Sunday, March 20, 2011

Kayaking with MUMC (Melbourne University Mountaineering Club)

Jamie and Sam before we set off (it was pretty cold at first)

The car park we're leaving from. We were kayaking (or paddling as they say in Australia) on the Yarra River. 


Sam and Jamie again




made it to the halfway point!

kayaks and gear (helmets, life jackets, paddles, and decks - the covers that go over the opening that you sit in) 

some of the group

me and Robert - he was one of the really good ones! 



map of the first leg of our journey - we started around E5 and went left towards about A6

The map of the second half of the day - started around K2 I think and traveled to about A6 

waiting for the others to make it to the halfway point

here they come! 


there's Jamie in the middle!

Richard - one of the leaders




Kayaking was lots of fun! Before we left we had to do a wet exit, which is when they flip you over in your kayak and you have to undo the deck (the cover that goes over the hole where you sit) by pulling on a tab that's on the front of it and coming out of the kayak underwater. Unfortunately, when I first did it, the tab was not out, so I was stuck under the water, unable to breathe, and freaking out. Luckily, we had people watching us to make sure we got out, so the guy came over and flipped me back over. I then got the tab out and had to redo the wet exit in order to make sure I could do it. I did it, phew, but I was terrified for the rest of the day of flipping over and getting stuck, which put a damper on things somewhat. 

Other than that, it was a lot of fun! The kayaks were way different than sea kayaks - they were a LOT smaller and responded much more quickly to the paddle strokes. We went down some small rapids, which was a lot of fun! Overall, it was a great experience and I'd recommend it! There were some great leaders too - they could do the rolls and stuff in their kayaks - so cool!

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