Whitewater Kayaking

Flashback! Yes, two weeks ago I spent five days on the Mae Tang River learning to whitewater kayak with Siam River Adventures. It was a great experience, and I'm totally addicted.

The week started with private lessons from my friend Shannon who lives in China and has been kayaking for about 10 years. Later in the week a young Thai/Karen man named Nope, who is possibly the best native Thai kayaker in the country, started teaching me. Each day before lunch I would go on flat spot in the river and learn some technique (how to paddle, enter and exit eddies, roll, etc). In the afternoon we would set out with 3-6 kayakers, a raft or two, and a support crew along the river. I'd kayak the upper section of the river (class 3 rapids), raft the middle section (class 4-5 rapids), and jump back into the kayak for the final bit of the river.

Although I didn't master the roll during my five days on the river, I did:

1) Kayak class 1-3 rapids (occasionally without swimming!)
2) Become an expert in the eskimo rescue, which allows a kayaker to get upright without coming out of the kayak and without knowing how to roll.
3) Become bruised from neck to toe. My head had a helmet covering it, thank goodness.
4) Meet some amazing whitewater kayakers, including guys who make kayaking films, run kayak companies, and are sponsored by multiple kayak companies.

Here are some pictures to prove my stories. First off, kudos to my friends and teachers on the river. Here is some of the crew, third from the right is my teacher Shannon and second from the right is my teacher Nope:



Here is me swimming:



And here is me successfully navigating a rapid!