Paddling in winter

I've had two successful paddle outings recently. 

The first was a two-day trip on the Vaal River, almost from my doorstep, with Celliers. Our boats have been gathering dust and we've been a bit all-work, no-play for weeks. It was time to get out to celebrate our products.

I've never been on this section before so it was a revelation. I printed off Google Earth images so that I could follow along and really get a feel for our location - twists, turns and distances on rivers can be a blur. It was spectacular!

Day 1's section of about 15km was mostly flat sections with clumps of islands, channels and class 1 rapids. There was only one class 2. We stopped, got out, scouted, chose our lines and then hit the water. It was a piece of cake on my trusty Marimba.

Day 2's section of 13km was all flatwater but the hills of the Vredefort Dome area made up for the lack of excitement on the water with the move lovely scenery.

We had good sightings on both days of fish eagles and Goliath herons and even a big likkewaan (monitor lizard). 

We paddled for around 4hrs each day, enjoying the sights along the way. We camped on a small island in the late afternoon, setup and got to enjoy the last of the day's warmth. I'd packed a home-made hearty soup, which we heated and ate for dinner before dark. By 18h15, we were in our tent with plush sleeping bags, warm jackets, beanies, headlamps and books. Like this, you don't feel the cold.

We had a leisurely morning making tea, coffee and instant oats for breakfast before packing up camp and our kayaks. We were in no rush with only 13km ahead of flatwater and our pick-up at 2pm.

We had spectacular fish eagle sightings on this section and a lovely warmth. To our advantage, this trip was a few days before the real cold set in. 

Celliers last paddled this section more than 20 years ago. It was my first trip down here and I'll definitely be back. If you're looking for exercise, it can easily be done in a couple of hours. If you're looking to have a break, the two days is superb.

I made a 2:30 video with photos and two video clips.

 

My second paddle outing was on Sunday afternoon. 'Top Section' is a stretch of whitewater above town. The water level was up on Saturday but unfortunately it was down again on Sunday but we still decided to go anyway. I have only done Top Section three or four times and this was my first time taking the right-hand channel.

I paddled my Pungwe whitewater kayak. I got in quite a bit of paddling before lockdown so my skills have much improved and my roll is getting more solid in current. But in the cold winter water?

Before going down the weir (there is a 'slide'), I did a roll. I figured that it was worth a planned dunking to get it over with rather than a surprise dunking in a rapid. I was very pleased that the brain freeze wasn't as bad as I'd expected and that my dry top and spray deck had kept me warm and dry. This was good for my confidence - to know the bad is not really as bad as I'd imagined (which is usually the case!).

Start of the section - weird in the background. That's me in the blue kayak.

I did pop a Valoid before heading out. Generally going straight down river is no issue for my weak sea stomach but any kind of playing in rapids makes me queasy. I find the whole experience is better with my equilibrium chemically balanced so I'm getting in the habit of taking a tablet at least 30 mins before getting on the water when I paddle whitewater.

Gideon

On this outing it was me, Gideon, Celliers and Ruben. Gideon and Celliers have paddled this side a lot and there are loads of channels and options. At such low level, everything looks different and the paddle was very crunchy with lots of rocks. We had to get out only once when a channel was obstructed by rocks, we snuck under some low branches and I slithered my kayak over barely-covered rocks. 

It was stunning and I loved it. Looking forward to the next one.

Winter in all its glory.

A bit of whitewater

As if myrun and social paddling were not enough, I enjoyed a late afternoon bit of whitewater at our local spot, Gatsien rapid. I got to paddle our Pungwe whitewater kayak for the first time (without swimming).

My challenge of the day was paddling our Vagabond Usutu whitewater sit-on-top (blue one in the photos below) with Rusty on my lap! This kayak was not made to carry a 21kg dog! On our return route she went down some little bubbly water (not a rapid) and she didn't even flinch. Unfortunately we didn't get a photo as the camera was in my backpack (on my back!).

This was Celliers' first post-shoulder-operation paddle (surgery was back in late January). It is a long road to recovery and will still take many months to gain full strength.

It was a beautiful afternoon next to the river.

Rusty watching Celliers run the first production Pungwe through its paces.

Celliers just makes it look so easy.

Ruben and Kyla chilling on the warm rock.

My first turn in the Pungwe, which is my size whitewater kayak. I really don't have great skills but I did catch some eddies and do some ferrying without swimming. Rusty kept a close eye on me.

On the Usutu whitewater sit-on-top. This is more my comfort zone.

With my girl.

Rusty rocking her doggy PFD.

Taking friends on a scenic paddle

When friends come to visit, it is inevitable that they'll either be made invited to run or to paddle. This weekend I had the pleasure of having Jo'burg friends Staci, Ian and Kerry in town for Not-Forest Run on Saturday. They spent the night, which meant that I could take them paddling on Sunday morning (after the 5km myrun - hahahaha). Karen joined us for the paddle.

Me and Rusty at myrun. She was in excellent form.

And what a magnificent morning it was on the water!

We did around 4.5km on flatwater with beautiful reflections. This is what our outing looked like...

Rusty did her best ever, lying perfectly in the tankwell of my Marimba. That's Karen on the white Epic v7.

Even though Vagabond Kayaks is our company, there is no doubt that our kayaks are the best recreational kayaks out there - not just in SA but in the world. I'm not just biased - performance speaks louder than words. I love paddling my Marimba. It is the best model for paddling for fitness with speed (and a dog).

Kerry on the pink Tarka and Ian & Staci on the yellow Mazowe.

Rusty lying in the tankwell. I've put foam paddling in the tankwell to make her comfortable and so that her paws don't slide.

Autumn colours.

Under 3hrs for 26km paddling? For sure!

On 1 May, I again paddled the 26km stretch of river from upstream of Parys to our paddling club. I'd done it a few days before with my friend Karen. The water was a bit lower on the 1st, but no less lovely. I'd thought it was 24km but my companions with GPS units confirmed it to be 26km.

I set a new record for this section of 3h10, paddling my Vagabond Kayaks Marimba. There were two bits of waiting involved so even with lower water, I'm still certain that I can I get my time under 3hrs. By the end, my upper body was tired; I'd worked hard. I really enjoy this stretch and look forward to paddling it more regularly, even at low water. And yes, I have plans to create a really decent map of the river.

Before the start. I didn't take any other photos because I was too busy paddling!

River is up - let's paddle

Back in February, I paddled a section of the Vaal with my friend Karen. It is a mostly flatwater, 25km section with a number of lovely ungraded rapids aka 'ripples' along the way. The river has been low but after the good rains in Gauteng the past two weeks, the river was up - time to paddle.

What a superb Friday afternoon we had! We got on to the water just before 3pm and got off 3.5 hours later just as darkness descended. The current doesn't exactly push your down the river - the volume is not enough for that - but high water does mean that the rocks in the ripples are covered by water. We did not scrape or get stuck on rocks, which we did last time.

This is very much the type of paddling that I enjoy; long distance, lots of variety with many channels, sweet and friendly ripple-rapids, lovely scenery, many bends in the river, and a few hours out on the water in the company of my friend.

The water is already on its way down. We have our fingers crossed that we'll see these decent levels for another few days. Wednesday is a public holiday and a bunch of paddlers are planning on hitting the river in the morning.

Karen. Taking photos of each other. The reflections were so perfect.

Me. Paddling.

Not quite a rapid - these ripples are such fun.

Oh yes! Blissful fun.

That's a very teeny island with a big tree on it.

Karen coming through a long section of ripples.

The last two kilometres to the finish. The sun is gone. The wind is gone. Very peaceful.

Mini adventure paddle

Last week I needed a mini adventure and, while the river was lower than it had been earlier in the week, a long paddle on the Vaal was in order. I've done this section only once before - on our Vagabond Kayaks Mazowe, a double-seater. This time I wanted to stretch out and paddle my Marimba, which is a fast single. I called my friend Karen and we were in for a Friday afternoon paddle.

The section that we paddled starts about 24km upstream of our Likkewaan Canoe Club in Parys.

The water level was low so the little rapids along the way were friendly and bubbly. It is mostly flatwater. A great section for training and enjoying. We got onto the water just before 4pm and we got back to the club just as it got dark. Minutes after getting out, Celliers arrived to fetch us - thank you support driver.

Highlights of this trip included seeing two Goliath herons and my best ever fish eagle sightings and interactions. The first guy seemed to play with us, staying low, flying 30m and landing, waiting for us to come past, flying off again - that was cool. The second guy was completely unphased and let us have a good look at him.

My thanks to my friend Karen for being game to paddle. She paddled a Marimba for the first time and is the star of my photos. We really should do this more often, especially when the river is up.

Posing for a photo before we got onto the water. Karen is in red, I'm in blue.

Saying bye to Celliers, our support driver.

And off we go. 24km of water lie ahead of us.

We pause to check out a Goliath heron on that big branch. Not that you can see him in this photo... but he was there.

It was a magnificent evening. Clear, still, only us on the water... just beautiful.

This reflection just had to be photographed.

Karen coming through a bubbly rapid. At this water level the rapids can't even be graded they're so small and friendly. They are fun nonetheless and they break up the flatwater sections.

Almost on the home stretch with daylight fading fast.

Only a few kilometres to go. Bye bye Mr Sun.

Digesting 2018: Paddling, bookclub and crochet (pt 3)

Paddling

Overall, I didn't paddle much in 2018. Before I got Rusty I paddled once or twice a week. Once I got Rusty, my priorities changed because going running or walking with her was more important than paddling without her, especially as I'm pushed for time.

 I sold my beautiful Epic v7 surfski in November to make way for my Vagabond Marimba, which I got in mid-December before we paddled the Orange River for three days.

While I loved my v7, it didn't have space for Rusty. My Marimba has a spacious tankwell; now I can take my girly out with me.
 

Over New Year I tripped the Vaal twice from town on my Marimba and this past weekend I tripped 'Top Section' (from the canoe club to town) for the first time (this time paddling our whitewater sit-on-top, the Usutu).

 I'm definitely finding that my paddle stroke skills are getting better and I'm also developing better control in rapids. I look forward to getting even better.

Bookclub

 I've got a super bookclub here and we meet monthly. Of course, it is more about the company than it is about the books... I am very appreciative of the friendships from this awesome group of women.

I read every night before I go to sleep - never as much as I'd like to. My attention span is generally only good enough for fiction, which I've always devoured.

I never keep a record of what I've read, so this year I'll endeavour to take a photo of each book to save in a folder on my phone as a record of how I spent my time.

Crochet

I haven't done much this year - but I have completed smaller projects throughout the year. I like to crochet while watching series or movies - the more I watch, the more crochet I get to do. I really need to watch more TV.

I have a bit of a doily thing going... I love the patterns but don't know what to do with them! I've done some with beads for milk jugs and the like; I've got one strung up for a dream catcher and I think I'm going use my two most recent ones on cushions. It will probably take me a year to get around to this!

I got Netflix about four months ago (for the first 24 days I didn't get around to watching anything!). We didn't even have regular TV at home (we got dvds occasionally and watched some series on DVD). Netflix is the way. Yeah! It's nice to zone out and so I try to get in one episode of something every night.

Overall, I have not been very productive on the crochet front.

// end of pt 3

First local river trip of the season

I'm a bit behind in my posts...

Last weekend, I enjoyed a trip down our local stretch of the Vaal River. The water level has been low and on that Sunday morning it was even lower than the normal low.

In the past, I had paddled the fibreglass prototype of our Vagabond Kayaks Usutu whitewater creekboat on a river in KZN (earlier this year) and then a plastic pre-production Usutu on the whitewater park in Oklahoma.

For this trip, I had another pre-production Usutu -  a blue one. The Usutu is named after the river in Swaziland, which we paddled a number of times for the old Swazi Xtreme adventure race (and the Swazi Whitewater Festival). It was my first time taking the Usutu down our regular section of the Vaal.

That's me on the blue Usutu, Cindy on my pink Do It Now and Karen in her lime Soul sit-in. Photo by Graeme Addison. 

When the water level is low, all it really means is that the river is really rocky. There are parts where you can't squeeze a boat through, rapids are far smaller, water moves more slowly and even on flat water you can connect with a rock just below the surface.

I actually really enjoy the river when it is rocky because the scenery seems to improve with more features from the rocks along the banks and in the river itself. I also most enjoy looking for - and successfully negotiating - sneaky little gaps between rocks. As a bonus we saw two malachite kingfishers.

I paddled the Do It Now whitewater sit-on-top last summer (and my sit-in creekboat only later in the season). The Do It Now is a super kayak but the Usutu beats it in speed, better tracking, agility and responsiveness. Despite it being a sizeable craft, the Usutu doesn't feel big when you're on it. Its nose is a bit longer and pointier than that of the Do It Now, to punch through waves with ease. I found it easier to control for ferrying and catching eddies. I look forward to challenging my skills on more water later in the season ("rain, rain come again").