Instruction
This past July Mary-Jane and Vernon Oliver
invited me up to Whitehorse in the Yukon to teach for their local
kayak club. Whitehorse has a really friendly paddling community
that boasts some fantastic paddlers, including kids in the River
Raiders program. While I was there I worked with several of the
River Raiders, including three girls, who are very talented and
enthusiastic about paddling. These kids are also very driven and
resourceful. They recently raised enough money to build themselves
a big air ramp!
The Yukon River, which reminds me of the Ottawa, runs right through
Whitehorse. In fact, the name Whitehorse comes from the whitewater
in the rapids that churn through town. There's a fantastic wave
hole that's easily accessible and makes for great park and play.
While I was there we ran the class III-IV Tutshi River in Northern
BC located about an hour and a half from Whitehorse, as well as
the Wheaton River, a fun class II-III run nearby. I was really
impressed by the breathtaking scenery, fun whitewater of all levels,
the welcoming paddling community, and the notable talent of the
River Raiders.
The only disappointment was that I didn't get to see a Grizzly
(from far away of course), but I did get to see a Lynx casually
walking along the side of the road. Maybe I'll get to see more
wildlife on my next trip!
Below are some video clips from the Tutshi River (pronounced 'too
- shy') taken by Bob Daffe of Tatshenshini Expediting, www.tatshenshiniyukon.com
In the last video clip you'll see me get a nice beatdown followed
by a swim - very exciting!
Special thanks to Up North Adventures for lending me a boat while
I was up there.
Check out their store www.upnorth.yk.ca
and to get more information about paddling in the Yukon,
please visit the Yukon Kayak Club at www.kayak.yk.ca
Check out the video and if you get a chance, check out the Yukon!
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Tutshi River Video 2 click to play (5.9 megs wmv) |
Tutshi River Video 3 click to play (9.1 megs wmv) |
 Tutshi River Video 4 click to play (5.2 megs wmv) |
