CSCC Reports 2015: Barle - November 2015

CSCC's warm up to the white water season was a trip to the lovely River Barle on Exmoor. This provides fairly continuous grade 2 rapids through a beautiful wooded valley. You really should have gone.
 
Levels were good, though we wouldn't have wanted them much lower. For future paddlers, a graph from the Brushford gauge is below.
 
The river offered its usual range of playwaves, including our favourite at the end (actually the Exe), which saw all 9 of us on the wave getting in each other's way.
 
I learned the important lesson that if Fi's nephew tells you a line looks "least bad", that doesn't mean "good". Thank you to all involved with the throwlines in making sure my boat didn't float off anywhere it shouldn't.
 
We stayed at one of the cottages on the Duvale Priory complex. This was lovely, and meant we had a kitchen to cook for ourselves. Having dumped the ingredients in the kitchen, I came downstairs from a shower to find everyone hard at work with the cooking, in particular Tom showing his cheffy skills. All was delicious, until we nearly came to blows over whether hot pie should be served with hot or cold custard.

Same again next year?

Photos are here