The Paddler ezine WW kayak collection 2013 | Page 168

ThePaddler 168

Past expeditions that failed
Peru, most famous for the tourist trap of Machu Pichu is also
endowed with the deepest river canyons in the world.These rivers,
which are fed by the receding glaciers of the Andes, make up the
mother of all rios,The Amazon. In 1977 a team of Colorado
kayakers made their way to Peru with the intention of completing
the first descent of the Apurimac.This river makes its boldest
statement in the bowels of the Acombamba Abyss and is recognized
as the headwaters of the Amazon. Since then, other teams have
been picking away at the remaining major tributaries such the
Paucartambo, Urubamba and Marion.

With all of the major tributaries of the Amazon completed by
2001– the Great Bend of the Huallaga has stood out as a bulls eye –
the last remaining tributary of the Amazon yet to be explored. In
1999, Peruvian river pioneer Kurt Casey, led the first team into the
depths of the Huallaga. Starting near the source, high in the altiplano
of the Andes, his team paddled five days into the depths of the
canyon before retreating due to ill health and rising water
conditions. Kurt’s recount of what was downstream from where
they had exited the river,“We spent two hours fighting our way up
to a pampa to scout the gorge and what we saw was a maelstrom,
cascading into a vertical walled abyss.”

In July 2007, a high profile group of kayakers would make the second
attempt.With a major sponsorship from Immersion Research, a
whitewater apparel company, a team of Northwest kayakers known
as The Range Life, made it into the heart of the Great Bend. Arriving
at an un-scoutable and un-portageable gorge after four days on the
river, the group became divided on whether to continue
downstream.They felt the only way to do it safely was to scout the
gorge by helicopter.They subsequently decided to abort the
mission, leaving their kayaks and embarking on an epic hike out of
the 7,000-foot canyon.

Peru food facts

The potatoe is from Peru
The tomatoe is from Peru
The avocado is from Peru
Peru’s corn has the biggest kernels in
the world

Committed beyond the chalkstone
Photo: Evan Ross