I put together a short video from paddling in the Northeast this spring. Rivers are New Haven, Middlebury, Clarendon Gorge, Mettawee, Moose, Otter Creek.
Sheldon Springs on the Missisquoi
I managed to get out on the Sheldon Springs section of the Missisquoi yesterday. American Whitewater is working on negotiating (well, arranging -- they were negotiated something like twenty years ago) releases on this northern VT section, and so I figured I'd post a video and brief description of the run. It's about a mile... Continue Reading →
VT Spring 2013, In Which There is Decent Snowpack, Yet Still No Water
It was an interesting but disappointing spring here in New England. Some late season snowfall brought us up to average or better snowpacks in the mountains, but spring never really arrived and so the entire snowpack dwindled away over the course of a dry month of 55 degree temps. Rivers held at a teasing "almost... Continue Reading →
Grand Canyon 2013
So what do you do when your friend gets a Grand permit 10 days before the launch date? Well, naturally, you call all your friends and you start driving. What if she only has an eleven day window to do the trip? Easy, just self-support it. What if she doesn't know how to kayak? Um...Well,... Continue Reading →
In Which Nick Eats Nothing But French Fries and ‘Tequila’ While Kayaking Beautiful Class IV Every Day for Pennies
If you ever want to save money by going on a paddling vacation, Ecuador is the place to go. Fly to Quito, take a $3.25 bus to Baeza, get off the bus, walk 50 feet up a hill and check in at either Rodrigo's or Gina's (neighboring kayaker-friendly hostels) for $6-10/night, and then call a... Continue Reading →
Chile Part 3: New Years, Hot Springs, and the Pucon Siphon
Back in the Pucon siphon, my back started to improve and I began kayaking again on some of the easier runs. In the meantime, Daphnee, Ari, Greg, et al ran the Carhuello and returned with reports of one of the worst rivers they'd ever run and, unfortunately, a broken back. Greg ended up going up... Continue Reading →
Chile Part 2: Bariloche, Break-ins, and the Futa
After a brief stint at the Pucon hospital -- which looks like it's from World War I -- I confirmed that I probably didn't have a broken back. Unfortunately, it was feeling worse than it had been, so I resolved to not kayak until it at the very least showed signs of improvement. After two... Continue Reading →
Chile Part 1: Low Water
After a sweet late-October run of the Dryway and a high water lap on the East Branch of the Pemi, I packed my kayak in a bag, batted my eyelashes at the American Airlines check-in counter lady, and checked a (full and very overweight) ski bag and kayak free of charge all the way to... Continue Reading →
First Couple Days in Chile
I'll be honest, when I was growing up in New York City, I didn't envision spending my 24th birthday living in a van in Chile...but here I am. Not much of an update, just some photos from the last week -- uploaded from the back of the van at the Rio Fuy takeout.