Intro to White Water Kayaking II

OVERVIEW

This trip is a two-day introductory course on how to white water kayak. It begins Saturday morning at 10 at my place where each person will pick out their boat and organize their gear. We’ll then head to Walnut Creek (~10 miles south) to familiarize ourselves with the boats, learn basic paddling techniques and maneuvers, and practice T-rescues, wet exits, and the Eskimo role if anyone is interested (a couple people from the last class learned it and successfully used it in white water). This should take ~5 hours. On Sunday we’ll leave my place at 1:30 pm to practice what we’ve learned through class I and II rapids of the Rivanna River (just outside of town). We’ll stop at various points to learn how to go into and out of eddies, ferrying, river reading, rapid running, and perhaps surfing. This should take 4-5 hours. This trip is for complete beginners so please do NOT sign up if you have white water kayaking experience. I’ll lead more advanced trips in the future. However, if you own a boat and want to go, you can drop me a line at dclark@virginia.edu, or call my cell at 760-2739.

Outdoors at UVa provides:

Kayak, paddle, skirt, helmet, pfd (personal flotation device), wet suit, nose plugs, transportation.

You must bring:

Lunch, plenty of water, towel, sunscreen. Appropriate clothing, e.g. most synthetic fabrics work best, NOT cotton! Suggestions: polypropylene, capilene, neoprene, pile, fleece, silk,….NOT cotton! Aqua socks, neoprene booties, or sandles that strap tightly to your feet.