This weekend Jack, Jamie, Reuben, and myself headed to North Wales.
Roo very kindly let us stay at his home, and his parents/sister were very hospitable. Given that the other option was to camp in below freezing temperatures, I think it is fair to say that we all appreciated it.
Sadly over the weekend there was not that much water. As such we ended up running the Aberglaslyn gorge on the Friday, and the Cwm Llan on the Saturday. On the Sunday even the Aberglaslyn was too low, so we headed home early.
On the Aberglaslyn, Roo helped me out with my technical stuff - breaking out efficiently, and perfecting my ferry glide. It is a little worrying that at this point I still have not perfected these basic moves. I guess practising and perfecting never hurts.
At the end of the day I had a swim.. I went over the first drop and braced on a rock - it was a trivial very minor injury, but I decided that I was going to whine and complain about it, in the process not paddling. A few moments later, a couple of failed roll attempts on an eddy line and I was swimming.
I don't really like the burn because i got my foot trapped behind the central pillar. It was very scary at the time, and could have ended very badly. Fortunately i slipped out, and the boys were very on the ball with sorting out the situation. I know how to swim, they know how to save - It worked well :)
The Cwm Llan was really fun. Lots of pool drops. I really enjoyed it, although I once again noticed my problem reading white water. Looking at it, it scared me senseless, but in reality it was harmless. There was no real technique to it - it was mainly a fun run. The walk up to it was an absolute killer, but it was well worth it.
All in all an awesome weekend, and definitely worthwhile. The only downside - it was really physically and mentally tiring.. My kayaking preference is more laid back and casual, but then again life is never easy.
On that note.. 7am starts, large amounts of driving, and the fact that kayaking is physical activity annoy me. At the end of days boating I am always really really happy/exhilarated, but I wish it were less work :P