‘Here’s the agenda:’ started Jim Coffey ‘You fly down Saturday morning, Sunday we run the Four Fours, Monday the Oro, Tuesday Roadside Alseseca, Wednesday & Thursday Big Banana, Friday Jalacingo, and Saturday morning you fly home.’  This all being pitched to me on a Thursday afternoon.  Typical Jim Coffey fashion.  Huge plans on a whim.  I love it.

This was all being done in follow up to the shooting we had done in Costa Rica for The Canoe Movie pt 2 with AmongstIt.  It was Jim’s goal all the way along to be part of the first descent of the Big Banana section of the Rio Alseseca and have it featured in the upcoming DVD release.

The trouble with the whole plan was that the Monday of my return was the absolute deadline to send the final edit to the publishers for the DVD release which was a close enough deadline to hit the premiere at Canoecopia the following week.  This meant it would be tight. However, after a lot of back and forth between Jim Coffey, John Grace, and myself we decided to go ahead with the plan.  Game on.

As far as canoeing goes Jim had some all stars selected to feature in the video:  John Foster from the Ottawa area.  Just about the nicest guy to be on the river with and an exceptionally strong paddler.  As well, Eli Helbert from the Asheville area who is a living legend in the sport (and also a great guy to have on the river).  The plan was in motion and we were psyched to get things going.

Now, I do have to mention one side note:  with Jim Coffey sometimes things don’t always go exactly to plan but somehow Jim always manages to work things out.  It is one of his greatest qualities.  I have seen him face things that would make me stressed beyond belief.  That being said, I expected some hitches along the way.

Here is the edit that came out of the last trip to Mexico:

Veracruz is one of my favourite places to paddle.  However, on my last trip down the Big Banana section of the Alseseca I unfortunately broke my hand off my kayak on Meat Locker.   This ended my paddling on that trip and I was unable to run the Oro.  For that reason I was very excited to run the Oro finally as it is an incredible river.

The Oro is a stunning, volcanic river that runs into the ocean.  It has great ledge rapids with 2 clean water falls both over 3oft.  For the Canoe shoot the levels were on the high side which made the big drops extra fun.  Here is some of the footage that came out of that day that wasn’t included in The Canoe Movie:

At the Oro we were delayed some due to some vehicle problems but we managed to get on our way (a bit later than expected) to the Veracruz airport to pick up Eli.  Since we had a later start to the day we decided to forego the Roadside section of the Alseseca and go straight to Tlapacoyan to prep for the next day on the Big Banana section.

For those who have been on this section of whitewater all would agree that it is clearly one of the best in the world.  While most would call it class five, it isn’t as harrowing as other class five sections around the world.  It is a good, long day of paddling with some bigger drops.  The biggest highlight for me is the canyons.  The scenery is incredible and makes you appreciate being a paddler and accessing these incredible spots.

Below:  Mike McKay & Lalo Ruiz at the put in for the Big Banana section of the Alseseca.

For the open boaters there was an added challenge of finding places to take breaks on the slippery rocks to dump the canoes.  Also, in the first third of the section there are some must run drops that are extremely difficult to scout.  All in all they go fine but can be a little stressful the first time down.

The highlights of the first open boat descent of the Big Banana were Eli styling every drop he ran including the best line of the day on Meat Locker, John-O’s dramatic enders of the 30 footer and the steep slide after, and Jim running Siliencio.

Jim had a pretty clever way of entering into the turbulent pool above Silencio by using two helpers, two pieces of webbing, and a whole lot of balance.  You can check out the final footage in The Canoe Movie.  I don’t want to give away the surprise.

In the meantime, here is a pic of Jim at the lip of Silencio:

Once the Big Banana was done our plan was to go back to Aventurec and head to the Jalacingo in the morning.  Unfortunately one of those curveballs were thrown our way:  Jim’s dog Echo was hit by a truck at the take out of the Big Banana.  The dog is okay now.  However, at the time the dog ran off into the jungle (at the time we thought it was gone to die).  Jim decided to spend the night at the take out in hopes of finding Echo.

We didn’t see Jim until around mid-day the next day.  At this time he told us that Echo was fine and was at the vet in Tlapacoyan getting patched up.  This didn’t leave us enough time to hit the Jalacingo so we opted to go do the Roadside.

For me this was still a great option since I really love this section of whitewater.  It is like a class four playground not to mention it was my birthday and paddling in Mexico on my Feb 17 birthday is not something to complain about.

When I was finally settled at home in Ottawa on the Sunday after a big day of travel on the Saturday, it was time to churn out an edit at lightning speed to get it to John & Hunter in time for the DVD release.  I knew this was so important to Jim and I wanted to do my best in the short time that I had to get it out.

All in all, so far the reviews have been solid after a few premieres.  Glad I could be part of a super fun project and it was great to meet Eli, John-O, Dooley, Matt, Hunter, & G-Man.  Hope to see all of you on the river again and hopefully in another exotic location for The Canoe Movie 3.

 

In March 2011 Five2Nine went to Turrialba, Costa Rica to work with local paddlers in documenting the threats on the Pacuare River and the impact it would have on the community.  Costa Rica is a very user-friendly destination for international paddling and has been for a number of years.  Many paddlers have been able to experience the Pacuare and the Reventazon and come back to experience the true feel of tropical paddling in clean, pristine rivers.

Here is the video that came out of our first trip to Costa Rica:

This time around we decided not to go to Turrialba but to be based out of the Saripaqui area; specifically we stayed at Pozo Azul.  In and around that area there are many other rivers and even though Turrialba is a much bigger and easier place to be based out of, it is actually not that much closer to the Pacuare River.

One week into our trip we hooked up with Jim Coffey from Esprit International.  Jim brought up the idea to me that Dooley Tombras, Matt Devoe, and Hunter Davis were coming down to the area to shoot the Costa Rica segment of The Canoe Movie 2.  The opportunity was given to me to shoot the video with the crew and act as a second camera man.

The prospect of working the AmongstIt was exciting for me since I had been following their work since LVM.

Despite having lofty ambitions of running some of the more stout sections that Costa Rica had to offer, the crew decided to do a descent of the waterfall section of the Pozo Azul.  Only three days earlier a small crew had done an extremely high water descent of this section and loved it.  The section has three major water falls getting as high as 35ft.  To access the section with canoes Jim hired some locals to pull our boats into the river with horses.  Living easy.

After 3 days of sun the river had dropped to a lower level leaving the section a totally different river than we had seen just 2 days earlier.

The top drop was had now gone from a raging beast to a milder, rocker drop.

Still, uncharted waters for OC boaters due to the remote nature of this international river.

The Pozo Azul translates directly to ‘blue pool’.  It is named well due to the crystal blue water on the section.  At regular levels it could be described as a 4/4+ section with clean waterfalls the last of which can be hiked into directly.

Mid-way through our day Matt Devoe slipped on a rock while scouting the Mesas rapid and broke two bones in his foot.  This wasn’t known to the group until later on the river.  Despite the pain, Matt powered through and ran all the rapids including the last 35ft drop.

The picture on the left shows Matt Godsoe running the top drop of the Pozo Azul section with style.

With Matt Devoe out of the paddling game for the duration of the trip the rest of the crew were forced to work around the limited time that was left.  With water levels not cooperating for the group to run some of the bigger drops in the area we were looking towards more scenic, technical sections of river.  This included the San Miguel section of the Saripaqui, the Upper Vulcan, and the Upper Toro.  All of these sections offer some of the best class 4 river running that the area had to offer.

The group decided not to run the high water Pacuare sections simply due to the fact that those sections have been filmed many times and they were looking for some new rivers in CR.

The photo to the left is Dooley Tombras boofing on the Upper Vulcan.  This river is a gem that offers some technical, tight creek boating that is reminiscent of the southeast United States (which meant that Dooley was right at home).

The lads were quite happy to have had access to Esquif L’edges in an international destination.  This is largely in part because of Jim Coffey and his operation Esprit International.  Since Jim brought his crew and fleet of boats from Quebec to Costa Rica this year, there was a huge arsenal of boats for the boys to pic from.  Due to the size of the canoes this is extremely rare and therefore gives The Canoe Movie a much more international potential.

One of the most difficult things about travelling internationally for paddling is being able to paddle good, reliable boats. Thanks Jim for helping Five2Nine out over the years by supplying good gear while we paddle some of the best areas in Costa Rica and Mexico.

Mike McKay running the last drop of the Pozo Azul section.  Below:  Jim Coffey on the same drop.

 

A rafting/kayaking journey through the Grand Canyon, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, is highly coveted and hard to come by. It is the longest rafting trip in the United States, and one of the most spectacular as well. It is said that the only way to truly experience the Grand Canyon is to float through it.

My Journey began on Dec. 2^nd, 2011, we boarded our flight in Ottawa and flew to Las Vegas, Nevada to start our drive to our outfitter Canyon R.E.O. in Flagstaff, Arizona.  As we crossed to Arizona from Nevada we started to see snow (in the desert). The bit of snow quickly turned to a full on blizzard. When we finally arrived at 3:30 A.M. at the motel in Flagstaff where we were meeting the rest of our crew there was at least 10inches of snow on the ground (way more than Ottawa had when we left).  I was very worried that the next 24 days on the Colorado River would be way colder then I expected.

We arrived at the outfitter the next morning and started loading up the trucks with all our gear and everyone was asking the same questions (Is this normal for Arizona to get this much snow?). The reply we got was assuring… “This is typical weather for Flagstaff but it will be warmer the closer we get to the put-in…” However once we started driving to the put-in it continued to snow and our driver kept saying that he has never seen snow this far down. (Great) We arrived at the Lee’s Ferry put-in around 2:30 leaving us about 2 hours of daylight to inflate our rafts and get everything rigged and loaded. As it was still cold out (a lot colder then we were hoping for) everyone agreed that it would be better to stay at a motel one last night instead of camping and keeping all our tents dry.

The next morning  (Dec. 4^th, 2011, LAUNCH DAY) we were met by to Grand Canyon Park Rangers at the Lee’s Ferry put-in to go over our gear and to fill us in on some of the Leave No Trace practices used in the Grand Canyon… (ex. Put a ground sheet on the floor of your kitchen area to collect food scraps. Pack away your ash. Urinate in the river, etc…)

We were finally packed and ready to go around 11:30 A.M. and our Grand Canyon trip was officially started. The Following 24 days were Amazing. We spent the 1^st few days figuring out our camp chores and the best way to pack and unpack our rafts. We split the groups into 4 and set a rotation system (Shitter, Dinner, Day off), so your chores would start as follows: You start by setting up the Groover (an amo can with a toilet seat and a hand washing station) in the evening. The next morning you are responsible for packing up the Groover. That evening your group is responsible for setting up the kitchen and preparing dinner. The third morning your group will be responsible for breakfast and lunch. Once lunch is finished you officially have a day off. This system worked great for us.

We were lucky to have high water between 21,000 – 22,000 cfs for this time of year which made going down the river very quick. Having 24 days to cover 283 miles (456km) meant we didn’t have to do too many long days. We would normally be packed up and ready to go around 10:30 A.M. and would normally do about 20-30 miles in a day, getting off the river about 3:30 P.M. and set up camp. We decided to take a number of layover days at specific camp spots to be able to do some of the many hikes or to just relax and enjoy a bit of sunlight (which would typically not last long in one spot). Trying to document a 24 day trip without having a number of extra batteries and memory cards would have been impossible without the GOALZERO portable solar chargers. Even though getting more then a few ours of direct sunlight inside the canyon proved to be a bit of a challenge, however, the chargers worked great.  We were able to charge all of our cameras on a daily basis. I was also able to charge my laptop (which was essential for dumping our photos and videos to keep our memory cards ready for each day).

The Grand Canyon is very beautiful and everyday I was amazed how the Geology and Scenery would change (I will let the photos do the talking).

We were lucky to spend Christmas in the Canyon. It was my 4^th Christmas in a row where I was unable to be at home (which has been a bit hard in the past), however, this one will go down as one of my favourites. We shared some great laughs and exchanged our secret Santa gifts as well as received our stockings in the morning.

One of the coolest experiences I had was on the final 34miles of the trip. In order to get to the take-out at Pierre’s Ferry, most people do a night float. (This is because there are no campsites on the final stretch of the canyon. We put on the river at 11:30 P.M. and tied our rafts together. We set up our solar lights, Euchre Table, and sleeping pads and proceeded to float the 34miles to the take-out. Geoff and I took the oars and made sure we didn’t hit any of the walls as we floated. We arrived at the take-out at around 9 A.M. and out Grand Canyon Adventure came to an end after 24 amazing days…

For more info on the Grand Canyon click HERE

 

 

 

 

 

One of the most stressful things about paddling near the equator is the early sunset – around 5:30pm! This is compounded by a laid back attitude about timing. That being said, I knew we were in for an adventure one day when we pulled up to the Rio Chicamocha river at 2:30pm to find it flooded to the point of resembling Black Bean soup.

The Rio Chicamocha in the Santander region of Colombia is dubbed a great intermediate paddle down one of the longest and remote canyons in South America. The drive to the river proved to be stunning and this 2-day run was expected to be a “warm up” for our Colombian paddling adventure.

The soupiness of the river somehow suggested that this might not be the case. However, the local paddlers assured me that this was going to be fine and that we were good to put on.
The first thing that strikes you about the canyon is it’s incredible beauty. While this is not the type of boxed in canyon that you would find on a remote class 5 stretch, the sloped walls go as high as the eye can see and a hike out would involve a great distance through thorned jungle.

We were committed.

As the river wound around corners, the silty waves got bigger and bigger. However, they were navigable and we were still able to spot upcoming hazards with sufficient warning. One of the major issues with paddling in water heavily filled with sediment is the inability to actually read the water. Whitewater without the white makes it that much more difficult to make out and react to features.

Soon enough, we came to the section of the river where the river bed narrows and constricts the flow. Ahead of me all I could see were brown explosions of water. I knew things were about to get interesting.

Our leader, Mark Hentze (the author of the Colombia Whitewater guidebook) charged ahead of the group down this massive section of whitewater. Before anyone realized this, we had all pulled off to the side, making an obvious decision not to follow.
We tried to figure out what to do. Mark was gone and a swim out of his kayak in this water would likely be fatal. We climbed up on the highest rocks we could find in order to try to spot him in hopes that he had already reached safety. He was nowhere to be seen.
As an expedition paddler these are the moments you dread. At that moment, I came to the realization that it was very possible that we had lost someone on the river and might not even recover a body.  That being said, we still had to get the rest of the group to safety by navigating what we could. Hiking out was not possible.

Along the right side of the river we could spot lines down the flow that would get us from eddy to eddy. Between one paddler getting out of his boat, communicating a possible line down the rapid and paddling the line himself this all took a great deal of time.

Our hopes of getting ourselves safely down this massive torrent quickly enough to have a realistic hope of finding and helping Mark if he was in trouble were slim. Not to mention that daylight was fading fast, and there was no end in sight to this rapid.

Out of nowhere, we heard the ringing of a cell phone. Cesar, one of the local San Gil paddlers had his cell phone on him. It was Mark, letting us know that he was safe downstream. Relief washed over us.

Mark had somehow been able to work his way through the rapid and get into an eddy about 1.5 km downstream. He would later tell us that he felt lucky to have done so considering the size of the whitewater and lack of eddies on the left side of the river.

With daylight fading and the group close to reuniting it was time to make a decision. We had to find a safe spot off the river to hole up for the night. We were properly equipped with supplies, but were far from any reasonable campsite.

We continued down the river between massive holes and breaking waves until we found Mark waiting for us on river left.  At this point it was twilight and it was time to move fast. A jungle terrain is not ideal for hiking at night with heavy boats and equipment.

We started the steep hike up the left side of the canyon. Each step in front of me seemed to look darker and darker and soon there was barely any light at all. Thankfully, in my overnight gear I had packed my Goal Zero charger pack to recharge my camera gear. One of it’s features is a handy LED light that became my main source of light that night.

Soon enough we found a little shelter for cattle placed in the middle of a marshy pasture. Relieved, we all took shelter among the cow patties, while stealing occasional glances at the massive bull staring back at us. We consumed what water we had and began to make a plan.

Before we knew it we saw flashlights heading our way. It was the local farmer with his 9 year old son. At first, he seemed angry at finding us on his land and in his barn. However, we finally realized that he was not upset but inviting us to his home to spend the night with his family!  It didn’t take any convincing for us to follow him to his house.

When we arrived 4 more small, shy children poked their heads out to see the unfamiliar gringos arrive at their home wearing strange gear. The shyness wore off when we handed them each a chocolate bar and they were all smiles the rest of the night.
They have a simple 3-room house – a kitchen with wood oven, a storage room, and one bedroom for the whole family.

They had a dog, a mule, cats, goats, chickens, and cattle all in the near vicinity. They provided us with use of their kitchen, hammocks, water and sleeping pads. They marveled at our cameras and the photos we showed them of San Gil and other areas.

Their life was simple and seemed to be filled with hard work and happiness.  The father told us that the kids were to go to school in the morning and that the Pueblo of Ordan was only a 25 minute hike from their farm. Perhaps there in the morning we could find a ride out of town and back to San Gil.  It was likely that the river was still rising and would only get more dangerous.

I’ll always remember this family’s warmth, kindness, and generosity. To me, this represented the people that I met all along the way in Colombia.

Another example of this was the next morning when we made our way to Ordan. Quickly we were taken into a local home and provided with a meal of eggs and sweet bread. It is hard to think of North Americans offering to take some stranded foreigners into their homes and sharing a meal.  The lady who cooked us breakfast then called the local driver to see about providing us with a ride out of Jordan. This would involve a trek up a 1500 M canyon on rugged roads. In fact, it was a path seldom traveled since the principle route was washed out by landslides.

After an afternoon of lounging in the local swimming hole, we met with our driver to load his mid-sized truck with six loaded kayaks and six paddlers. Epic on it’s own.  The ride out was bumpy and dangerous. Especially with two of our crew hanging off the side of the loaded kayaks. However, the views in the canyon were beyond spectacular. At every turn there was either a waterfall plunging into the gorge below or a jagged cliff wall that gave you chills to look down. This was a class 5 drive for sure.

In the end, what started as a potential disaster eventually resulted in a wonderful experience to remember. The family’s hospitality created an evening to remember fondly for a long time to come.

We finally made it back to San Gil in one piece around 10pm that evening. Along the way, we had failed brakes and a wheel fly off the truck across a soccer field.

The driver took it all in stride and never stopped smiling. Perhaps we could all learn a little from the Colombian outlook on life and take life for what it is: an incredible journey with its unplanned twists and turns – much like a river – to accept and enjoy for what it is.

Photos by: Andy Atkins