River Tay at Stanley, as a beginner again - 29/10/2006

The annual SCA exhibition in Perth and EKC trip on the Tay at Stanley provided the perfect opportunity for me to christen my new-to-me Drakkar Wheelboy C1. The Drakkar is a huge change for me. All of my previous boats fall more toward the small aircraft carrier side of the whitewater spectrum. In comparison, the Wheelboy is a stub. It’s still taller than me, but no longer by all that much.

My shopping list for the SCA canoe show was small but important. Airbags, not for me but for those who might be fishing me out later, a D-ring, a paddle more visible than black and lighter than aluminium, a big sponge. I found the first two easily enough. The rest were not meant to be. After much miscommunication-induced faff, Callum, Ali and I found our way to the get-in chaos and added a little of our own. I think the final tally was 21 boats in the water, but don’t hold me to that.

Derek organised as far as the SCA show. Charlie sort of took over after that. I am not sure if that was meant to be the plan. Once everyone was happily in the eddy and some of us had some practice with the almost eddy line at the get-in, Charlie asked us to organise into two groups, beginners and non-beginners. I weaved my way through the sea of plastic to take my place as a beginner. Yeah, I knew the lines but I wasn’t ready to promise I would make them. Charlie had us migrate from the get-in eddy to the big eddy above Stanley weir. In the meantime, he took the greenest of beginners for a quick tutorial in strokes and concepts. Rather than subdivide, he chose to keep us all as one big disorganised group, with smaller pods of the experienced coupled with the green. My pod was last. Ali, Jean, the kids (Rhian and Kieron, hardly beginners) and me. By virtue of being slowest, I found myself running sweep, but only the most useless sense of the word.

About ¾ of the way through the pods running Stanley weir, we had our first swimmer. Our pod had just begun to ferry glide from the eddy to set up for the middle chute through the weir, so we changed direction and went back to the eddy. The swimmer looked contained, so I actually started the ferry glide first even though I would be last running it. Ali went, followed by Rhian, Kieron and Jean. I saw Robin sitting in the right eddy watching as I hit the chute right in the centre and began bobbing through the wave train that followed.

One big difference in the jump between aircraft carrier and eeny weeny boat was the size of the waves. The waves were massive because I spanned nothing. I didn’t crash. I bobbed like a cork over every single wave. It was freaky. But fun. Sort of. A little more practice, a little more comfort in the boat, would make them fun.

I sort of caught an eddy on river left. It was a moving eddy. Charlie beckoned me to join him and his pod in the river left eddy at the bank, about fifty feet away. I couldn’t get the angle right, kept losing ground, so I shook my head no and said it wasn’t happening. Difference number two between aircraft carriers and corks. Corks take longer to get anywhere. I found the rest of my group in the Plan B eddy and had no trouble joining them.

We ran the next wee stretch of waves on the left and caught the next friendly left eddy. I was happy that I had some say in where I went, though not always.

The next stretch was bouncy waves and weird water approaching and tracking around a bend in the river. Derek told us to work our way right by the bend in the river. Don’t go left. I didn’t quite remember why, but took his word for it. He told us to stay with our pods and then proceeded to cut in front of me as I tried to stay with mine. I lost them pretty quickly, but saw Chris and Callum in the distance behind me. I started working right and getting pushed back left. I bounced through a few waves looking for this important right line. Instead, I saw a big stopper on the right as I flushed left. I asked Callum to please stay with me as I got flushed far left and poised to hit another stopper sideways. Note to self, don’t listen to Derek. That stopper was friendly. Having experienced the far right stopper as well, I like the leftish one better. It was a pleasant enough swim. At least I got it out of my system.

Callum, Alan and later Russell accompanied my boat and me to the river right bank, where I saw other swimmers slither onto the bank as well. Yay company! Once my boat was mostly empty of water, Callum offered me a sip of my water that he was carrying. I said, thanks, I’ve had a few sips already. Back in our boats, we paddled across to a nice big eddy on river left for break-in practice. Someone else swam getting there. Possibly more than one. Leaky dry top gaskets meant my dry top was no longer dry. I started to get cold, so I opted against risking swim #2. I took some photos and paddled around a bit. Next up was another epic ferry glide to river right, for more break-in, break-out practice. Callum hung semi-near me once he saw me struggling. I kept losing the angle and my lack of speed didn’t really let me make up for it. I found my way into the next non-fishing eddy below the rest of the group, apologising to the fishermen who were politely waiting for me to get out of their way.

Callum, Amy and eventually Kieron joined me in my friendly eddy. The rest of the group left their eddy and headed toward Thistlebrig. Derek paid no attention to his child as he paddled away, leaving Callum, Amy, Kieron and me as the last four of the group. Callum was left in the role of Papa Duck to Kieron. Amy, aka Mad Amy to the EKC, went first. Kieron followed her. I sort of trailed behind Callum, knowing I couldn’t keep up but knowing where to go.

Thistlebrig rapids are most fun on the left, with a big bouncy wave train curving right and leading into a frothy mix of wee stoppers and waves. I bobbed right and then left of the biggest waves, trying to aim myself just right of centre after the curve. I thought I blew it when I ended up left on the approach, but my ferry glide worked and I got right quicker than expected. I watched Callum get flipped by one of the weird wee stoppers and did a quick pry to push myself just right of his line. Thanks Callum! He rolled up, so all was good.

Sadly, Kieron’s fate was not as fortunate. Following Mad Amy, he swam and ended up being rescued all the way to river left. The get-out was river right. It took a little while for him and his boat to get across. He was not the only swimmer, but he was the only far left swimmer. Everybody else was rescued to river right. I think. :)

After swims were recovered and last photos captured, we began the long slog back to the car park. As always, the boats were heavier on the way from the get-out than to the get-in. I was slow carrying the WB, but happy that I could carry it myself! Yay independence!

The Thistlebrig car park was littered with boats, paddlers and kit, with everybody swapping stories and catching up. Much more so than the expo itself, the end of the river trip felt like like the best part of every other big paddling event, catching up with old friends, making new friends and trying to recognize each other in street clothes and not just paddling kit.