Intermediate Whitewater Kayaking: Lower James in Richmond

OVERVIEW

It’s no fun to tailgate in the rain…so let’s blow off the game and go kayaking instead!

The Lower James through Richmond is a short, Class III run with some fun play spots. Let’s plan to leave Charlottesville (meeting at Fontain Research Park to leave cars, sort gear, and avoid the football crowds) around 11, which will put us on the water by 1 hopefully. Plenty of time to do a few laps on the run! When I went a couple of weeks ago, I found a way to park in the middle of the run, walk to the top, paddle down, and then walk back to the car. This saves a ton of time on the shuttle, and adds a little workout factor for fun too! Depending on how long we play at Pipeline (last rapid on the run and the best surf spot) and how many laps people want to do, we’ll probably be back in cville between 6 and 8.

You need to have a solid roll and good boat control to come on this trip, as it is a class III run.

It is predicted to rain Friday night and Saturday because of a front moving in from the west, so I’ll be keeping a close eye on the river level to make sure its going to stay at a good runnable level. If it does get too high to run in Richmond, there are definitely other places we can go, possibly the Balcony Falls run on the James. Basically, be prepared to be flexible.

I’m waitlisting everyone at the moment; if I don’t know you and your ability, I’ll send you an email to check in on what your kayaking experience is, just for safety’s sake.

If you can drive, please indicate so in the questions section; more drivers/cars with racks will allow more people to come play!

You provide: gear if you have it (5 essentials), lunch/snacks, towel, warm dry clothes for after, bathing suit/clothes that can get wet, non-cotton shirt to paddle in in case the rain makes it chilly, river shoes (closed toe preferable)

Club provides: gear if you need it, gas $$