes and I pulled a sweet boof to avoid pulling a Carl in the bottom hole. From the eddy we could see Carl getting violently side surfed and were preparing for a swim. I guess Carl got tired of the creekboat rodeo moves he was hitting up so he opted to submerge his bow in the upstream and get launched out of the hole. After the rapid that most would scout Marco informed us that only a handful of people actually run on the right side to challenge the huge holes. Word to the wise here- you may side surf for eternity in some upstream turned holes, the only way out is to ender up and load up some buoyancy force by pushing your bow or stern into the hole so you get launched out when the buoyancy releases.
Overall the Wenatchee trip was a total delight; we paddled hard and made the best of our two days. We had planned to get on the Top Tye run but were denied due to lack of water, there are many other runs in the area worth mention but we got our fill of some great roadside paddling and will be back for more. For info on any Wenatchee area paddling contact Marco Colella through World kayak or Crossfit Cashmere.

See you on the river,

Chris Ryman

Pincher Fest

2010-05-31T19:51:00.011-06:00

Here is a quick video I threw together of a couple of runs I’ve been able to get on in the past couple of weeks before the snow started flying in Alberta. Plus a story of my weekend at the Pincher Creek festival, and a bunch of pictures at the bottom too.

Cameron and Cataract from Mikkel St.Jean-Duncan on Vimeo.

This past weekend was the 12^th annual Three Rivers Rendezvous near Pincher Creek Alberta, nicknamed Snow Fest for the usual appearance of snow, this being spring in the Canadian Rockies after-all. The poor weather forecast kept the number of participants to 200 and change down from the nearly 300 last year, fortunately it turned out better than expected and the only snow I saw was up in the Cameron river drainage on Friday afternoon.

Since I was guiding trips and clinics for most of the weekend I decided to take Friday and convinced a few friends to join me in a attempt at Cameron Creek, we showed up to a very nice juicy medium, a great level for the upper section and just a tad high for the lower canyon, oh well we’ll try again next time.We paddled from Aldridge falls down to just below Deja Vu, Aldridge had a log in the top ledge so we where limited to running to bottom two ledges, still fun. After a mellow float through the scenic valley the river starts to change character into the typical Alberta Ledge fashion, a couple of class 4 ledges leads to Something Nasty, a 8 foot ledge with a sloping lead in and a sticky hole, with easy safety set on river left we where all able to clear the hole with a couple close calls. Another class 4 ledge leads to Wild Thing, this is the premiere rapid on this run, it starts with a couple of small broken ledges on the right before turning left off a ten foot ledge, a couple of small holes later puts you at the top of a 50 foot slide with big reactionaries coming off both sides. Just below Wild Thing is Deja Vu which is best scouted from the road on the way up as it becomes tough to do at river level, Ryan and Pavel failed to scout so me and Jeff passed on the info before taking off so we could film them from below. Deja Vu is a 20 foot two stage drop at the end of a narrow canyon, the momentum from the drop carries you through the hole in the middle and the one at the bottom with little effort making for great drop to run blind.

Saturday found me leading a trip down the Wigwam, a continuous class 4 boulder garden through you guessed it yet another scenic canyon, we seem to have a lot of those out here. In total the high water scared away most of the festival and we had a solid group of 9. We managed the run with just one swim , it was in the most continuous section of the river, but with a good crew we where able up the pieces and everyone else hung tight and slowly worked their way down afterwords. Thanks to Peter Thompson and Brad Dudinsky for their good work during the rescue.

Sunday and Monday I had the pleasure of taking out some beginners who had never seen moving water before, with a awesome teaching venue on the Lower Crowsnest we where able to get them doing eddy turns ferries, river roles, surfing and running some class 3- rapids by the end of the weekend. Everyone did great, in particular one girl Cierra ,who must have been about 10 – 12, she was so excited to go surfing, try harder more adventurous lines on the rapids and was always the first one to follow me down, she had a big smile on the whole time. Thanks to Brace and Jurri (spelling ?) they where a pleasure to teach with.

By Monday afternoon, most of my students where tired which was a good thing because I was exhausted too, I can’t wait to get out to some of the other festivals in Alberta this year, including Paddle Fest on the Red Deer river July 9^th – 11^th and the Kananaskis Festival August 13^th – 15^th. I will be teaching and running clinics at these festivals as well so hopefully I will see you out there.

The Crew on the Wigwam

Mikkel on Wild Thing

Scouting Aldridge Falls

Another shot of Wild Thing, so much fun !!

A couple of videos

2010-05-13T12:53:00.000-06:00

I haven't been super active on this blog recently as I have been using most of my content for the Level Six and Wavesport blogs but here are a couple of videos I threw together from a couple of early season paddling trips.

The Upper Elk from Mikkel St.Jean-Duncan on Vimeo.

Elbow River from Mikkel St.Jean-Duncan on Vimeo.

Upper Kuskanax

2010-04-30T00:23:00.008-06:00

It's been a long time to dry out after our trip to Hood River, but with some warm weather and a bit of rain this week, Mom nature turned the taps back on for all us parched West Kootenay creekers.

On Tuesday the 26th the Tres Hombres, Chris R, Carlito Jacks and I overcame much adversity and massive "honey-do" lists to get out on the seldom run Upper section of the Kuskanax river near Nakusp. The standard section is usually run from the hot springs down to the Hwy on the edge of town, which offers up a sweet waterfall section with 4 class V technical drops and some great boulder gardens, but we have been seriously infected with the exploring bug and needed to do something different.

To get to the upper you take the left turn off about 1km before the Nakusp Hot Springs which is the Kuskanax FSR and drive up another 4.5km to the first Y and take a right about 700m down to an old deactivated bridge. We left our shuttle at the classic Gardener creek park n' huck at the waterfall section which eliminated the need to scrape down the lower 4k to town. Arriving at the bridge we were stoked to have nice med low levels but the river was wide and looked bony. Upstream looked better ,with some nice III boulders and there was talk of going to the next bridge another 4k up the road, but we had our plan and we were sticking to it.

Spirits were high as we suited up until one of party noticed a lack of available head gear. Now this person usually has their shit together and given the fact that they do own a kayak retail store, gear is not usually a problem. Today however was not a usual day. So boats were loaded up and we made a mad dash back down to Nakusp where to our good fortune there is a new outdoor store that sold our buddy a Styrofoam bike helmet (read: dodgy/sketchy-feeling-really-lucky-guy-helmet). Carl thanked the store owner for their wares and it was back up the road to the put in, time for round trip including purchase, 1 hr.

OK, game on, after about 1km of shallow scrapping, the river began to narrow up and started getting steeper with some fun boulder gardens and read and run drops. This section includes a particularly nasty 30-40ft three stage drop just above the Hot Springs. It might be a good idea to check it out by walking up the trail to the source pools from the Nakusp Ho Springs parking lot. It has been run, but is mighty risky as nearly all the flow pushes into a fatal looking undercut on river left at the bottom.

We could tell that we were getting close as we could smell the sulfur from the natural hot springs. The rapids became steeper and more continuous and the canyon walls rose higher, as the river turned we could see a significant horizon line around the bend and decided to scout. Now we were having FUN!

Somewhere in here Chris R was in front and eddied out mid stream behind a rock and began "yelling" in hand signals. My first reaction was that we have run into some typical Kootenay wood fest (this whole section was basically clean of wood) but no! He had startled a couple endangered woodland caribou that were chilling out beside the river! Very cool!

Here's a vid of Carl stylin this drop that signals the star of a short but significant canyon above the main drop.

After we all ran this it was a short eddy hop down to the lip of this meaty mother.We all portaged.

There is a hiking trail along the river left side of the canyon that makes it a breeze to get around.

After the hot springs there is one more drop worth mentioning. There is a significant horizon line with a great eddy on the river right above this monster.

I have ran it before at lower levels but the hole in the middle is backed up and you would be really messed up if you dropped in anywhere but hard left left. Right is a one way ticket to Piton city. The video doesn't do it justice as there is more that you can't see. After this it's just more boogie water to the waterfall section near Gardener creek which is all time good fun with good eddies to scout and take pictures.

The Upper section seems like a good option if the lower is too high or if your group has some more conservative members that don't like the gnar, as it would be easy to portage the first IV drop and the canyon. Or they could just go and wait for you and have a soak at the village's own Hot Springs. This section builds nice and gradually and gives lots of warm up time before it got serious. I would like to say that this section could be extended by heading up to the next bridge (4km past our put in), but we never got a look at it. The option is there if you get bit by the exploring bug. And hey, isn't that what we are out here doing anyway? Personally I like not knowing what is around the next bend, its what keeps me going.

Randito

2010 Begins

2010-04-26T21:06:00.002-06:00

It's been a long cold winter with lots of tests and assignments, with one more on Thursday I am finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. In between study sessions I was able to get a little paddling in this weekend, the Elbow at a mere 3.5 cms and the Wigwam at a good medium flow. I didn't get much media on these trips so I will leave you with the video from last season. Hopefully this gets you excited for this season.

Canadian Rockies 2009 from Mikkel St.Jean-Duncan on Vimeo.

White Salmon International Invasion!

2010-04-18T15:36:00.015-06:00

I like to call myself a lucky paddler, living in the West Kootenays on the banks of the Slocan River, teaching kayaking, selling kayaks, hell breathing kayaks. We have winter playboating pretty much all season long at Trail wave and Brilliant, super awesome creeks running in the summer months and some of the biggest waves on the planet in early June. What more could I ask for? How about a trip to the creeking capital of North America? The White Salmon Washington/Hood River Oregon border is all about creeking anytime of year.

The plan was simple, after returning from a three month stay in Ecuador I was pretty stoked to keep my creek on and what better place. The crew consisted of Dito, Carl, Eskimal, and Abe. Dito was in Ecuador for most of November and December and also itching to get out after returning to Canada to a dismal snow season. Carl has been battling his way through nursing school for the past 4 years, nuff said. Abe and Eskimal would have been in Country just 4 days when we met with them in White Salmon and wanted to continue the paddling they were accustomed to in Ecuador.

Carl, Dito and myself left the Koots at 6am on a Wednesday morning. After hours of driving along the beautiful scenic landscape of another nation we were starting to get itchy for some paddling. To be honest, I did not see much of the scenery since I was shoved in the back of the cab on a 10inch X 10 inch “seat” clearly not made for my boney butt. I slept instead but was surely dreaming of my next boof stroke. I awoke in the sleepy town of Cashmere to find it was still early enough in the day for a paddle.

We headed to the Tumwater canyon of the Wenatchee River with no idea of the run, levels, or anything for that matter. After consulting the trusty Whitewater Rivers of Washington guidebook we found the put in and geared up. A side note on the guide book- most of the pictures in the book are of IK paddlers, you know “duckies” not sure how this effects the translation of grades but man those dudes run the gnar in glorified kmart coffins.

The Tumwater canyon was the perfect warm up for our upcoming creek fest. We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon with the sun shining and comfortable temperatures styling almost every drop. The run was sweet with some pretty tricky class IV drops (we ran it low) and a surprising amount of flatwater. To our surprise, we got the takeout to find a couple of paddlers gearing down. You guys are totally awesome dudes, super welcoming, ambassadors of the sport and the USA. After handing us some really good micro brews we chatted about the days adventure and we were on our way, Thanks again for the hospitality!

On route to White Salmon we took it easy taking in the sites satisfied by our unexpected paddle. We were in no rush to find our campsite under a clouded sky that was ready to rain. Believe it or not there are not many options for camping in February, who woulda thunk it. We decided to camp at the take out for the lower run on the White Salmon river just as Carl and I did two years earlier. Although the spot is actually a day rest area, we were given the go-a-head to camp by nearby neighbor Christy, thanks again for some more southern (compared to Canada) hospitality.

After a great sleep under the cover of light rain we met up with Eskimal and Abe in the morning to tackle the Farmlands section of the White Salmon. Eskimal had done the run previously and was our fearless leader for the day. The first drop of the day, “Sidewinder” was a reminder of the unforgiving rock formations typical of this classic river.

Those who ran the drop styled it well almost; Carl decided to practice his backdeck roll right after an undercut. The next major drop was Lava Falls, we didn’t know it at the time but we would have ample knowledge of the ins and outs of the run and what would happen if you swam behind the curtain. We got out to scout and a member of the crew decided right away he was going to probe it out. This was kinda strange since usually he was more tentative and apt to let others probe drops. Well, he was gearing up to go and we were all ready with throwbags at our side, turned out to be a hot move.

He had some good speed charging the drop but was a little off on what side to boof on. After soaring in the air off the 15-footer he landed with grace and style, unfortunately for him he seemed to celebrate a little too early and missed a key stroke to pull him away from the boil line. Getting tossed back into the curtain of the waterfall at breakneck speeds he found himself pinned vertically staring up into the pounding water eventually pinning him against his back deck.He managed to get his knees to pop the skirt thus ejecting him into the mercy of the waterfalls recycle. He spent the next seemingly long seconds tumbling in the recycle until eventually coming free.

We bagged him out and waited for his kayak to surface, well not actually his kayak. The story is he broke his Liquid Logic Jefe and conveniently for him the local kayak shop had an employee’s Jefe up in the rafters that we was able to borrow, the kicker is, that this is all without the knowledge of the employee. Oops! Anyway back to Lava Falls hewas a little shooken up but nothing too bad the kayak however was still pinned behind the curtain. Once and a while we could barely see the orange of the boat reflecting in the sunlight. Now we had to extract the kayak from the curtain; time to get out the ropes. This process did not turn out as easy we would have liked if you are familiar with the term “shit show” you know what I mean. We spent the next two hours throwing logs attached to ropes and even hucking rocks at it, surprise none of it worked. We were there long enough to have two other paddling groups observe our dilemma and start the spread of rumors of “the Canadian kayakers” and their unfortunate circumstances. It was getting close to nightfall and we were no further along with our extraction mission, we had to call it.

The next mission was to get out of the steep canyon wall and up to the nearby road, this process took about an hour. Then there were four, Abe decided to put back on first and mistakenly let his brand new AT paddle slip from his cold hands into the river before he could enter his boat. Then he kinda just stood there as if in awe that he might loose his precious new paddle. I took charge and got into my boat as soon as possible to retrieve his paddle. I raced down the unknown creek droppin ledges and loving the race mode solo creeking that only seems to happen when I am chasing a boat, person, paddle, whatever. Eventually I caught up to the paddle and waited alone in the eddy for some company. Eskimal came down to greet me about 15 secs later and we decided to wait a half hour for other team members to join us before racing daylight down the rest of the run.

That night we had some problem solving to do so we bought an ample amount of weak American beer and a bottle of Bulliet Bourbon, nice choice Eskimal! The next few hours were like a pentagon brain storming session without the odor of old spice and cigar smoke. We pretty much had it figured by about 1am. The plan was simple, first a early morning trip to Walmart was in order. The supply list was as follows- 1 compound bow and bow fishing kit with barbed expanding tip arrowheads. 1 spool of thin strong cord like spectra, a bottle of propane and torch, some stainless steel mesh, and some of those new torpedo sandwiches from Quiznos. The Plan- I was a pretty decent archer in high school, yeah I know what you are thinking but I assure you I was involved with some of the cool sports as well.

We were going to outfit the compound bow with a fishing kit which involves a spool mounted on the bow and a line attached to the non business end of the arrow. The tip of the arrow has barbs that expand once impact is made making it near impossible to remove the arrow. From shore we could barely see the kayak behind the curtain and we were going to shoot the kayak from shore lodging the arrow somewhere in the hull, then using the cord that was attached to the arrow and kayak we would pull the kayak out safely to shore. The next step involved patching the hole we made, since Eskimal and I gained some good boat welding experience in Ecuador we were amped to weld the hole and reinforce it with steel mesh on the inside of the kayak. I know, I know GENIUS right, I could hardly believe we thought of this while partying.

The morning arrived and Dito went to Walmart to retrieve supplies while the rest of us enjoyed a morning run on the Green Truss section of the White Salmon. We were on the water approaching Big Brother, a sweet 25 footer, when a red blur came up from behind us. Low and behold it was ultra pro kayaker Tao Berman, acquaintances were made and he offered to lead us down the remainder of the run, Tao style; fast and furiously. We opted for a sick line on the left that teams you up for a high-speed kicker near the base of the falls. Everyone styled the lines for the day and we were stoked to paddle with Tao.

When we returned from the run we met up with Dito who sadly informed us that you could only purchase hunting bows during hunting season, bummer lucky for us he did manage to bring some really tasty Quiznos subs, we ate in disbelief that our plan was finished before it started.
The next step was to do things the boring old fashioned way, we started heading to local paddle shop and rafting companies to post some lost boat signs. To our surprise everyone knew our dilemma already. We would start by introducing ourselves and as soon as we mentioned that some of us were from Canada they would say-“oh, you are the Canadians who lost the kayak behind Lava falls”. Two years prior Carl and I received the same kind of response- “which one of you guys got caught in the curtain at Big Brother” Geez this was a tight knit paddling community. The kayak has my store contact on it in the form of a sticker and on a breakdown paddle, Carl’s throw bag had his number on it so we were sure if the boat ever did come out there would be a way of contacting us.

The next day after another night of campfire partying we lined up to meet Tao at the take out of the lower Little White class V,V+ section at 3.9, super gnar gnar. We all geared up and stuck Tao in the back of the truck with Abe. The run that was about to happen will never leave my memory. Having Tao as a guide was the best possible situation for the given run, he showed us the lines and managed to trick us into running a 20 footer blind, which was a blast! There were a few close calls but no swims which is a good thing since there is nowhere else on earth I would rather not swim or let alone rescue someone out of.

I had a pretty close call when I missed a full eddy only to roll in a hole and recover with just enough time to squeeze under a log and run a tight little ledge, my only roll of the day. We were all super jazzed about the run and decided to hang out at the take out for a few hours drinking beers and trading sphincter-shrinking stories. Another paddling group showed up to the take out joined our circle, they had heard of the Canadian kayakers and our sitch. Thank the river gods, one of their crew needed a ride to Portland and they had a free Nomad with a loonie (Canadian Dollar Coin) sized hole in the stern. A match made in heaven we sent Dito on the mission after a half hour how to use a cell phone session since Dito haled from the Slocan Valley where such things are illegal.

It all came together, Dito got a damaged blue Nomad and the call came in that they retrieved Carl’s boat from below the waterfall, whoever found the boat found Carl’s contact info on his throwbag and phoned his cell. The next morning we started work on the Nomad using a spoon attached to a propane torch and some steel mesh from one of those things you put in your kitchen sink. At the same time Dito drove to meet the dudes from Montana that recovered the Jefe. I brought an Eskimo Salto for Eskimal thinking it would be humorous, after paddling it he didn’t think so and ended up paddling the Nomad after the repair. Dito returned with the Jefe and we were ready to rock the Green Truss section as a team for the first time since Farmlands. We started the run with 5 paddlers, the level was super juicy and by the end of the run there were only two of us and the recently repaired Nomad had a new 5 inch Charlie brown embarrassed smile hole in the bow.

The trip had come to an end. We were beat up, tired, and wet from days of camping in the rain and taking punishment on the river. Eskimal and Abe went West the Canadians went East. We paddled with Tao Berman on the sickest river we had done up to that point, we had a reputation good or bad after only being there for 5 days and we left with all the boats we came with plus one. Thanks to all who helped us out along the way, the USA paddlers ROCK special thanks to the lads at Wenatchee who were awesome to share some brews with us, the Montana boys for finding our kayak, the Portland dudes for giving us a kayak, The lads at the Rafting house who gave us some “medicine” for Dito’s injury, and Christie for allowing us crazy campers to hang around for a few days. All are welcome up to the koots anytime for some real beer and bushwack creeking. Except for Walmart you suck, you stomped on our dreams of buying a compound bow and shooting kayak, yeah we would have returned it afterwards but whatever.

See you on the river,

Chris Ryman

2010 ECE Update:

2010-04-09T21:45:00.013-06:00

As the least vocal member of this blog site, I hereby introduce myself with somewhat of an update as to what the Endangered Creeks Expedition (ECE) has been up to.

The core of us ECE paddlers can admit to feeling sorta out of the loop as of late in regard to the run-of-the-river power agenda that continues to plague the province of BC. Any new or related stories have received little or no media coverage since the BC Liberals yet again took the election last year. Frustrating as this was, it more or less dampened our spirits and stern stalled much of the opposition. This does not in anyway mean that we as the ECE have pulled out completely.

On Dec 26. 2009, representatives of provincial paddling organizations (member clubs etc) were approached by Canoe-Kayak Canada to provide lists of ALL the waterways being paddled by their members for an upcoming meeting with Transport Canada (TC).This was all part of the implementation plans for the new (watered down) Navigable Waters Protection Act.

As you are likely aware by now, the Government of Canada changed the legislation in early 2009 to streamline the process for approvals of construction over our rivers and streams. This includes the future construction of roads, hydro-power projects, pipelines, transmission lines, fences and/or other man-made structures that affect a paddler's ability to navigate rivers, creeks and waterways throughout Canada. Providing a comprehensive list of paddling routes became our way of letting the government know what we wanted to be consulted on as well as displaying the extent to which our rivers and streams are paddled recreationally.

Jump back to early 2009:
Predicting that TC was going to one day slam us paddlers with this sort of request, in early 2009, Spencer Cox (Kayakwest) along with several BC/AB paddling club reps and reputed creek boaters hurriedly developed and launched the site Canada Whitewater River Use Log so that regional paddlers could compile their trip data online for outfits like TC to use. Thinking we had beat TC to the punch, we were told that the countless entries already logged on the site we reregarded as inadequate data for this meeting between Canoe-Kayak Canada and TC in Dec. 09 because we failed to include GPS coordinates locating the names of put-in and take-out locations. Thus the work of re-listing all our compiled data with GPS points began in the week proceeding the X-Mas 09 holiday!!! What timing eh? And the brutal part was that we had to have our data in prior to Jan 4th, 2010 - What a way to spend the holidays...

As a core member of the ECE and president of our regional paddling club Borderline Boaters - West Kootenays, I took the responsibility of rallying some peeps to chart everything that we could think of in our region and beyond. While it was by no means an exhaustive list of all that we paddle (or have paddled) in the East/West Kootenays, it was all that Mikkel, my girlfriend Jessica and myself could come up with on such short notice. In the end, countless other volunteers across the country had helped to produce a rather lengthy spreadsheet file that Canoe-Kayak Canada eventually presented to Transport Canada.

In regards to the ECE being in the Media, Mikkel's feature ECE film received top honors at both the 2009 Vancouver International Mountain Film Fest and the 2009 National Paddling Film Festival in Kentucky. At the same time I had assembled Symbiosis - an ECE inspired film portraying samples of the lush scenery and some of the stories behind special local creeks our group was exploring at the time. It too won an award for best documentary at the 2009 National Paddling Film Festival in Kentucky as well as traveling with the Vancouver International Mtn. Film "best of the fest" road show in 2009. IMO, the film was never really finished at the time of its release. I have already begun to film more content and will continue to do so this season as our ECE group has a few missions yet to complete in the West Kootenays.

So that about sums it up for the ECE in 2010. As a core group of area paddlers, we will continue to explore, paddle and document new routes here in our region of Southern BC as new run-of-the-river projects continue to be announced throughout the province.

The massive Glacier/Howser project proposed for our region that the ECE was rather vocal a few years ago has hit a few snags and continues to be put on hold... no recent word on this at press time. The same predicament has landed on the province's largest of proposed IPPs at Bute inlet. General Electric and their partners Plutonic Power have decided to postpone their bid to gain control of 17 rivers in the Bute Inlet area. This puts the Environmental Assessment Process into a holding pattern for at least 12 months.

The govt of BC continues to publicly advocate for clean green renewable energy projects that include run of the river hydropower... meanwhile we have one of the lowest snowkpacks in recent history this year. Hard to say what sort of season this might become?

Carl Jacks

Go Pro HD Reveiw and Skiing in Fernie

2010-04-03T19:27:00.017-06:00

Here is my first impressions of the Go Pro HD, after a little skiing at Fernie Alpine Resort. The plan for Easter weekend was to head to Fernie for a little boating and a little skiing. Unfortunately with the recent cold snap the water levels were lower than ideal so I focused on the beer drinking and the skiing. I'd just received my Go Pro HD camera so a family ski day to try out the camera was just what I needed.

Go Pro Skiing in Fernie from Mikkel St.Jean-Duncan on Vimeo.

Pros:

Price - for 300 dollars this camera is a good deal no matter which way you look at it.

Ease of use - While it took a little fiddling to figure out how to navigate through the features with only two buttons, by the end of the first day I had it down. Once you have all the settings dialed it becomes really easy to turn on and film. Transferring files off the camera and onto the computer is also really simple.

Image Quality - I only had a 1GB card my first day so I set the resolution to 720p to get a little more filming time out of the card, yet the quality was still good despite crappy overcast lighting.

Weight - Very light and I hardly noticed it at all, plus it was easy to carry around in my pocket once the card was full.

Features - From the wide range of resolutions to the multiple photo options this little box is very versatile.

Cons:

Shape - The box-like shape is a little bulky and obtrusive.

Battery Life - Seems like the 2.5 hours will be a little short on the longer days but there is always the option of a second battery for only 20 dollars.

Overall impression:

My first impression is very good, even with my high expectations. I would definitely recommend buying this camera. While this is just my first impression the pros outweigh the cons by a big margin and I'm super excited about getting it out on the river this spring, I have a lot of rivers that will look really good from a head camera.

Here are a few pictures from the day. Considering how poor the lighting was, I'm impressed with how well the pictures turned out.

Old but good pictures

2010-03-11T09:11:00.006-07:00

Here are a couple of pictures that Ryan Creary just sent me from some shooting we did a couple of years ago. A couple of nice ones that never made it to print, especially the first two.

Mikkel Johnston Canyon

Gardener Creek

Kuskunux