The Paddler ezine WW kayak collection 2013 | Page 144

ThePaddler 144

One decision was made
for us as Big Brother is a portage for the raft,
leaving the eight kayaks waiting to be filled.
Eventually the challengers lined up in their boats
and took on the grade IV rapids, a huge
achievement for a group more used to the Dart.
The experiences so far must have had an effect, as
everyone arrived at the bottom grinning from ear
to ear, some people even had their kayaks with
them when they eddied out at the bottom! Any
embarrassment for swimming was dwarfed by
the respect in the group for people making their
own decisions and taking the consequences of
their actions.

Rowan, known to all for his 'face of panic' every
time he falls in the water overcame his worries
on swimming the rapids stating “the kayaking is
much more fun than worrying about swimming”.
The last day on the Kali marked the end of the
adventure, leaving us each with a sense of
achievement for what we had done, individually
and more importantly, together. We overcame
perceptions, disagreements, fear and tummy
bugs and enjoyed our final day in Kathmandu
visiting the Buddahannath temple and taking
rickshaws to Durbah Square on the last night of
Divali, a real assault on the senses with light and
colour everywhere and the whole city it seemed
had come out to celebrate.

Beth Ettinger

the trip leader, summed up the trip
by saying, “The best bit was
waking up on the side of the river,
knowing that I was going boating
again that day. We learnt how hard
village life and living hand-tomouth can be and also how far a
little help can go.”

The group are now delivering lectures to local
youth and community groups to inspire others
to take part and to show what a lot of
determination and team work can achieve. The
aims of the expedition were met, and then some,
and the benefits for all involved will last a
lifetime. A big thank you to all those that made
the trip possible, including the Team at Paddle
Nepal who were more than fantastic, the Jack
Petchey Foundation, the Canoe Foundation, the
Marston Group Charitable Trust, Hackney and
Camden YOFs and to everyone who took part.