Open on River Awe -- 30/4/2006

On Sunday, we paddled the River Awe in the Pakboat with the Edinburgh Kayak Club. The River Awe is billed as a 2/3 run in the SCA whitewater guidebook. The first rapid on the river is a 2+/3- that gets easier with more water. The rest of the run is grade 2/2+ big bouncy fun. We ran the River Awe in the Fall from the double-bladed perspective, on another EKC trip. The plan was to try out the airbags in the Pakboat. We were certain the Pakboat would be a great boat for the river, just not so certain how much water we would take on in the process.

Charlie was kind enough to pick us up in the morning, sparing Lucas a long haul with 30kg of boat-in-a-bag. We met up with the first group at the EKC lockup and more at Newbridge. The three of us rode to the get-in with Callum and Ali. Our river trip got off to an unfortunate start, with a pheasant using Callum’s truck as a means to an end.

At the get-in, some assembly required was a bit of an understatement. It took us the entire unloading, shuttle and EKC faff to assemble the Pakboat, inflate and secure the airbags, karabiner in our gear and catch up with the first half of the group. In that time, we learned that a bicycle pump is not an airbag pump, 72 inches is a lot of airbag, Charlie is full of a lot of hot air and apparently, so am I.

We paddled up to the EKC group just as the first group had split up to head downstream. We decided to join the first group and caught up with them at the first eddy-hopping practice. When we are on our game, we can break in and break out with the Pakboat in remarkably little space. Game takes a little while to find, so we had a few wide-eyes in the eddies. We nearly took out Amy in one of the midstream eddies, but her reflexes were sharp. Besides, Charlie said it’s ok to take out the ginger ones.

The reason for the eddy practice is because the most challenging rapid of the day was just a few hundred metres from the get-in. The Graveyard is a long-ish jumble of rocks that requires some maneuvering. The least congested line is on river left, past a big boulder and then either through or beside a friendly, but hungry stopper. The youngest in our group, Kieron, rafted through it with his dad. The year before, Kieron’s brave solo run of the Graveyard became an epic that ended with, “Don’t tell your mother!” from his dad. Rafting was probably the wise choice.

We watched everyone else run the rapid and then took our turn while Bram and Amy were still in the middle of it. The nice thing about going toward the end of a group is the added time to scout. Watching others hit rocks and drop into stoppers gives even more perspective as to which lines are best. We ran the rapid quite gracefully for 17 feet of canoe and took on surprisingly little water.


Upstream view of the Graveyard through a mass of boaters.

Recreational releases on the River Awe are rare so release days are quite popular. In addition to the recreational boaters, a downriver race was being held from 1-2:30pm, pretty much guaranteeing that the recreational boaters would be additional obstacles in the racers’ paths. The first racer came in view just as we headed downstream.

The rapids that follow the Graveyard don’t have names. They are a mix of rocks, wave trains and stoppers, nothing too serious, and great fun for an open canoe or a 10 year old in a boat that almost fits.



In the race, a boat was supposed to be released every minute. As we got farther down the river, a minute apart became slightly more staggered as the race got interesting. The first C-2 to pass us did so mid-argument. The reason for the argument became very clear as the second C-2 passed us significantly less than a minute later. Made me appreciate a good tandem partner. For the most part, we did pretty well staying out of the racers’ way. Only once were we an obstacle.

We stopped for first lunch/snack after the bridge rapid, allowing a good number of racers to get downriver without us in the way.

Magnetic Boulder is the next named rapid on the river. In the rapids above it, we were treated to a young woman screaming her way through the rapids before stopping, looking down at her boat and realizing with some relief that she was still upright. Aaaaah beginners. I’ve had runs like those.

Magnetic Boulder is so named because the water washes around the bend, making you feel like you’re going to crash into the big boulder on the right bank. You don’t and instead follow the water through a series of big standing waves. In the States, they’re called haystacks. There’s a trick for keeping the water out while crashing through big haystacks. At just the right time, the bow paddler puts in a huge back stroke to slow the boat down. I have yet to figure out the timing for the Pakboat. We filled the boat up past my knees with water.

As a plastic canoe fills with water, it becomes much more unstable. As the Pakboat fills with water, it remains very stable. Lucas thinks it’s because of the side airbags. I think it’s because of the bendy frame. Either way, the Pakboat is a very difficult boat to flip. Lucas took turns at surfing the big waves with Bram and Amy in the bow seat. Charlie posted some photos here (http://www.flickr.com/groups/ekc/pool/ ) and this one is among the better shots from my collection:



We spent at least half an hour at Magnetic Boulder, with some trying their luck at surfing while others enjoyed their rest or lunches. One of our group thought it warm enough for a quick swim.

A few rapids remain after Magnetic Boulder. We took on quite a bit of water in each of them, after an otherwise dry day. Lucas, being the heavier of the two of us, got the honour of pumping the water out every time. Soon the wee footbridge that marked our get-out came into sight. We were the last to arrive, thanks in part to the pump breaks.

Some assembly required at the beginning of the day meant some disassembly required at the end of the day. Thankfully, everybody was in less of a rush to get out than they were to get on river in the morning. The boat was packed, tea from the Inverawe Smokehouse was enjoyed and tentative plans for the next Awe release were hatched. All in all, it was a great day on the water.