Swimming the Findhorn

The month of January has been full of new experiences for Northern Kayaker; surfing, canoe polo and joining the dark side, to name but a few.  This weekend was destined to be no different with me experiencing my first two ever river trips.

Saturday saw us tackle a short section of the Findhorn which the book reliably informs me is grade 3 (whatever that means!).  Needless to say, I swam twice but rolled once.
Our beloved borrowed van (and Peter’s pyjamas) Kristian post ice assisted seal launchAt least someone knows what they’re doing…. Warming up  “PADDLE LIKE F………” Peter- smiling! Kristian plays
As you can see, the water was pretty cold and I was glad of my drysuit, surf hood and helmet.  Getting the boats to the put in also involved sliding them down the icy road like sleds which was rather an amusing sight.

When I finally got it into my head that I had to lean down stream, things became easier, but I was a bit disappointed that I only managed one roll in anger.  Swimming twice was a bit tiring but I was warm enough in my drysuit and it was really only my hands that were cold. 

The parts of the river where I was upright were fun though and I don’t think it put me off river paddling too much……