By Heather Quinn

April 2023 was a month of kayaking festivals on Vancouver Island. As we transition from Winter to Spring among our temperate rainforests, rain is almost guaranteed – but not quite. The climate on Vancouver Island has been changing noticeably in recent years with fewer drizzly winter days, more dry spells for longer periods, and more intense storms bringing all the rain at once. No one seems more acutely aware of this fact than kayakers as our rivers depend on that rainfall! 

Gordon Creek Race

The Gordon Creek Race is put on each year by the UVic Whitewater Club. It typically runs on a Saturday sometime in Mid-March. Paddlers come out to race in teams of two down the class IV section of the Upper Gordon. The event also highlights a big bush party that brings out more partiers than racers.  

The weather forecast had us all on our toes. With little rain expected, and the Harris Gauge (the closest gauge to correlate Gordon flows) indicating extremely low flows, the call was made to postpone the race until April 1^st. More rain was in the forecast this time – looking promising for a big dump the night before the race, just in time to bring things in. In true April 1^st fashion, the weather decided to pull one on us. The forecasted rain fell as snow and the river remained at all-time low flows. Snowy, low, but still enough water to get down the river, party on! 

Giant snowflakes fell through the cedar trees on the banks of the river as eager boaters took to the frigid waters to get some practice laps in. With less than favourable flows and weather discouraging the pro-boaters from coming up from the states, this was the year that an Island team of racers could take home the winning title! 

Race morning came and with it a break in the weather. Racers gathered in their drysuits in the mud and slushy puddles, listening to the safety plan for the day. The sun peaked through the clouds, and one could even convince themselves that it was getting warmer out. Water lapped the gauge rock about 4 inches below bottom bolt. Let the epic low water laps commence! 

Pre-race laps went off without a hitch – no serious pins, cracked boats, or swims! An assortment of trucks and trailers shuttled everyone back up to the top. Paddlers grabbed a quick bite to eat before putting back on the river again to head down to the line-up at the start of the race section. 16 teams of boaters bumped into each other in the eddy, as 2 by 2 boats lined up with their tails to the rocks, held in place as they waited for their countdown to begin – …3…2…1…GO! 

Everyone left the eddy with strong, powerful forward strokes as the remaining racers cheered them on. The first rapid that comes up is Monique’s hole – a sticky hole that has resulted in more than a few swims over the years. Some technical manky boogie follows leading up to one of the hardest low-water drops: Pinball. At higher flows, this rapid is one of the warm-up rapids to the main events, but at low flows it is often considered the crux. While not impossible, it is a difficult rapid to style and get down without hitting any rocks. The first team of safety-boaters waited here – ready for the carnage, but thankfully never needing to use their rescue skills this time around. Intimidation comes next, leading up to the waiting crowds at Triple Drop. Spectators hike down the steep hill from the highest point on the road away from the river to watch paddlers come by this classic section of the race. Cheers echo through the canyon as paddlers roll through Intimidation and charge toward Triple Drop, which dolled out some sort of beat-down to almost every other team of boaters. After this a short paddle leads to Horseshoe drop and then the lake. At low water, having good cardio to paddle the flat-water section above the Boulder Garden can make or break a race lap. Three rapids remain between here and the race finish – Airplane, Fake Terminator, and Terminator. Charging down the left side of Terminator, teams boof the hole at the bottom and muscle their way to the finish rock on river right as the teams ahead of them cheer them on. 

The most spectacular finish award this year goes to Graham Litman. Graham and his partner Alex have probably put in more time than anyone training on this river and were fired up to go for gold this year. Coming in hot, Graham had a funky line over Terminator and… got Terminated. For almost 30 seconds and about half a dozen loops in his creekboat, Graham stuck it out through the beatdown and was eventually released to the crowd going wild with cheers and laughter. It can still happen to the best of us! 

Back at camp, things were getting set up for the evening party. Burgers and salads were served, beer was tapped, and a campfire roaring. Before long there was a band on stage and people were dancing and grooving to the music. Laser lights and smoke machines added to the ambience while a massive compilation of tarps sheltered the party people from the mix rain and snow. 

In between musical sets, race results were announced. For the first time in many years, an Island team would take the win! Congratulations to Koby Trinker and Kevin Frank! The top team finished in 10 minutes and 17 seconds, paddling a Pyranha Scorch X and a Zet Five. In second place was an out-of-town team coming in 10 seconds later (10:27), Mike and Bryer, and another Island team finishing on the podium in third, Garrett Quinn and Richard Maags (10:32). Even with the epic beatdown at the finish line, Alex and Graham still managed to claim 4^th place. A single womens team competed this year, represented by Heather Quinn and Monique Boag, finishing strong in just over 12 minutes, and one mixed team of racers, Ava Simpson and Myles Saunders who took their time down the course and finished with smiles on their faces. Awards were given out without much ceremony to the winning teams of each category, and the party continued until about 3 in the morning, with musical talents from a live band as well as many of our local boaters – Steve McGeragle, Koby Trinker, Silvain Jose Poitras, and Harry Watson.

We awoke to more fresh snow on the ground on Sunday morning, a pancake breakfast, and another Gordon race for the books. 

Heber Fever 

Heber Fever is a whitewater paddling festival in Gold River that is put on over Easter weekend by the Vancouver Island Whitewater Paddling Society. It is an event for all levels of boaters and features beginner clinics and race, advanced races, expert creeking runs, a baseball game, easter egg hunt, throwbag contest, pizza, camping, and fun. 

The weather forecast once again had us all on our toes. One week after the Gordon Race, the rains continued to stay away and levels were keeping low. Last year the event was run at low flows but sill lots of fun at around 30cms. We began to prepare for similar levels. As we got closer to the date, the forecast started showing a potential storm brewing on the horizon. The little blue bars of predicted precipitation started getting bigger and bigger, and by the end of the week, we knew it would be game on.  

We rocked up early to get set up on Thursday night and it was pouring rain. Early arrivers had begun digging moats around their tents to help keep the water out. We set up our tent as we looked at the blue line on the RiverApp starting to trend upward for Gold River. In the morning flows had come up to a glorious 100cms. We headed up to the Upper Gold to put on for the Triple Crown. The sun came out and we had a beautiful lap through the Upper (III+/IV), Middle (II), and Lower (III+) sections of the Gold. Back at camp, people began arriving in earnest and we set up registration and began handing out wrist bands. The rains returned in the evening, and it was an early night for most, heading to their tents as darkness fell to get ready for the organized activities the following day. 

After a paddlers’ meeting Saturday morning, the first organized event to kick off the weekend was a beginner clinic on the Middle Gold. Rain continued to fall from the sky, but stoke was high was we stretched and warmed up on the banks near Peppercorn Park. Flows were already up to 130cms – still really great for learning on this section of river. Paddlers reviewed basic strokes, how to come in and out of eddies, maneuver around the river, and river run, with more advanced challenges like jet ferries, tight eddies, and surfing for those up for it. The lap finished off with an epic race down to the confluence with the Heber River, one paddler even crossing the finish line while swimming and hanging off the back of someone else’s boat. High fives concluded the session, with everyone grinning from ear to ear. 

Beginner race results: 

Mens – 1^st Marco, 2^nd Will, 3^rd Jordan

Womens – 1^st Natasha, 2^nd Lisa

The next event was a teams race down the Lower Gold, starting at the campground, and ending a few rapids later and about 5 minutes downstream. Paddlers waited in the eddy with their tails on a rock until someone on shore released them after the countdown, …3…2…1…GO! Nine teams raced down this section, each team being cheered on by the rest. 

Team race results:

Mens – 1^st Raphaël Boudreault-Simard and Russell Henry (5:26), 2^nd Connor Llew and Evan Wright (5:32), 3^rd Heather Quinn and Graham Litman (5:34)

Womens – 1^st Sophie Ellis and Jac Huard (5:45), 2^nd Hannah Grant and Emma Wehner (6:28)

Paddlers floated downriver together until pulling over in an eddy next to a big cobble bar above the main event. Here, paddlers would race “mass start” down the BFR (Big F***ing Rapid) on the Lower Gold. Spectators watched from the road high above and got a birds-eye view of the colourful chaos. Any line that could be run was run, right way up or upside down. Racers charged through the pushy rapid toward the finish line, and the battle was tight. 

Mens – 1^st Russell Henry, 2^nd Graham Litman, 3^rd Gareth Martin

Womens – 1^st Sophie Ellis, 2^nd Heather Quinn, 3^rd Emma Wehner

After the big-water races, paddlers headed back to the campground to get changed and head over to the baseball diamond for the annual Heber Fever baseball game. The winners were everyone who showed up to play. There were a few strike outs, a couple of home runs, many laughs and tons of smiles. Players didn’t want to leave the field but were eventually persuaded by the promise of pizza from Sea and Field Bistro being brought back to the campground. 

Around the campfire in the evening, awards and prizes were given out with thanks to several sponsors of the event, Pink Mountain Imports, Aquabatics, NRS, Raven Rescue, Cowichan Valley Window Cleaning, Stevie’s Subarus, Mt Arrowsmith Brewing Company. Hand-painted medals were awarded to race winners, followed by guitar playing and general festival campfire vibes. As we headed to bed sometime after midnight, the rain began to come down hard. 

Sunday morning it continued to pour rain, but the easter bunny must deliver! The two kids found a ton of chocolate that the bunnies hid early Sunday morning, and a few adults got some goodies too. Flows had risen over night and all organized paddling events were called off – paddle at your own risk! Crews headed out for laps on various sections of the Gold. Others headed to the rec centre to play in the pool and chill in the hot tub. The skies cleared by the evening, and back at camp there was a throw-bag contest and throw-bag piñata party before the night-time campfire, fish tacos, music, and final award ceremony. 

Throwbag winner: 1^st Aidan 2^nd Raphaël Boudreault-Simard

The Heber Fever King and Queen awards go to outstanding members who help out, volunteer, paddle, support others, sometimes swim, and are generally good role models in the paddling community, as well as stick it out to the final night of the festival. This year’s King and Queen hats went to Jonah Shaw and Sophie Ellis. 

Monday morning came and paddlers packed up, cleaned up, and headed out of Gold River, all feeling a little bit soggy from the weekend, but stoked with the paddling and community that the event helps bring together. 

Check out footage from this years’ event here: https://youtu.be/k0mo9baMYWQ 

Cowichan River Youth Kayak Festival  

The Cowichan River Youth Kayak Festival (CRYK Fest) is an annual whitewater paddling festival for youth that is held on the Cowichan River on a weekend typically near the end of April. The event is run through the Vancouver Island Whitewater Paddling Society, and the lead organizer is Dan Norman. Brentwood school, Shawnigan Lake school, the Rivers Oceans and Mountains School (ROAMS) out of SD69, and the Chilliwack Centre of Excellence are the main attenders, with many other youth registering as individuals from all over BC.

Each year around the end of April, dozens of youth flock to the Cowichan River to learn some whitewater kayaking skills. Friday night, everyone meets at the pool in Duncan for an introductory session in warm water to practice wet-exits and rolling. With over 65 youth attending the festival this year, it was one packed swimming pool! 

The entire festival is volunteer run, with many experienced boaters and instructors coming to donate their time from all over Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland. Dan Norman and his army of Brentwood students help to cook meals for the big event, all while camping at the Horseshoe Bend Campground on the banks of the Cowichan River. 

In the morning, students don wetsuits and get geared up for a full day on the water. Saturday is all about learning skills in small groups in moving water. Depending on the skill level of the students, they are organized into several groups to paddle varying difficulties of whitewater from class I-III. Lunch happens on the river, and it is getting close to dinner time by the time it all gets wrapped up back at camp. Beginner sessions run from The Duck Pond in Lake Cowichan down to Little Beach, with a more advanced extension down to Spring Pool, while more advanced kayakers have the opportunity to paddle down the mighty Marie Canyon section of the Cowichan River. 

Group dinners and campfires wrap up the evening as students crawl into their tents for the night. The next morning after a group breakfast, everyone struggled into wet wetsuits and got ready for the day ahead. Most students would be challenging themselves further, building on the skills they worked on in previous sessions to tackle more difficult whitewater. The big finale on the water involves taking over 60 youth down the rapid just below Skutz Falls, with many continuing to the campground. The afternoon wraps up at Horseshoe bend with a big group photo, thanks and recognition of volunteers, and some prize awards. 

Growing the sport of kayaking on Vancouver Island is a large focus of the CRYK Fest, teaching youth skills to manage risk and recreate safely on and around the water. It is an incredible event that allows youth to connect with a supportive and inclusive community, face fears, challenge themselves physically and mentally, and grow as individuals. It is largely successful due to the huge number of volunteers who come out to give back to the sport and make it happen.