(c) David Gorsky; Stephen and Matti on throw-rope drills
We have had a whirlwind week since returning to Pucon! Finally blessed with sun-drenched days, we have been entertaining visiting parents and kayaking down the Rio Palguin. The Rio Palguin has a waterfall around every bend, literally, and the visiting parents were able to snap photos of their kids from beautiful, riverside vantage points.
Some of the older kids are helping to plan a race down the Palguin, tentatively taking place tomorrow; it should be exciting as our kids are quite the little competitors. Tino has been taking advantage of our location, which is a five-minute walk from the Rio Trancura, to practice safety drills under the bridge. He had the kids out swimming and perfecting their rope-throwing skills.
On the homefront, we have re-settled nicely into our cozy living situation at Dave’s place in Pucon. The gap year kids are sleeping out in the “gypsy cabins” – treehouse-like cabins out in the woods – and loving the extra space. The girls are pretty stoked to have two big rooms to themselves with plenty of table space for studying… or rather, for scattering all of their clothes on top of.
Weather-wise, we have had a gorgeous week, with nearly constant sunshine. This morning I took notice of my surroundings while helping Jessica and Chase write sonnets in British Lit, and saw students reading and learning while lying on the grass in the sunshine. What an awesome classroom!
We just arrived back in Pucon from our last destination, Choshuenco. It was a very small town with a lovely little beach and lake we would paddle across after our day of paddling. The days we would run in the mornings were always quite funny you would pass almost everyone at least once because of how few streets there were in it. The people who were hosting us were absolutely delightful. They were so caring and offered us any help we needed. They also cooked us some pretty yummy dishes. They even made everyone’s favorite American dish one night, Pizza!
The river we had there was amazing, it offered many different types of paddling with varying classes. The Upper Fuy consisted of more waterfalls and boofs. The Middle and Lower Fuy however had amazing playboating and wave filled rapids good for working on downriver moves, such as kickflips and wave wheels. We also had Billy Harris with us this whole time and he was a great wealth of knowledge, everyday he would make sure we were boofing up a storm. He was super helpful with little tips to help improve your boating.
Greetings from Choshuenco! Choshuenco is a one-road town about three hours south of Pucon, accessible only by dirt roads that encircle dazzling lake after dazzling lake. We have our own little lake here in Choshuenco and have been taking advantage of the scenery to enhance our classroom environments. The lower Fuy drains into Lago Choshuenco, which makes the take-out a five minute stroll from our cute hotel, La Posada. Everyone is loving the Fuy! The Upper Fuy boasts an awesome run- a super clean 25-footer, Salto Los Leones, followed by an awesome class V section. I’ll let the more experienced boasters describe the run in more colors for you!
Our first afternoon in Choshuenco, we headed to Salto Los Leones for a park and huck. Everyone killed it, including some ladies who were timid at first, then so stoked at their accomplishments! Jessica ran a beautiful line on her first ever waterfall, and Stephen scared us all as he threw his paddle from the top of the drop. Clay and I both got a little bruised from under-rotating or over-rotating our flips from the top of the waterfall into the swimming hole.
Yesterday we took a break from the whitewater and ventured out to Huilo Huilo, to scout two gigantic waterfalls, a 150 footer and a 130 footer! Some of the daredevils think they’re runnable. Either way, it was a gorgeous place to spend an afternoon hiking around.
On the academic front, classes are running smoothly; Eric, Alex and Clay wrote delightful stories to share aloud in class for a creative writing assignment. Lorenzo’s Spanish classes have been learning Spanish through videos, such as Meet the Robinsons and The Lion King. Video class is putting together a video called “How to by Boof, by Billy Harris”.
Yes, we are all happy, healthy and well-fed; we are getting three scrumptious meals a day. Last night for dinner we had a tantalizing soup stuffed with cilantro, potatoes, corn, green beans and carrots. Some of the kids were already starting to leave the table, satisfied, when the second course appeared- sausages and mashed potatoes, with a sweet peach for dessert. The only complaint we have this week is the weather; rain, rain, go away!
In three days, we will return to Pucon for about a week before embarking on our great adventure south to the Futaleafu!
We are about 3/4 of the way through our stay in quaint little Choshuenco. New to this year is a paved main street as well as paved sections of road on the way into the town. We are staying at La Posada a small hostel right in the middle of town. There is a large beach here lake side and a pretty frickin sweet rusted up old boat. We have however not only brought the party to this town, but also the rain. It has rained here non-stop since day two and there are no signs of it lightening up.
The Fuy is definitely a highlight of this little venture. There are three sections to this river. The upper is a mixture of steep rapids and waterfalls highlighted by the park and huck 25 footer. The middle and lower are both boulder garden type drops. The middle and lower sections can be run one to the other however to run the upper into everything else may be a bit of a venture.
Yesterday we took a small break from the river and went to Huilo-Huilo private park or something like that, I don’t think it was a national park. There was 2 huge waterfalls one a 130 footer and the other a 90 footer called Salto de Puma.
See you on the water!
Sit silently; enjoy the morning sun. Breathe deeply as the warmth spreads throughout your body. Inhale the freshness that comes just after sunrise. Take a mental picture- sparkling Lago Choshuenco dancing in the slight breeze. Marvel at the green, rolling mountains enveloping the lake; admire the perfection in the clouds sitting timidly atop the hills. Tune your ears to the chirp-chirps and the peep-peeps; find the birds scuttling beneath the leafy, shade trees. Now look just beside you at the student who is also writing on this beautiful morning at this enchanting lake. Watch your student enjoying the serenity of this place as she puts her own feelings on paper. Welcome to New River Academy!
Listen to the people yelling dinner is ready. Scurry over to the glowing, leafy haven of the quincho. Pick out a good seat next to a friend and some colorful grub. Chat away about the going-on’s of the day. Look out, as Lorena places more scrumptious food on the table. Inhale all the aromas wafting around you. Smell the roasting pork and beef on the crackling fire. Hear the ooh’s and aah’s of the marvelous feast. Hold up the ginormous sphere of bread that is bigger than your face. Munch on the tomato-y mixture of the pico de gallo. Glance around at your big, crazy, smiling family. Comment on something you find absolutely absurd. Let yourself laugh joyfully with everyone else who got the most recent joke. Join the chorus of “thank-you’s” to Dave and Lorena. Watch the embers of the once-large fire sparkle in the coming darkness. Grab your dirty dish to clean off in the sink. Wait in line behind the other five people who decided to do the same. Help out with the rest of the dirty dishes. Walk back to the cabins; chill out and watch the newest downloaded movie. Sigh happily; another amazing day at the best school around.
This run was done by geography teacher Matt Smink, and student Stephen Forster. I did not take part as I was not in the country. I am however conveying this information to you to better your river running experience. Photos on map by Matt Smink.
This is the drive from Pucon to the put-in Of the Rio Llancahue. The drive goes past the Termas Geometricas near Conaripe. Be wary though as the road is not maintained as well as others in the area so nice weather and a four wheel drive car is recommended. The put in will be marked with a sign that says: “No a las centrales hidroelectricas de paso en una zona de turistica.”
The run is a solid class 4 venture beginning with a good twenty foot drop. There are many other drops which can be run, scouted and portaged with the help of the riverside road. After the three waterfalls there is however a mandatory portage on river right due to log jams. (See photos).
The run ends after a short twisting slide, and are able to be seen from the road. Be sure to keep your suit on as tons of hot springs are close by!
P.S. Be sure to watch out for wood, and the drops can be easily portaged on the road that runs alongside
Kayakers often ask, “How does Huge Experiences’ move a high school with their kayaks?” Response, “We fly with them.” Flying with your kayak may be intimidating at first but it is similar to flying with normal luggage.
Flying with your kayak may be easier than you think.
The goal with this kayak travel segment is to teach you how to fly internationally with your kayak gear at an economical rate.
Let’s break it down into steps:
1. Choose a kayak friendly airline. Airlines post their oversize baggage specifications whether they allow or “blacklist” kayaks. Stay away from airlines that do not allow kayaks as oversize luggage. If you use the rules in this article you may still be able to fly with a blacklist airline but don’t count on it.
Know weight and size allowance: Bags are free under 50 pounds, but will be classified as oversize based on dimensions and weight. Your max limit maybe around 115” (l+w+h) and typically = $80 fee. Freestyle kayaks are around 74” l+ 13” h + 25” w. Check the oversize baggage allowance for your airline.
2. Packing your kayak you will need: packing tape, sharpie, strap, boat bag or alternative kayak wrap.
A. Label each piece of gear.
B. Stuff lightweight items like fleece, dry tops, skirts, and booties into foot and stern compartments. Do not exceed 50 pounds unless you are fine with a possible second oversize fee for dimension and weight.
C. Brace your paddle(s). Use sleeping bags, sleeping pads, pfds, sandals, and any bulky items to provide support between your kayak and paddle. Tape and wrap the paddle well to the cockpit rim. I have observed non-braced paddles break.
D. Wrap to protect. You can use a kayak bag, but they are hard to find and end up being an additional awkward piece of gear you will have to keep up with during the entirety of your travels.
I use a disposable tarp or tough blanket from a thrift store. Wrap the kayak well with the tarp and secure with packing tape. You can use the tarp later as a ground cloth for camping. Tarps are also disposable and easy to pack during travel.
E. Make a handle for the skycaps. Imagine that skycaps hate heavy awkward to carry luggage. So, make it easy to carry.
a. Cut a hole in your wrapping system at the cockpit rim allowing for a handle.
b. Or make a shoulder strap that you previously built prior to wrapping. The shoulder strap can be a later needed piece of webbing that ties around the bow and stern and protrudes out of two holes from the tarp.
F. Label, Label, Label- Where will you be, where are you going, which flight number is it?
3. Checking in:
A. Show up 3 hours early. You have large luggage and if the plane is nearly full the counter person is likely to turn you down. If you are one of the earliest then there is little stress related to an over packed plan belly. Plus, you will want the extra time to carry your heavy gear.
B. What to say. International kayakers have to avoid the word “Kayak.”
The word “Kayak” is an expensive word at airports that is often charged twice as much as other similar sized items. Kayakers have learned to refer to the craft as a “surf ski.” What is a “surf ski?” A surf ski is something you sit on top of and surf in the ocean. It is like a surf board because of its design and you surf it in the ocean. Actually, surf skis are much larger than kayaks. The reason surf ski term is used is because the word “kayak” is costly and often blacklisted by airlines.
Continue relating the boat as similar to a surfboard using the word “surf” repetitively in order to be accepted and earn the surfboard rate. If they charge you $80 be happy, pay your fee, and leave the desk person with a smile. 4. What do if airline will not accept the kayak? Allow them to be in charge from the start, ask them how you can help move the item to where they need it so they will not have extra work, be excited about your “surf ski” adventure, and smile.
If they turn you down and say they don’t accept kayaks then you are going to have to ask them for their help. Going over the top to management is a bad ideal unless worded correct.
“Can I speak to your manager?” is a bad ideal. Note the manager is the one who has trained them to turn kayaks down in the first place. And they will be put in a place where they have to make an example.
Try this instead. “Thank you for your help. Obviously, you realize how important this piece of equipment is to my vacation. Is there anything you can do within your power or someone you can ask or lead me to speak with that can approve this? My apologies for not packing this well, being here earlier… Any help you can offer would make me most appreciative and have a strong positive impact on my vacation.”
Now, you have asked them for genuine help. It is hard to deny wanting to help someone who has been kind and asked for their help.
You may have to be persistent. Keep your eye on being the world champion of gratitude and letting the officials know how much it would benefit your trip. I have stuck out several “no you can not travel with your kayak.” Only to later be allowed based on barraging them with kindness and sticking out the situation.
David Hughes is the founder and director of Huge Experiences’ New River Academy. David continues to teach and lead international trips. For more “Kayak Travel” tips surf to www.kayakschool.org.
