While the rivers are flowing...

This Winter has officially been the wettest of all time! So there was no excuse not to be out chasing the rain and taking on some white water.

The team covered the classics in South Wales, with most of the rivers in Waterfall Country running at nice levels most of the time.

Going deep on the Tawe. 

"How does he do that..?"

Chiropractor required... A tricky landing on the Nedd Fechan.

The Afon Pryddin. One for next time..

The Escape team also found themselves in the South West, rafting the Upper Dart with the guys from CIWW. A rare treat, and definitely a river we'll be going back to again soon. 

Check out a few more snaps on the CIWW blog page - http://ow.ly/ug3kY

Euthanasia falls. 

Grand Canyon & Chile Adventures

This December our team paddlers ventured across the pond, with their sights set on the Grand Canyon.
The 16 day trip is certainly on most people's lists, with testing white water and beautiful scenery it is not an opportunity to miss!

The team finished their adventure with a trip to Las Vegas, where they could "relax" for a few days before heading home for Christmas.

Jim however, headed South across the border to Chile, looking for some truly epic white water paddling locations. 

Morocco

In case you haven't already heard.. Gareth has just got back from an epic surf trip to Morocco!

While the rest of us have suffered in the cold, Gareth was out surfing in a short sleeve cag, dining on local cuisine, and exploring the Moroccan coastline.

The trip started out by flying to Agadir. From here the team travelled to their first stop, Imsouane. A day or two was spent surfing at Cathedral Point, but it wasn't long before they headed South to Sidi Ifni, stopping off at a few spots along the way and sampling the local cuisine. 

A great way to get a dose of warm weather paddling during the winter. Definitely marked on the calender for next year!

Team Member - Gareth Spendiff

Name: 

Gareth (Spendy) Spendiff

Hometown: 

Swansea, South Wales

Current canoe/kayak/SUP(s) owned: 

P&H Aries / Wavesport Recon 83 / Mega Boost.

Favourite canoe/kayak/SUP of all time: 

P&H Aries / Delphin.

Most useful piece of equipment owned (why?): 

GoPro Camera. Always good fun looking back at the days paddle/carnage.

A piece of equipment on the wish list (why?): 

Werner Ovation. An awesome set of super light sea paddles.

An item of clothing on the wish list (why?): 

Kokatat Gore-Tex Expedition Drysuit. Such a lightweight and comfortable suit that works really well on the water.

Favourite type of paddling: 

Sea Kayaking.

Favourite paddling location: 

Pembrokeshire.

Best paddling experience: 

Surfing an old P&H Orion sea kayak on a hot sunny day with long, long glassy waves in the Gower.

Future trips on the wish list: 

Whitewater: A week or two in Val Sesia, Italy. 

Sea Kayaking: A surf at The Bitches, Pembrokeshire.

Current paddle wagon:

Ford Mondeo that is full of sand and mud as standard!

A song/artist/album which gets you motivated for a paddle:

Stereophonics.
Favourite thing to buy from Greggs:

Rocky Road slice.

Autumn Paddling

The cold weather has crept up on us once again!

But for the UK white water paddler, this means spending the week chasing rain and psyching up to push their abilities to the limit.

The team has been out in force over the last few weeks, paddling some great Welsh rivers like the Towy, Tawe and Mellte, and trying to catch some waves before work.