River trips

0.75 metres ........ 15 April 2007

This is heading down towards a summer level, suitable for people of any ability, with low volume play potential.

I don`t know if it was just that the river was so low compared to what I have been used to over the last few months, but the usual play spots seemed to be much less playable that they used to be at this sort of level. Or have several months of high water levels changed things.

Linn

Only the main channel river left has any water, and there is not much in that either. The big diagonal wave isn`t. The only surfable bit was a narrow hole, which was just surfable with difficulty.

Linn bypass

Non-existent

Wall

Low, but I did get some good taillies.

Wave right hand side of wall

Nothing but rocks

Weir

When you see the river at this level, you can see the damage that several months of high river levels have done to the weir.

The river left end of the weir has lost a lot of the big wall of rocks that was put there a few years ago. The two "rivers" that were there 10 days ago are still there, and still paddleable - whether anyone would want to paddle them is another issue - I did, just to prove I could.

The wave below the main chute is almost non-existent - even worse than 10 days ago. The only bit that was close to surfability was a hole on the river right side of the chute. It isn`t clean, the water flowing down towards the hole isn`t actually flowing into the hole, it is a ridge which is flowing off to the right. You could just about surf with your bow on either side of this ridge.

There were no other waves that were anything like playable. If things don`t magically change when the river drops another 150 mm, then the weir as a play spot has gone forever.

Rapid down to Hell Hole corner

Not much of note.

Hell Hole corner

I came down the left, so don`t know what the normal route down the right is like. The approach to the left has changed - there are far more boulders than there used to be - I think the very high levels over the winter have washed a lot of the boulders down from higher up. The stopper below the drop of the shelf seems to have lost its bite at the right hand end, and there wasn`t much to play on further along to the left either.

Hell Hole corner to Thistlebrig

Nothing of note - even the hole up from the Mill was a bit washing through.

Thistlebrig

Thistlebrig has its characteristic left to right diagonal current, and the bigger rocks in the middle are showing.

Some playing to be had.

Wave below Thistlebrig

Didn`t look at it, as at this level it isn`t worth going down to.

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