Group paddle - Snowies - 5th Feb- all welcome

[Fishdejour]

I am organising another group paddle on the Eucumbene River for Sunday 5th Feb. I am hoping for some rain
http://www.eldersweather.com.au/raindat ... bleCookies
but plan to go up and paddle the mid section even with a low level. All rafters are welcome, I already have a few starters, more the merrier as it is a good way to share/develop skills. Intrest?? If the level is way to low then we may re-route to the Tooma.

I am also keen to do a group paddle of the upper Tuross which is a great packraft water, Sunday 26 Feb if the levels are good? any takers?

I am keen for any other suggestions for group paddles??.

Steve

[nickb]

Thanks for getting things started.

I will be hiking/fly fishing the Tumut the first weekend of February but the second trip is doable.
Keep us posted
Nick

[Craig]

Will hopefully be coming up from Victoria for the Eucumbene, so if anyone else down here is interested then let me know and we can sort something out with transport. My plan is to head over Friday night and do something on the Saturday, be it packrafting, walking or otherwise

With regard to other group paddling locations, I've been eyeing off the Mitchell River for the last couple of weeks. It's paddleable for most of the year and has a few decent rapids. It's within weekend striking distance of people on the South Coast or from Melbourne, too far for Sydney people though.

[Grasshopper]

Steve I'm a potential for trip no 2. How cold is the water this time of year ? Is there a need for wetsuits etc...? Thanks for organising !

[Fishdejour]

I would wear a wettie on the Euc for sure but the water is pretty warm on the Tuross this time of year, thermals would prevent any coolness and offer some sun protection so are a good each way bet. I have discovered the sunscreen benefits of the spray deck this summer!!! I have worn my wet suite and got too hot even early or tail season on Tuross. I would suggest a helmet,PFD and throw rope per boat is a minimum requirement and we will do a safety brief/planpre paddle. The Euc is up to grade 4. The Tuross is grade 3 max so I would not expect a swim (although I have been know to fall out of grade 1 riffles... short story but too embarrassing...). Craig will attest to my ability to fall out of a raft easily (his ass is glue and he seems to stay in regardless) It would be great to have a good number of paddlers along. Both paddles are solid days but a shed load of good water through some awsome country. This is the vid from last years Tuross paddle.




Steve

[Lizardboy]

I'm out unfortunately Steve, moving House.

Gus

[Fishdejour]

bump

[Darren]

I'll keep a tentative booking for the Tuross Steve. I was hoping I'd be able to paddle by the 5th but it might be pushing it. I have a mate who might be keen too so when he's back from Canada (week or so) I'll try and give you a more concrete answer. By that stage I might be able to sit in the raft at least.

[Fishdejour]

Gotta look after your butt Darren, would be good to have you along, at this point the Tuross is dependant on levels, we would need a bit of rain to come south as it is still pretty dry down this way.
This needs to be between .8 and 1.3(ish)
http://www.bom.gov.au/fwo/IDN60234/IDN6 ... .plt.shtml

Euc this coming weekend should be ok if we get a little more rain, I will post logistics a bit later in the week if the intrest is there?

Steve

[Craig]

I'm still keen Steve. The Goobarragandra, Tooma and Indi gauges have all come up today so there's definately water around. I can swing past the Euc gauge on Saturday and see how it's looking. If it's waaaay too low then we can always head elsewhere; explore a bit more of the Thredbo, or even have a crack at the upper Snowy if we get a good drop of rain later in the week.

[chrisp]

Hi there...well I would be definately keen for the Tuross run (if theres an invite)! Cant make the Euc though

Had some packrafting fun up at Nymboida in November.....ahh warm water.

[Fishdejour]

Craig, give me a ring on Saturday when you check out Euc gauge, I am happy to jump in any water that is bubbling at the moment, I will be up late Saturday arvo/evening, so we can make an early start Sunday, I think Peter and another mate are coming.

Chris, it would be good to have your wealth of paddling (and other assorted) knowledge along on the Tuross We will wait and see what the rain Gods do for us, fingers crossed.

[johnopower]

Bah! I can't do this weekend but the late Feb weekend might be a good date. We are headed up to Canberra around that time for a long-ish weekend and a day trip on a river would be tops.

[Fishdejour]

Well we had an overwhelming response to this group paddle with a massive crew of 2 starters, Craig and myself...... Regardless, we had a great day running the Eucumbene river from above the gorge to Provinance Portal. We are claiming first packraft decent of this river Levels were very low (details later) but it was still a lot of fun , grade 4 rapids downgraded to grade 3, still lots of good technical water, more steep creek with lots of good drops and multiple drop runs. I would be keen to try it with anther foot of water. I am sure Craig will post a bit of a trip report with a few pics later (he is still probably driving the 6 hours home!!!) Thanks for yet another fantastic days paddling together Craig, I really enjoyed it.

Steve

[chrisp]

Good to hear that you had a good time! did you take a look at either of the gauges? What were they? And when are we carving up the Tuross?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!

[Fishdejour]

Chris, the level was super low 7.2 I think? Craig took note and will post details, I was going to paddle if it was dry as I was desperate to get out. Tuross is going to be 26 Feb, some big rain predicted so I am hoping the levels will be good, if it hits a decent level the week before I may go the previous weekend also (19th) . I'll get another thread going for Tuross Group paddle.

Steve

[Craig]

Yep it was a great paddle, thanks Steve for organising it all. The top gauge was at 5.11 when I drove past on Sunday afternoon, so it was ultra low volumes. Made for good fun though, as it was tight and technical. We ran everything that was runnable and had fun seal launching off the smooth granite rocks at every available opportunity.

Here's a couple of photos to tide you over until I do a blog post, hopefully tomorrow night:-

[Darren]

Looks beautiful! Looking forward to the full report.
Interesting post editing too Craig, works well.

[Haydn]

Looks fantastic! Look forward to the full report and more pics. Out of interest did you guy's drop in at the highway? or four mile hill?

Thanks Haydn.

[Craig]

Hi Haydn, we dropped in at Four Mile Hill as the extra couple of km down from the bridge would have taken a long time with the low levels.

Blog post is up, see here: http://paucifloraadventures.blogspot.co ... fting.html

Also, I did a paddle on the Saturday through Clarke Gorge on Cave Creek, which you can read about here if you so desire: http://paucifloraadventures.blogspot.co ... fting.html

[Darren]

Great trip guys! It looks like a great place to improve technical skill at lower levels? The problem I find with a lot of the larger rivers up my way, is that there are long flat stretches in between some otherwise good rapids.

I guess that's the difference between creeking etc. Slightly bummed I'm missing some of these trips but I'll get back into it soon.
Interesting choice of wetty Craig.....I have a good cold water job but find it a little fatiguing for packrafting. 8 or more hours of paddling works the shoulders pretty hard so your style looks perfect.
Again well done and thanks for letting us know the heights and put in info.

[Craig]

I reckon with an extra 100-200mm it would be ideal for skill development Darren. At the level it was at on Sunday it was great fun, but there wasn't enough volume going through the rapids to try different lines or manoeuvre etc. Incidentally we never felt in any danger on the way down; the rapids were clean of timber and there were very few hydraulics or stoppers to get caught up in. Steve remarked that it would be possible to take a beginner through there at that level as an ideal introduction to whitewater packrafting.

With a decent start and the right water conditions it would be possible to do two runs in a day. The car shuffle is short too which is a bonus.

The singlet top wetty is the best for paddling IMO. As you've noticed a conventional wettie drags on your arms every time you take a stroke, whereas the singlet alows complete mobility. In colder weather I supplement mine with a drysuit top and keep adding layers underneath until I'm warm. As you can see in the photos the wetty I use is a retro rig (flouro baby, yeah!), it belongs to our bushwalking club. I've been trying to track one down in the singlet top and long leg configuration but haven't had much luck, so if anyone comes across one in a decent thickness and at a good price please let me know

[Darren]

I managed to pick up a good cold water wetty (Ripcurl E-Bomb) recently at 50% off. I was after a 2:3 surfing wetsuit but ended up going with a 4:3. It was a tough decision going with the thicker one from a fatigue perspective, but we do some long days in cold canyons (occasional night trips) etc. Total overkill for packrafting and I may end up with another 2:3 for flexibility. I like the idea of long wetty pants and a rashie for our climate.

I find your legs get hammered on portages and swims and it's more general protection than being overly cold. I've seen a lot of people buy canyon specific wetsuits or wetsuits that someone in a shop has advised them to purchase based on what's in store at the time, which hasn't always been the best option IMO.

Surfing wetsuits that aren't sold too small (increasing fatigue) are possibly the best all round option. The technology in the better brands allows for some amazing flexibility and warmth that the wetsuits of old couldn't possibly compare to.

....anyway....is this the kind of thing you mean Craig? - http://www.wetsuitwarehouse.com.au/adre ... john-3-2mm

[Fishdejour]

I go the 3 season surf wetsuit, eat too much pork, pizza and cake and drink too much beer, end result = I have the thermal mass and cold resilience of a Polar bear so the wet suite is not so important

Steve

[Darren]

That's the best method IMO Steve....body mass keeps you alive. I spent so many years trying to carry bulk for other sports but at 37, the age clock is starting to help with the insulation issues.