The Cornwall Recreational Whitewater Club

After a super FUN Seaway Valley Throwdown on Saturday (June 21st) we got the club organized for the annual week of rivers in Quebec city!
With a trailer full of boats and a car loaded of familly and friends we were off to Quebec on Sunday morning. The weather for the last couple weeks was rain, rain and more rain so the river levels were sure to please.
Every year CReW invites it’s members to cmoe out with us to Quebec City. Camping is free on the family property and is within 20 minutes of the Jacques Cartier River and Downtown Quebec.
This year our family was joined by Cheryl McGregor and Randy Soutter.
The Jacques Cartier river has something to challenge every level of paddler and as usual it lived up to expectations.
Paddle Day 1 had us paddling the the lower section (Pont-Rouge to Donnacona). The high water level brought out a sweet wave below the “rape a fromage” (cheese grater) and a lot of other nice waves and holes all the way down the river. (3 hour river run). The canyon section of the river is very scenic and worth the trip.
Paddle Day 2 brought us back to thee Jacques Cartier but this time on the “Grand Remous” section. For Sylvie and Cheryl this was their first class 4 run and they stood up to the challenge! Huge fast waves and smaller drops for boofing set the tone for this section. Everyone learned a bit more about scouting and reading rivers.
Sylvie found out that, when it comes to boofing, timing is everything and pitoned a drop. A 7 foot piton in a Punk Rocker does not hurt anything except the nerves and she aced the rest of the run without issues.
Paddle Day 3 took us to Shannon and a really nice little play spot below a class 4/5 section of the Jacues Cartier. Zachary and I ran the river below the first drop (I am getting a bit weak in the knees it seems) and then we all played below. After a 2 hour sesion we were all beat and it was time to head back to camp for a night on the town.
Paddle Day 4 brought us back to the lower section of the Jacques Cartier and this time we were joined by Randy and Emily. This was Emily’s first river run on her own and she did great. Randy came up from Montreal and enjoyed the scenery on the river. This time the water was a lot lower although many features were gone, others came up and everyone had FUN!.

In between rivers we enjoyed evenings together with friends and family.
Zachary anbd Emily practiced in the pool. The stream on the property is full of small trout so that is always fun and Quebec City night life (despite the rain) always comes through. This year Quebec City celebrates 400 years and the streets were full of activities, and life. The “Grand Allee” was closed to traffic and was used by all the pubs as one giant beer tent! How cool is that? That is the evening that we left the kids with the grandparents:)
We even took a day to let the kids be kids. A water park fit the need and we all spent an afternoon playing with kids on the water slides.
Great fun, great rivers, and great friends. That is what CReW is all about!

See you on a river soon!

Robert

This year, just like every year past, Sylvie, Zachary, Emily and I loaded up the car and boat trailer and headed out to Palmer Fest on the Madawaska River at Palmer Rapids.
Of Course, just like every other year, we brought with us a great group of friends from the Cornwall Recreational Whitewater Club. We were joined by Cheryl MacGregor, Sean, Adam and Mary Jane Hakvoort.
Scot MacGregor and the good folks at Rapid Media and The Paddlers Co-Op put together another great event.

The clinics were great. This year we were fortunate to be able to take clinics taught by people who many of us consider standards in the kayaking game. Billy Harris, Ken Whitting, Carly Harris, Ryan Whetung, Pikey and so many more.
We worked on Flatwater skills, surf skills, hole riding and creek skills all under the watchfull eyes of our instructors.
Cheryl showed us that she has no fear. Carly and Annie pushed her to do new tricks on the water.
Zachary continues to show us all how to be in control.
Sylvie pushed herself and showed us and more importantly herself, what she can really do. I am very proud of her.
Sean took in the lessons and at the end of the weekend his surf and spin skills showed really significant improvement. Way to go Sean.
Adam learned a lot about river reading and getting down the river his way. Awesome. We will be counting on him one day when we run new and exciting rivers.
Mary-Jane: What can we say about someone who does so much for her kids (and for our Club). Thanks for bringing your boys out with us. They are great kids and we enjoy your company, sense of humor and support very much.
And then there was Emily. Emily really turned it on Sunday afternoon. After 3 kids clinics she clearly wanted more. So Sunday afternoon we brought her eith us to Hass and she joined in a womens only clinic! And guess what? She got on and surfed that afternoon!!! Who hoo! I am even more proud than before
As for me, what do I get out of it? More than I can really express: I improved my flat skills (bow stalls and started towards the helix), got rid of a few bad habits (thanks Billy), learned new hole skills (kartwheels thans to Ryan), improved my boof and got to spend time with friends.
Nothing is quite as much fun as watching Zachary get taught (and worked) by Billy and Pikey. They teach him well and ride him hard (10 second surfs is a limit we will continue to impose!:). Watching my wife improve her confidnece and skills under the watchfull eye of the pros. Wow, it makes me smile inside and out. Seeing Emily take it to the next level with so much entusiasm…
Watching from the sidelines as our club members (all students of mine) move on in their kayaking adventures and taking beyond what they learned in my classes.

So is Palmer Fest just about paddling? No it is also about community.
Evenings with fellow paddlers and instructors, newbies to pro’s and everything in between.
Every year we see folks from other areas and our kids hook up with kids they only see once a year. But whether they meet as strangers or as friends from last year, they all leave as friends and the experience is remembered and held close until next year when we do it all over again.

Looking forward to getting out on the river again soon with everyone,

We are taking the club to Qyuon for an intro to waterfalls this mong Saturday. See you there.

Robert
www.cornwallwhitewater.com
www.asag.ca
www.worldkayak.com/seaywayvalley

Zachary and I took a drive into Northern New York looking for something new to play in.
From Cornwall, we did not feel like driving as for as Watertown (which is definitely in right now) so we looked at rivers near us. The Salmon river is empty, The Raquette River is going down fast but we came across a little gem of a wave in St-Regis, New York on the St-Regis River directly off hwy 37 and all of 30 minutes from home.

Fast and smooth with a curling shoulder it made for a good couple hours for the 2 of us.

We have not heard of it before so Zachary has decided that it should be named “who da man?”.

A great little wave with no hazards below will make for an excellent place to bring the family or young friends in the future.
Another nice thing is that it is alway there. Early spring, summer and fall.
There is also a chip stand upstream to calm the belly if it starts rumbling!
We will definitely be bringing the family back there.

See you on the river,
Robert

www.cornwallwhitewater.com