Intro to White Water Kayaking

OVERVIEW

This trip is a two-day introductory course on how to white water kayak. It begins Friday night at 8 at my place with a brief pre-trip meeting to pick out and organize gear. Saturday morning at 10 we’ll leave my place and head to Beaver Creek (~7 miles west, just before Crozet) to familiarize ourselves with the boats, learn basic paddling techniques and maneuvers, and practice T-rescues and wet exits. This should take 4-5 hours. On Sunday we’ll leave my place at 10am 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. 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.