Kayaking

Kayaking

• TYPE OF ACTIVITY-  Kayaking
• TRIP NAME/LOCATION- Lake Brunner, Arnold River, Arahura River (Milltown Gorge), Grey Pool
• DURATION- 4 days
• GRADES OF ACTIVITY- Arnold River grade 2, Arahura River grade 2/2+
• NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS- 16 divided into groups of 4
• ACCOMMODATION- Personal accommodation
• VARIATION IN DAILY CONDITIONS- Arahura River running slightly higher than usual
• WEATHER CONDITIONS- Rain early in week, easing to fine for remainder
• INCIDENTS/ INJURIES - N/A

Well it’s time for week two of kayak, carry on from where we left off. This week is orientated towards the art of rescue and to refine all the skills we had learnt from week one. We head off early to the beautiful Lake Brunner to get used to being back in our boats. Everything comes flooding back after a week off, I’m rolling consistently and the flow is back, I feel ready for the mighty Anbesi (Arnold River) in the afternoon. We consume lunch en-route to the Anbesi, the groups are decided I’m with the highly regarded Peter Keatering. We continue the lessons from week one, angle, speed, edge, the three paramount skills for kayaking, in and out of eddies we carve, S-turning our way down the river. I get a good working on the buffer wave when I drop my leading edge, it takes 3 attempts at rolling, I right myself finally, and learn the valuable lesson of taking my time and doing it right the first time.

Day 2 commences with a pool session in the Grey pool, continuing on rolling, and begin learning rescue techniques. I begin to have something that resembles a left roll, slowly. We then move onto rescue techniques, towing a person and their equipment over a distance, deep water rescue- emptying and getting someone back into their boat whilst still in the water and H rescues with the C to C movement. We head back to the Anbesi for another skills session and start introducing the rescue techniques. In the Anbesi we practise exiting eddies to best aid in a rescue scenario. We then go for a swim through ‘3 hole’ practising swimming through rapids and how to best enter eddies whilst swimming. We then jump back in our boats, feeling ready for a full day of rescuing on the river tomorrow.

We arrive for our third day with the temperature dropped and the rain falling, but not our spirits, it was going to be a full day, of putting together everything that we had learnt whilst kayaking, how to effectively and efficiently rescue a fellow paddler. We practise throwing throwbags to each other and learn effective methods for best hitting our targets in differing circumstances. Off we set to the bottom of the first major rapid on the Anbesi, to put into practise what we had just learnt, and hit a moving swimmer with our throwbags. We practise a range of techniques to best suit the distance to the swimmer, and also the throwing environment we are in. If you miss there is a second opportunity where you quickly recoil the rope and throw again however this is nowhere as accurate as hitting your target first time. Moving down the river we exit our boats in moving water, and then perform deep water rescues emptying and re-entering our boats all whilst moving down river. Travelling from the eddies we put into practice T and H rescues in rapids, this leads on to back deck carrying a fellow paddler across the rapids. The tricky task of barging and manoeuvring the upturned kayak from moving water into the bank to be emptied is carried out. A day of mass information, a progression from basics to now feeling competent to partake in a rescue without becoming another casualty, and to execute a safe rescue.

The final day of week two, a treat- the Milltown Gorge on the Arahura River. A day of exploring a new river and to apply all the new skills, the tutors to take a slight step back and for us to kayak as a independent safe and sound team. The frigid crystal blue waters surrounded by vivid emerald bush welcomed us. Scouting was required on the first unknown rapids, for us to run safely without being engulfed in a sizable hole. Good communication, verbally for planning, and then non-verbal such as directing with your paddle and hand signals when the plan did and didn’t go to plan. After approximately 12km from put in to take out our trip on the Arahura was over, a fantastic paddle, awesome amount of push that differed from previous paddles. Moment of truth, we are given the all clear to use the kayaks on the weekends for SDL, so watch this space well actually the personal paddling space.

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• TYPE OF ACTIVITY- Kayaking
• TRIP NAME/LOCATION- Lake Brunner, Grey/Hokitika pool, Arnold River, Arahura River             
• DURATION- 4 days                       
• GRADES OF ACTIVITY- grade 2
• NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS- 16
• ACCOMMODATION- personal accommodation
• VARIATION IN DAILY CONDITIONS- n/a
• WEATHER CONDITIONS- generally fine   
• INCIDENTS/ INJURIES - n/a

She’s curvaceous, long and is amazing her name is Shelly and she is a blue RPM Max kayak. I am introduced to her on Monday and she is my craft of enjoyment for the week. Zack, Rachel, Mary and Keith alight us to the plan for the week, learn to roll, roll, and then practice rolling, on lakes, pools, and moving rivers.

On our inaugural day of TPP kayaking we head out to a lake at Dillmanstown, to learn the very basic and fundamental facets of kayaking. Start by getting flipped by our tutors under our kayaks, and get used to being upside down in a plastic tub, bang, bang, bang, get rolled back up to the sweet air. Next progress onto T rescues, where you bang for assistance, someone will bang into you, I then use the nose of their kayak to self rescue myself by guiding my boat back over by rolling my hips and putting pressure on my knee and pushing down on my hands. We learn the wet exit, the last resort, to pull the tab and depart from my boat in a tuck position. We move into a movement session where we learn how to guide our kayaks in somewhat of an orderly fashion, learning stern draws, using your rail, and simply paddling forward, sounds simple in theory but I spent the rest of the day, trying to get a handle of this cool new sport.

Day two commenced with a warm pool session in Hokitika, here I started to learn how this strange manoeuvre of rolling a kayak, three solid hours and I had the start of something that resembled a roll. This is when I learn that kayaking is very oxymoronish, if you lift your head to try and take a breath whilst rolling it becomes very difficult if not impossible to right yourself, to do it, your head is the last thing to come out the water to execute a solid roll.  Very unnatural.  Fifty percent I reckon my strike rate was at executing a roll, the remainder relying on T rescues. We then re-load the trailer, and prepare for our first river trip. The planned Arahura is in flood from the earlier rains, we opt for the safer Grey. We arrive to a chilly upstream breeze, pull on all our wet gear, and are briefed for our trip. Rachel our tutor, Grace, Sara, Kristy and myself launch into the brown waters, and attempt to fairy glide our way across the river to the eddie on the other side in a duckling like fashion. There we practise exiting eddies, high angle, speed, appropriate knee up, then drawing into the current. All this reminds of the young turtles getting whipped out of the jet stream in Finding Nemo and the finding their way back. We start learning  the art of entering the eddie, angle, edge and speed. This continues all the way down the river to our pull out point, we attempt a few rolls in moving water, I stick to my fifty percent strike rate. Re-load the kayaks, warm up, and head home.

Another warm pool session at Greymouth pool is how day three begins, over I flip, good reach, good pressure on my right knee, good initiation, and an alright finish but I am the right way up- breathing. Back over I go and the same success occurs again, and again, must’ve been my breakfast. Everything is starting to come together. Then the spanner gets thrown into the works and I am set the challenge by the tutors to roll on my other side, next comes multiple times of being upside down and failing, and having to fall back to correct myself with rolling on the right. Multiple rolling and I am now at an eighty-five percent strike rate a huge improvement from yesterday. On we practice till lunch time, where we re-load the trailer and head to the Arahura a grade 2 river, which has now lowered from yesterday’s higher level. I am moved into a different group, Jacob, Phil, Rata, Ben and we are lead by the masterful Keith. Everyone in the group are quite skilful and I have to improve quickly to keep up, which I think I managed to do. I am met by my first ever real rapid in a kayak, a gnarly looking whirl pool buffer wave. Keith informs us of the pros and cons, and in I charge for my first true challenge in white water, I tell Keith my goal to try to reach the rock on the other side and carve away from it and head downstream. Goal achieved however I end up beaching myself on it, and heading downstream backwards upside down (not favourable), one attempt at a roll, fail, and then get it on the second YE HAA!!!! I did it in action. On we continue down the river, practicing stern draws, entering and exiting eddies effectively, and attempting to surf waves. Biggest lesson is being dynamic and loose with your hips and driving with your knees to always keep your edge up and to avoid being clipped and flipped by the moving water. What a session, a number of rolls, a few T rescue’s but no wet exits. Awesome introduction to white water.

Stunning Lake Brunner was the location of the start of day four, further refinement of movement skills and rolling is the mission. We are starting to resemble good kayakers, and the excitement for the Arnold River in the afternoon is building. My roll is becoming more reliable in the lake and I am starting to feel much more confident about it, I’m no longer relying on strength to haul myself up rather more refined technique. Off we head to the Arnold, a warmer river, we are informed that we are going to have a close association with this river over the year. I’m back in my original group with the girls and Keirin, and the silky smooth spoken Mary our leader. We start with a roll and off we head, similar to yesterday but with tighter eddies that required slicker skills, I’m really starting to enjoy this movement of rail to rail and trying to combine it with speed and finesse. We S-turn our way around rocks practicing the shift of weight trying to improve our grace through the water.  We perform rolls in moving water, on purpose and accidently. We travel down the Arnold, until we find a huge rock in the middle and it is creating a big buffer wave. This is where we spend the next while, getting flipped, trying to carve, I learnt the valuable lesson of keeping your upstream rail up to prevent getting rag dolled. Its drawing close to three so we continue our Arnold journey to our take out point, load the trailer for the final time this week. Kayaking, is awesome! How far I’ve come in four days, tribute to our tutors and our amazing classroom, the outdoors.