River Wye Trip – Saturday by Aleksander Ford Day one (Rhayader to Builth Wells) Today we paddled the River Wye.  As we rearranged boats ready for shuttling it was a nice sunny day and we were all excited for the journey ahead.  It was going to be a 24 km paddle, which we found took us a surprisingly short time to paddle, due to the fast-flowing river, which had been fed by a week’s worth of rain. When we started it was very gentle with a few wave trains and further down, the river was a very bouncy part which was under a tall bridge.  Carrying on, we passed large amounts of sheep and cattle which stared at us. Eventually we came to a grade 4 minus feature (Builth Rocks) which was a drop followed by lots of boiling and bubbling water.  After that there were a few places to practise surfing. Overall the river was very gentle with a few places to have fun.  It’s a great river, longer than normal paddles, for beginners and improvers alike. Aleksander Ford More Photos……..

Wye? Because it’s there…… by Chris Murphy Wye? Because it’s there…… Day two the Upper Wye (Llangurig to Rhayader) After Hannah and Craig left us on Sunday morning 15 paddlers got on the water at Llangurig to begin our second trip on the River Wye. This time we would be finishing our paddle at the point where we started yesterday’s paddle in the middle of Rhayader below the grade four feature. (more of that later). We split into three groups of five with the “canary” group of Mark, Stuart T, Leanne, Sarah and Stuart C setting off first. Next was our group with Kirk, Chris M, Ollie, Craig F and Alexsander. Bringing up the rear was the third group of Keith, John, Chris T, Jenny and Sean. The River Wye on this section was 18k of read and run grade 2/3 however the recent persistent rainfall had resulted in the levels being higher than normal. This meant that the first part of the day was largely spent picking our way through the overhanging trees. The lengthy flat sections were interrupted every now again by the grade three drops which were pretty friendly for the most part but a couple of them did provide a few problems. The first of these involved a fallen tree that was blocking the exit to a left-hand feature. We decided safety first was the best policy and portaged. After a scramble across the bank we got back in our boats and paddled back up the tree to take a closer look. The obstruction had also collected a section of fencing complete with barbed wire which we couldn’t see from the bank. The portage was a good call after all. The other troublesome feature had a sharp drop with a hole on river right and a […]

October Introductory Course by John Fay Sunday morning alongside the General docks paddle ran this month’s Introductory Course for new members. Sadly, Elizabeth and Karen were unable to attend leaving five in the hands of Alex, Aaron, Martin and John. A good thing really because Annmarie and Gill were quite nervous. Ian, Paul and Ellen made up the rest of the group and it wasn’t long before everyone was on the water. Two hours later they had all learnt some basic paddle strokes and had tried a variety of boats including open canoes and an inflatable double kayak belonging to Ian and Gill. At the end of the session everyone had smiles on their faces and Ellen stated that the session had been very helpful. Ian and Paul both completed the capsize drill although Ian has now become quite an expert at this after attending both Rescues Session. Well done to everyone. See you again on the water soon. More Photos…….. Report by John Fay

River Dee Ponsonby to Ty Mawr by John Allerton River Dee Ponsonby to Ty Mawr Country Park Great paddle yesterday thanks all who attended River was super-fast level 1.2m at Manley gauge weather held out – good to have some canoeists with us too. More Photos…….. Report by John Allerton

Rescues Session 2 by John Fay Our second Rescues session started and ended in beautiful sunshine. Once again members new and old gathered together to learn or practice various rescue skills. Alex Peacock took charge of the several young members who attended, and it wasn’t long before screams of laughter could be heard across the water as Alex engaged them in several fun kayaking games. Others split into small groups and worked together on their skills and we could see our new members grow in confidence as each skill they attempted was successful. It was also great to see people who had never met before forging new friendships as they warmed themselves up with hot drinks and other goodies provided by our catering team of Irene Jackson and Chris Fay. Once again, the planned “two-hour session” concluded after some three and a half hours and a tired group reluctantly headed home. A massive thank you to everyone (too many to name) who turned up today and we look forward to seeing you on more dock’s sessions and paddles in the near future. More Photos…….. Report by John Fay

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Breaking News – World Premieres of two new paddling films for Thursday evenings show at the Marina French Alps 2019 – A 15 minute pre-release from Gille studios showing all the antics of the LCC Lilo race on the International Slalom Course at L’Argentière-la-Bessée together with all the best rivers over the two weeks. We also have presentations from the Lofoten Islands – Arctic Norway epic trip. At the last minute Never Again productions Ltd have just finalised the preview copy of “River of Gold” Sun Khosi expedition. This may be your only opportunity to see these once in a lifetime films and talks from our own club members. Make sure you get there early to ensure you get a seat. Thursday 10th October Arrive 7:30pm for an 8:00pm start.   We are in the Spinnaker suite of Liverpool Yacht Club / Marina L3 4BP – go past the bar and through the double doors.  Free parking but remember to put your car registration into the iPad on the wall that end of the bar.

The Rescues Session at the Docks by John Fay Over 30 members attended todays Rescues Session at the docks. Today’s session was run by Ian Bell who grabbed everyone’s attention with his focused introduction and his on the water rescue demonstrations With the foundation blocks laid everyone including brand new member Ian and little 9-year-old Lil were rescuing and being rescued. 9-year-old Lil showed that technique was the key as she confidently emptied and assisted John, an adult member, back into his sea kayak. After experiencing numerous immersions, the group kept the catering team (Irene & Chris) very busy as hot drinks and other goodies were served to warm up the chilly group. Thanks to everyone who attended to make it another successful session. Report by John Fay