2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 07 Friday morning 26th July: Gyronde by Poppy Clews It was an early 9 am get-in for 8 keen paddlers running the grade 3+ section that finishes back at the campsite.  The water was fast, and I was a little tense as I’d swam on this section last time I was here.  Not many eddies meant a quick run-down today. We split into 2 groups… Read More »2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 07 Friday morning 26th July: Gyronde by Poppy Clews

2024 LCC River Karnali Trip – Nepal Day 15 – Everest and Durbar Square We had a very early start with a taxi collecting us at 5.20 am to take us to the airport for our Everest flight. It was a small aircraft with only window seats occupied, so everyone got the view. We were barely 15 minutes from take-off when the mountains came into view rising from the clouds.… Read More »2024 LCC River Karnali Trip (Nepal) Day 15 – Everest and Durbar Square

2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 06 Thursday afternoon 25th July: Middle Guil by Stuart Toulson A smaller group of 5 paddlers now headed up the Guil Valley to paddle the middle section. The Guil is a 32-mile-long river, that drains into the Durance.  The section we planned to paddle today was from the road tunnel down to Maison du Roy, which is grade 4. We quickly dropped one vehicle… Read More »2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday – Day 06 Thursday afternoon 25th July: Middle Guil by Stuart Toulson

2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 06 Thursday morning 25th July: Lower Guil by Sue Lowndes Lower Guil down to St Clement’s – “the most beautiful and tranquil river out here”.  Although only our third day on the rivers from L’Argentiere the days are already blurring and the obstacles and challenges locked into a deep recession of my brain!  I misinterpreted the word ‘ tranquil ‘ to mean the water… Read More »2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday – Day 06 Thursday morning 25th July: Lower Guil by Sue Lowndes

2024 LCC River Karnali Trip – Nepal Day 14 – Monkey Temple We had a lie-in! We slept through our alarm and didn’t get up until 7.30 am! After breakfast in the hotel, we (me, Martin, Keith and Stuart) headed out to the “Monkey Temple” or ‘Swayambhunath Stupa’, about a 35-minute walk from the hotel. We took the back streets and saw fresh meat being butchered and fish hanging to… Read More »2024 LCC River Karnali Trip (Nepal) Day 14 – Monkey Temple

2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 05 Wednesday: Upper Guisane by Stuart T It had been decided the previous evening that Roy would take charge and decide today’s paddle. Within an instant, it was announced to be the Upper Guisane. The water levels this year are still higher than we have been used to following the recent floods. We departed the campsite and split into two groups, one heading to… Read More »2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 05 Wednesday: Upper Guisane by Stuart T

2024 LCC River Karnali Trip – Nepal Day 13 – Pokhara – Kathmandu Once again we were in our minibus at 6.45 to head back to Kathmandu. Fortunately, the road back was not as bad as the road there and it only took 8.5 hours to get back to Kathmandu. Kathmandu mid-afternoon was crazy busy with the roads chock-a-block with cars and bikes and mopeds, everyone overtaking and squeezing their… Read More »2024 LCC River Karnali Trip (Nepal) Day 13 – Pokhara – Kathmandu

2024 LCC River Karnali Trip – Nepal Day 12 – Pokhara We arrived back in Pokhara around 7 am and said our goodbyes to everyone before checking into our hotel. After showering, we headed out into Pokhara for the day. We hired a row boat and paddled across the lake and from there hiked up around 400 steps to reach the Shanti Stupa, or Peace Pagoda, a Buddhist temple with… Read More »2024 LCC River Karnali Trip (Nepal) Day 12 – Pokhara

2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 04 Tuesday: Camping Le Ecrins slalom site to St Clements, Slalom site, Middle Durance River by Roy M The drivers did the shuttle at 9 am and at 10 am everyone was ready for the trip on the side of the river. There were 13 LCC paddlers in total, and a couple of us carried up and ran the slalom course which was unusually… Read More »2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 04 Tuesday: Camping Le Ecrins slalom site to St Clements, Slalom site, Middle Durance River by Roy M

2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 03 Monday: The Veneon Valley access road was closed by Kirk Williams Our moving day got off to a bright start thanks to my red wine overindulgence the previous evening. After some slightly disorganised packing, we set off on the journey from l’Isle de la Serre (near Lyon) to L’Argentière-la-Bessée. Our plans for a cheeky paddle on the Veneon were scuppered by road closures following… Read More »2024 LCC Alpine Paddling Holiday Day 03 Monday: The Veneon Valley access road was closed by Kirk Williams