The Lower Yough

I haven't had any chances to kayak on other whitewater rivers until now. I have mostly been restricted to the Potomac which is good and bad. It is good as it has allowed me to improve my abilities in a safe manner. But it is bad because I have been stuck in a rut and seem to only do the same section over and over again. I just recently ran Little Falls on the Potomac and it was great as it was new, exciting and fun. That was a prelude to running the lower yough, which is in Pennsylvania. I had a great time and while there was lots of rolling, I didn't have to swim through any rapids. I did have to swim out of an eddy when I wedged my paddle between two rocks. But all in all I had a great time and I think I learned where my current limits are. I hope I get a chance to make it out there again and that I can work on my short comings.

The lower yough is rated class III and IV. But I think other then a couple of rapids, most of the rapids were only class III. Some of the rapids were just straight shots through and others were learning tools. I can't remember the name of the rapid, but it was a very good rapid for doing eddy hopping. The rapid had a series of eddys along the side and the challenge is to go from eddy to eddy, by ferrying across and down. I made it to the first eddy then the current just grabbed me and I couldn't fight it enough. So this is my failing, I need to learn better boat control in the bigger current. But all in all, I had a great time and was with a great group of people. I hope to go again.