Kayaking on the River Wye

After an early afternoon torrential downpour the forecast was for things to clear up and the sun to shine. I took my chances and headed down to the river. I have been wanting to test an inflatable kayak out for a while – I grabbed the BIC Kalyma – although not the top spec model it had a nice balance of features and performance. The ability to set it up for one person or two is a big plus. On top of that the inflatable floor keeps you from sitting in a puddle. Another neat feature is the built in drybag rear hatch – the perfect place to keep things dry. There is plenty of room to stash other drybags – especially when set up for just one person to paddle. It was really easy to set up and paddle. I didnt put the fin in as I was not sure how deep the water was – I reckon I will next time to improve tracking.

As well as the GoPro I brought my A7 along. I stuck it in a peli case to make sure it was all safe and dry. Once in the boat it was super stable and I was able to get it out to play without any worries. Hopefully the kayak will be a good platform to take more shots from in the future.


As I got out of the river I noticed dark clouds in the distance. Within minutes they were looking pretty menacing. It was time to hurry up – I chucked everything into the back of the van – grabbed a snap of the clouds and hit the road. Within minutes it was back to torrential downpour.