I haven’t been out on the yak much this year due to other personal commitments , however with a pass from my partner and a window in the weather I headed up to Tywyn , mid wales for a tope fishing session on Tarn Y Bwch Reef.
After the 3 1/2 hour drive I arrived at the launch site and proceeded to set-up my gear for an early morning launch.
I got a reasonable nights sleep , was up at 6:00am , and a couple of bacon butties and a coffe later I was donning the gear ready to head out. As the weather hasn’t been brilliant this year (massive understatement) I had little confidence in the temperatures we would get , so the Aleutian dry suit and Kola boots had another outing . July – I should be in a tee shirt! My fishing colleagues were all still fast asleep in their vans.
The launch was uneventful – sometimes you can get a nasty surf at the rivermouth – but not today.
I stopped for a quick attempt at the bass using surface lures but apart from one take it was quiet , so I quickly punched the coords into the GPS and paddled out to the first tope mark , trolling some feathers behind me in the hope of picking up fresh bait – but that drew a blank.
I dropped anchor at the mark , there was a fair lick of tide running over the reef , something the tope like, so a frozen mackerel was quickly hooked onto the wire trace and lowered down to the bottom, the second rod was set up with baited Silver Dream lures in the hope of picking up some livebait – pollack , mackerel , pouting etc. as fresh livebait improves your chances no end for the tope at this mark.
I managed a few dogfish on the tope baits – very annoying – before the action started . Without putting it all into words I’ve put together a small video which is linked below . I ended up with one missed tope run and two tope to 35lbs , with no other kayakers on the water at that time I had to try and take the pics myself – not ideal with a 4ft tope thrashing around by the side of the yak!! I also managed a number of black bream , these are excellent eating , many say tastier than fresh bass , but unfortunately mine were all small so were returned safely to grow a bit bigger for next time.
I recently purchased a pair of Palm Throttle Gloves and these have proven ideal for the kayak fishing , they give a good grip on the paddle and provide good protection when handling fish such as this , any member of the shark family has skin ov varying roughness and your hands can get messed up fairly quickly when onhooking fish. These gloves have also been useful when hauling anchor especially if the anchor is stuck fast , they allow me to exert considerable pressure on the thin warp without it digging into my hands.
Barmouth in the distance
The Launch Point – Tywyn
The Lleyn Peninsular in the distance
and out to sea – absolutely flat calm
Tope #1 about 30lb
Small but very pretty – a black bream
Tope #2 about 35lb – a very feisty fish which was safely returned after some admiring glances and respect from myself.
And heres the video …. Tope Fishing Session In Mid Wales from The Kayak
My next trip is planned for 25th July , the weather is set very fair so my new Viper Dry Pants will get their first outing . The target species is smoothound , also tope family but smaller , without the teeth , but extremely powerful fish and excellent sport on light tackle.
So…here it is and what an experience – race day on Dajue Mountain in China!
It seemed the entire population of Zixi had turned out to watch the excitement of us foreigners and many local teams enduring the whitewater knuckle ride, dropping over 200m in 3.6km.
Two giant blow up gold dragons, many red Chinese lanterns and decorative banners floating in the breeze flanked the ceremony area which was full of very (and I really mean VERY!) exited locals with cameras. Athletes making the mistake of venturing from the safety of the foreigners enclosure were instantly swallowed up by the crowd amongst cries of ‘Photo! Photo! Photo!
Opening ceremony at Dajue Mountain, Zixi Province, Eastern China
A weird giant mechanical wasp buzzed overhead, filming the proceedings as speeches were made by Zixi government officials, the head of the Chinese Watersports Administration and the head judge. Before long the race was declared open to huge green and purple smoking fireworks and a shower of pink confetti; totally surreal but pretty cool!!
Although no one really knew exactly what was going on we were lined in our rafting gear up on a wooden platform at the very top of the river, overlooked by an enormous dam. With no time for a warm up teams were ushered into their rafts, with 30 seconds time between each boat.
Last Goodbyes before the Race
Before we knew it the head judge bellowed down a megaphone….‘Three, Two, One, Attention, GO!’
China China here we come!
Approaching the first of over 30 drops and slides
Suze and I set off at a good pace, somehow managing to keep the twitchy two-man raft straight on the flat approach to the first slide.
Hello Rapidy Rapid!
And then to be honest I’m not really sure what happened; a blur of massive slides, spinning, water, boat filling up, almost flipping, high side left, phew, right, up into our seats again, ready for the next drop just around the corner.
‘Uh Oh!'
Boat full of water with no time to bail before the next drop
Pulling up the nose for a monster boof
‘YEEE HAAAA!' – GBR being spat out of the dragons mouth at top speed
Within a couple of minutes we spotted the first raft ahead of us – passing was really difficult as the river was so narrow. So as soon as the opportunity arises it’s power down UP UP UP, ping-ponging from rock to rock until the other raft is safely out of sight.
New Zealand hot on our heels and lining up for a pass
More than a couple of times rafts were bunched up unable to pass at the top of the drops, resulting in quite a few disgruntled teams pinned for valuable seconds, and with four teams finishing just 30 seconds apart this definitely affected final race positions.
Nearing the end and charging for the biggest drop of the race
Getting Owned!
27 minutes, 43 seconds and 74 milliseconds of chaos and it’s all over – the mixed New Zealand team won the race with the Men’s Czech Republic team following closely behind. Overall we placed 7th out of 18 teams and came first in the Women’s Category.
Thanks Palm Equipment for keeping us safe on the water!
After a quick shower and change we headed down to the awards ceremony flying our Union Jack with pride. Again the whole of Zixi turned up to the ceremony, which is was an surreal concoction of drumming, fireworks and traditional Chinese music.
Flying the flag with pride at the closing ceremony
With aching cheeks from many many many more photos (‘Photo, Photo!’) we headed over for the closing ceremony lunch. Unaccustomed to Chinese traditions we were unaware that a celebratory lunch would involve continuous toasts (everyone must empty their glass each time) with government officials, and the compulsory downing of 60% rice wine from incredibly beautiful decorative bottles. There was no get out clause here as top officials splashed more of the searing liquid into our cups – down the hatch it goes!
A trip in a cable car over the majestic Dajue Mountain followed before the next party that evening, this time held in our luxurious hotel.
The Dajue Mountain Range
Much hilarity followed as the top bread of the local government took to the Karaoke machine, break-dancing, waltzing to Auld Lang Syne and making each country in turn sing or dance in front of the audience. Thank goodness for our new made friends from the other international teams as Suze and I were made to sing ‘Hey Jude’ to the world – only a minute in (it was clear we needed help!) and the other teams rushed in to support us – thanks guys!
Ganbei! Feichang Ganxie! (Cheers! Thanks very much!)
A massive thank you to the organising committee namely the China Watersports administration and the Zixi County government for being so welcoming and inviting us to such a fantastic rafting competition. A huge thanks to Palm Equipment for keeping Suze and I kitted out and safe in top notch gear. A truly unforgettable experience.
Gaobie! (Goodbye!)
Rosie n Suze
Aghast that facebook is not allowed and struggling with internet speed Rosie has sent us this great post from China, read on…
We have arrived in China!
Flown over on an all expenses paid trip by the local Chinese government, Suzie and I have arrived in Zixi County in Eastern China to represent GBR in the Dajue Mountain Natural Water International Rafting Competition 2012.
'What the river looks like in the tourist catalogue'
We actually felt pretty lucky to arrive in one piece as it seems drivers in China are all boy racers – and there was a lot of water on the road! It’s been raining since we got here – first days training was today so we were bussed up high into the mountains with the other international teams – Czech, Hungary, Netherlands, Australia, Switzerland, New Zealand and America.
And the river was like nothing any of us (despite rafting and kayaking all over the world) had ever seen! In Suzie Jackson’s words ‘I love China! Big river pimped up with maaaasive slides! Safety = bedraggled man in poncho with bamboo stick. I Love CHINA!’
'Raft coral at the top of the river'
'Those that didn't make it...'
Early night tonight for race day tomorrow – and who knows what that might bring, with the mini two person rafts nigh impossible to keep straight down huge 10m slides, spinning out of control at every opportunity!
'We Love Rafting In China!'
Exciting! Will be posting up how we get on very soon.
As we crossed the border into Pakistan, we stumbled upon a small shop with a refrigerator. The temperature was around 40 degrees Celsius and the sun shone proudly in a cloudless midsummer sky. The plan was to hire a car to take our equipment to the bus station in Lahore from which we could catch the 30 hour bus to Gilgit. Instead, we decided to sack it off for a couple of hours and have a Fanta. This encounter has set the pace for the rest of the trip.
In fact, our little expedition seems to have merged perfectly with the Pakistani way of life; a lifestyle punctuated by regular tea breaks, naps and obscure public holidays. Why this morning, I spent half an hour in a mobile phone shop drinking a whole pint glass full of juice that tasted like Parma Violets. Imagine if you didn’t like Parma Violets! That would be awful. Luckily, I do like Parma Violets.
A cloud that looked a bit like an elephant with wings.
And then there’s the rivers: From raging silt stained torrents to crystal blue glacial streams, almost all have been thoughtfully located next to a road. ‘But surely there must be hundreds of undiscovered classics just seconds off the beaten track?’, you may ask. Well until they build a road next to it, I’ll be in the pool drinking my Fanta.
With love from Pakistan,
James
Here’s a few photos of the trip so far. We’ve found a huge range of whitewater and there is still so much more to be done.
After the Europeans was finished we visited the lake one last time to play on the diving boards and then went off to Slovenia for a little holiday with my parents and a Whitewater Safety and Rescue course with Palm’s Tom Parker on the Soca River.
It turned out to be of the most beautiful places we’ve been to: steep mountains, clean air, crystal clear rivers and lakes that you can drink, tasty fruits from Italy and very steep roads for our not too powerful van 
We would like to live there actually if we could find any decent playspot in the area…Please tell us if you know of any.
The river itself was pretty low but we managed to paddle most of it and the beauty made up for the portages; i’ve never paddled anywhere so beautiful, but then I do paddle in Nottingham most of the time…;-) Here you can see many big Trouts swimming under you and the colour of the river is an unreal blue!
Katya found the Slovenian language is very similar to Russian, so she could read and understand some of it, often laughing at how it sounded to her like very old country folk Russian.
Now we’re back in the UK, my beloved Nottingham course is flooded so we’ll sort our Van and then look for some different dirty playspots
Pringle & Katya
Over the couple of days leading up to the Gower Madness surf competition the weather and surf weren’t looking very nice but on the Thursday before, it was decided that it would run. It was planned that the comp site would be at Rhossilli beach and we would all meet at the car park on the top of the cliffs.
We travelled up to the Gower on Friday afternoon in fairly good weather but it was very windy. When we got there, 5/6 hours later, the sun had come out and it was a lovely evening. After setting up the tents we went for a walk along the coast to the competition site. The surf looked really big and horrible, the wind was blowing onshore and just making it a big mess.
After an early night and a good sleep we got up in the morning to find that the wind had dropped as the forecast had predicted but it was still pretty strong. We drove to the comp site and the waves looked a lot smaller than the day before but still not very nice. When everybody had arrived we had a brief and we all started to carry our boats down the cliff. It is a long walk down and I had to do it a couple of times as I had two boats and my kit as well.
The first heats on were the Men’s Open Short and my heats weren’t on till later on in the afternoon. I helped judge a couple of heats and sat around and watched until it was time to get on the water. My first heat was the Junior Short final. The tide had gone out a fair way by now so we had quite a walk to the waters edge. This was my second competition in my new boat and I hadn’t got fully comfortable in it yet so I wasn’t sure how well I was going to do. I had some nice waves, though, and I really appreciated how fast it was compared to my old one! At the end of the heat, which was 15 minutes long, I had no idea of how well I had done. I felt I’d had a couple of good waves but compared to everybody else, I had no idea.
My next heat was the Junior Long final and it was decided that the top two would go through to the Men’s Open Long semi-final but I had quite awhile to wait before I was on again. I helped judge again and then I stood on the beach taking advantage of the break to have a bite to eat and a drink. Then I was on again and I thought I hadn’t done too badly. I have never felt that the long boat is my strong point but I was happy with what I had done. I carried my boat all the way back up the beach as I thought I probably wasn’t in the top two only to find out a couple of minutes later that I was! So, in a couple of heats time, I would have to carry my boat all the way to the water again for the semi-final of the Men’s Long and the tide had gone out a long way!
I didn’t do so well in the Men’s Long semi and I came 4th, which wasn’t good enough to get me into the final.
It was time to get changed and start taking my boats up to the car park. By the time I had got halfway up the cliff path it felt like my arms were dropping off! After several rest stops to change my grip I got to the top and got all my kit in the car and my boats on the roof rack.
There was quite a wait for the prize giving, as everybody had to get up the cliff and get changed. Finally though, the time came to find out how well I had done. I came 2nd in the Junior Long and 1st in the Junior Short, which was great and made the trek up and down the cliff really worth it!
We decided that we would travel back home that day, as we didn’t really want to pay another lot of camping fees so we packed up and left. The journey back was really horrible. It was raining very heavily and the wind got up a bit as well so we were glad that we hadn’t stayed another night in the tents!
I’m really pleased with my results, a few weeks before the comp I was wondering if it was worth going all the way up to Wales but in the end it was definitely worth it!
Shortly after getting back from the european championships in Lienz,Austria, I got the chance to head to lee valley and take part in an event to celebrate the arrival of the Olympic flame at the official site for the london 2012 slalom event.
Lee Valley is host to by far one of the best white water courses I have ever paddled, long and continuous with some fairly large drops for a white water course, there is an abundant amount of play features however rescently the course has been fine tuned to fit the slalomists needs and the play features weren’t quite dialled in to what they could be, but were still great fun.
We were paired up and assigned a feature to play in, myself and Dan Chamlet spent most of our time in the hole under the bridge, whilst Josh Wedgwood and Sam Stephenson went to the bottom of the course where a fairly powerfull and sticky hole forms with a small green wave just behind it, We had a great time, with no pressure, as our only instructions where to have fun and look happy. Some big moves were pulled, lots of wipe outs where had, from hitting the bottom of the course and stalling out on loops and some downriver moves where hit along the way, it seemed to go down fairly well with the crowd .
We where mainly filling in the gaps whilst the Gb raft team carrying the Olympic flame made their way back up to the top of the course, Despite valiant efforts by Zack Franklin and the raft team to keep the torch dry, the continuous Lee valley white water course took it’s toll and eventually extinguished the flame, Luckily someone had foresaw that this was quite a likely scenario and a back up flame was nearby to relight it.
The torch then continued on to Newport carried by Jamie Oliver,
Check out the video of Day here : http://www.london2012.com/torch-relay/video/video=torch-relay-day50.html
A huge thanks to Colin Woodgate and the organisers/participants,
See you on the water,
Bren
Finals day started from Junior Girls. 1st place was almost guaranteed to go to Nuria Fontane from Spain and it did. Scoring about 200 points in every round of the competition she was always well ahead of the others. 2nd and 3rd place went to German girls Lisa Hasselwander and Jana Gross who managed to throw loops in the last rides.
Next was Junior Boys. Bren had so far won every round with James Benns always on his heels. Just as we were expecting GB’s James Benns made sure Bren wouldn’t get his title too easily. In the first ride James scored 660 points, setting a very high standard for the winning ride. Bren managed to put together a very good ride and just went ahead of James by 1.667points! Such a close fight they both deserved to win. However Bren became Junior Mens European Champion, James Benns got a Silver medal and Sam Stephenson got a well-deserved Bronze. All 3 medals went to the GB team.
In C1 Lukas Cervinka from Czech got the Gold, with Philip Hitzigrath of Germany in Silver and Aitor Goikoetxea of Spain in Bronze.
Women’s finals went smoothly with no surprises, Marlene of France was going bigger than anyone on her loops and space godzillas and reclaimed her European title with almost the same score as two years ago (about 300), Silver went to Nina Csonkova of Slovakia and Bronze to Maria Lindgren from Sweden.
Last in the day was the Mens Final, and this one didn’t go along with anyones predictions 
First to go in the final was GB’s James Weight who scored so far the highest ride of the competition in the previous rounds. His style is very interesting to watch – going big on all his moves, throwing backloop to mcnasty combos. Many was betting on him. This time though he didn’t manage to put all this together unfortunately and came away with 4th place.
Second to go was Joaquim Fontane from Spain, I didn’t see his run but after the commentator announced a huge score of 1170 the highest of the competition I knew it would take a magic ride to beat this.
Third to go was Sebastian Devred from France, the most consistent competitor of the event, he put together a very good rides but lacked the spark to get him in first but did get the Silver Medal.
Peter Csonka who had been fighting with his injury all week, still looked very capable of winning here. He so far had been paddling very well even through his pain but on the final day his injury seemed to get worse and he just wasn’t in a good enough physical shape to fight for the medal coming in fifth.
Having heard Joaquims sensational score I actually felt no pressure, I had to go all out to stand any chance of beating him so it was very enjoyable to try my hardest. Unfortunately I didn’t get enough magic in my rides to get Gold so fell a little short getting the Bronze Medal 30 points behind Sebastian.
This meant of course that Joaquim Fontane from Spain last Europeans Junior Champion in his first senior year became the Mens European Champion bringing the second Gold medal of the event to Spain!
It was the toughest final I ever competed in actually and despite not winning was one of the most fun to be a part of. The standard of the Europeans raised a lot since 2 years ago and its no longer a fight between me, Peter and Mathieu anymore its 5,6 or 7 paddlers who are all capable of winning. It does look like a real sport now, you have to be on top of your technical, mental and physical shape and have some magic going on in your ride to win now.
For me its a good enough result to be happy with but sh*t enough to get me motivated for taking my kayaking on a new level.
A great results for GB as a team, a big well done especially to Bren and the Junior boys!
Pringle
