Living in Whistler in winter means I don’t have much chance for going kayaking. It also means I have more time to edit the videos I took in the past. So I finally managed to complete this “memoir” of an amazing time I had in Washington State and British Columbia in the past year. Seriously, thinking back, I can’t really remember much from when I was 10 years old and I’m counting on these videos to help my memory 20 years from now. My first time in North America was fun and exciting and I’m looking forward to even more of it in the upcoming season.
Thanks to everybody who kayaked with me, especially Max Blackburn, Greg Daspher, Marlow McGregor, Richard Kemble and Cory Boux, who I spent the most time with and who were especially patient putting up with me.
Thanks Palm for your amazing gear and for helping me being able to do what I love doing so much. It won’t be long until I’ll be putting my Stikine Immersion Suit back on again and I’m really looking forward to it!
Well it certainly has been an epic summer down here in NZ.
After lots of working behind the scenes with Red Bull and Tourism NZ I was able to finally put into action a trip I had been dreaming about for a long time. For the past 10 years I have been fortunate enough to follow my passion for kayaking around the world exploring some of the best whitewater this planet has to offer. I thought it was finally time to bring some of the amazing friends I have made through the sport down to my home turf and explore the very best that NZ has to offer. So in February Rush Sturges, Rafa Ortiz and camera man Matt Baker flew down to NZ to join myself and fellow kiwi paddler Jared Meehan and embark on an epic adventure.
Meeting in Auckland we loaded up a 6 berth RV and headed off on a 35 day, 8000km road trip through both the North and South Islands of NZ to see what we could find. We were set up to chase weather patterns, good flows and we weren’t afraid to put serious driving kilometers under us to put ourselves in the right places to find the water we were looking for. This plan certainly paid off and we were fortunate enough to get on some amazing rivers right throughout the country.
From L to R Jared Meehan, Ben Brown, Rafa Ortiz and Rush Sturges somewhere in the South Island.
We spent a couple of weeks in the creeking paradise of Hokitika on the West Coast of the South Island using the traditional kiwi shuttle vehicle of the helicopter to access the remote creeks on offer here
The team loading the Heli to fly into the 2 day Mungo Hokitika River. A highlight of the trip.
Flying into the Kokatahi River
Putting the Atom Top and AMP PFD through its paces.
Dropping into another dark and ominous gorge on the West Coast
Committing but breathtakingly beautiful. The Mungo/Hokitika River is as good as it gets for multi day paddling in NZ.
The infamous 'Carnage Gorge' on the Kokatahi River.
Exiting 'The Gates of Argonath' at the conclusion of the Hokitika River
The creeking on the West Coast exceeded our very high expectations and some of the footage we got was incredible. The Atom Drytop along with the Sidewinder Pant combo performed amazingly well keeping me dry and comfortable yet remaining comfortable during some of the very arduous portages and hike-ins that we subjected ourselves to. The Mungo/Hokitika two day trip was a highlight of our time on the Coast and I was very impressed by both the weight and functionality of the Palm waterproof storage bags I used.
Before long a low pressure system from the deep south slammed into the Coast sending all the levels sky high and grounding the helicopters. We teamed up with a few of the local chargers and sampled several of the amazing flood runs the Coast also offers.
Hunting the Flow after some heavy rain on the West Coast
Lemming style flood boating on one of the local boys secret gems...
We then headed further south to explore some of South Otagos high volume runs. Fortunately for us the rain followed and we had a rare summer descent of the Nevis River, easily one of the finest hard runs in the country, before spending a few days on the classic big water test piece – Nevis Bluff.
The final move in 'Freight Train', my favorite rapid on the Nevis River
Getting a unique Heli filming angle of Nevis Bluff
Pretty stoked at the bottom of Nevis Bluff!
After over a month in the South Island we spent our last week on the Central Plateau of the North Island where we discovered a couple of rarely run waterfalls which was a great bonus in country not renowned for its tall drops.
Finding a hidden waterfall in the North Island was an awesome treat.
The Flow Hunters trip was an amazing adventure that I was sad to come to the end of. I got explore my home country with a group of amazing paddlers and friends and we had a trip that I will remember for a long time. The footage will feature in a TV show scheduled for a June release but until then you will have to settle for the teaser below. The edit has been a huge task but taking the time to sift through the huge amount of footage has reaffirmed to me what a great journey it was and what an incredible kayaking destination NZ is. Get down here soon!
