ThePADDLER 6
DARREN CLARKSON
The reluctant pupil
The words on these pages may be hard to read – but they were hard to write , and I am ok with that . I am not going to mince my words . I am going to check in with you all – How is your mental wellness ?
Consistent lockdowns , Covid headlines , and so much more have left many lost and fragile . The times have made us question our lives , leisure , and what really matters . Our time on the water – when we escape from the humdrum , life became halted , how we returned to our boats matters . Some are enthusiastic and keen , others more hesitant and cautious .
I ’ ve seen once confident boaters paddle slow and make simple mistakes . These mistakes sit in rumination and damage confidence and development in the sport . It possibly matters not to someone else , yet it matters to the individual – the pressure building more and more to be the paddler they once were . On the flip side , I ’ ve seen paddlers come back to the sport with enthusiasm – taking chances they would not have taken before . It ’ s about personal balance and assessing personal goals – no correct answers .
GUILTY SOLO EXPEDITIONS Kayaking hard white water was my escape from adulthood duties , my career , my lifestyle . I also know kayaking allowed me to avoid thinking about everyday things and that it allowed me to experience things many never will . Deep dark gorges high in the Himalayas are my guilty solo expeditions . Multi-day kayaking adventures with not quite enough food and a sleeping bag in the back of my boat took me into the madness and chaos of the river .
I had spent over two decades paddling remote rivers , hard rivers , huge rapids , rivers none had paddled before . I paddled solo . I carried my gear in my boat . I paddled with friends when I could . We paddled harder . We slept in the sand or between rocks as the river jostled past . We took small single-prop planes to the source . We walked for days for the chance to paddle the rivers .