Posts Tagged ‘Freestyle Kayaking’
Wednesday, September 28th, 2011
On our way to West Virginia we took two days off of school to stop in Niagara Falls. Not only did we get to see the magnificent falls from a helicopter but we did many other fun activities. We got a fun pass for the night in downtown Niagara and also got to go on a jet-boat whirlpool tour. Our night in Niagara was lots of fun with all the different activities on our fun passes. There was a great outdoor mini-golf course which was a main attraction for our group. There was also a huge wheel from which you could see the falls. In the morning we headed towards the falls for our helicopter tour. At first I was really nervous to be going up hundreds of feet in the air in a small, loud, enclosed space. After many horror stories from the boys and a lot of nervous energy burned I was up in the air in the first helicopter with the owner Rudy as our pilot. It turned out that I survived the ride of a lifetime. Soaring high above the class 6 rapids of the Niagara Gorge was a very exhilarating experience and seeing the falls for the first time in my life could not have been better from the ground. Right after our trip to the falls we got in the van and moved on to our next adventure. We flew up and down the class 6 rapids that we saw from the helicopter in a huge jet-boat. With 20 foot crashing waves it was almost as exciting as the helicopter ride but it still did not compare to seeing the falls from that unique angle. Thanks to Joe Kowalski and the Droujkos for making these fun-filled few days possible.
Students back on the ground after their helicopter ride.
The horseshoe falls from the helicopter.
Tags: Canada, Freestyle Kayaking, Go Huge Experiences, high school, Kayak School, Kayaking, new river academy, whitewater
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Friday, May 14th, 2010
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This is a photo essay. Basically a compilation of photos that share a basic theme. My photo essay details our journey through this year, starting in Ottawa first quarter, and ending in West Virginia. I tried to end each section with a night photo, but that was a little difficult. I would like to point out that even though the last shot is not of anyone in our group I feel it describes how we as a group are.
Tags: Academics, Chile, Chile Rivers, Freestyle Kayaking, Gap Year, gap year abroad, go huge, Go Huge Experiences, high school, Huge Experiences, Huge Move Of the Day, kayak, Kayak School, Kayaking, matt hill, new river academy, Photography, whitewater, whitewater kayaking
Posted in Academics, chile whitewater rivers, Culture, Kayak Gap Year Abroad, Kayak School, Kayaking, Photography, Uncategorized, Whitewater Countries | Comments Off
Friday, May 7th, 2010
The past week and a bit spent on the Ottawa River was pretty great. Garb came in which was a real treat, but is kind of strange for the spring. Baby face, corner wave, and push button were also great practice. The week though was pretty hard academically as most of us were and still are preparing for the AP exams that we we do this week here at Tino’s house. It was also a little hard as Lorenzo was not in the country so his classes had to communicate over webcam. We took a field trip also to the Canadian Technology and Science Museum, and I am sure you have all read the essays that we had to do for homework. The week weather wise was not preferable as there was some rain and there were a few days that were a little cold. We closed the time out with a trip to Niagara Falls where there were helicopters ridden, attractions visited, and falls scouted. That was our time spent.
Tags: Academics, Freestyle Kayaking, Gap Year, gap year abroad, go huge, Go Huge Experiences, go huge kayaking, high school, Huge Experiences, kayak, Kayak School, Kayaking, matt hill, new river academy, Ottawa river, Photography, whitewater kayaking
Posted in Academics, Culture, Intructional, Kayak Gap Year Abroad, Kayak School, Kayaking, Uncategorized, Whitewater Countries | Comments Off
Wednesday, April 28th, 2010
“Turn that light on.”
“Wake up!”
“Now tell me where you have hidden the gold!”
“Speak up!”
“Now tell me again and DON’T F****** MUMBLE!”
“Shock him.”
“Now tell me if there are traps.”
“Don’t talk to me like that!”
“Now tell me the right answer.”
“Get the bucket and drown him.”
“Let him up.”
“Now tell me about the traps.”
“Give me the right answers and get out of here quicker.”
“Now tell me how to disarm the traps.”
“I said speak up!”
“Now tell me again or things will get a lot worse.”
“Get me some pliers.”
“Now tell me what to do when I get into the cave.”
“Pull out his teeth.”
“Stop struggling or the pliers might slip.”
“Clean up that blood and tell me how to reach the gold.”
“DON’T F****** LIE TO ME!”
“Now tell me, was that so hard?”
“Untie him and throw him over board.”
“Don’t talk back to me. Understand that he is no longer useful to us.”
“Return to your posts and get this ship moving.”
“Understand that we will find that gold.”
Tags: Academics, Freestyle Kayaking, Gap Year, gap year abroad, Go Huge Experiences, Kayak School, Kayaking, matt hill, new river academy, whitewater, whitewater kayaking
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Friday, April 16th, 2010
The Nantahala Outdoor Center is a bustling place with restaurants, whitewater rafting, equipment rentals, picnic tables right at the playhole for boater viewing and a whole plethora of cabins and campsites. Good thing it’s still the off-season! Much of the time, we have this whitewater Disneyland to ourselves. We are camped at a more remote location which is about a five-minute walk from Base Camp, where we have classes, meals and heated showers. The Base Camp facilities are pretty awesome- the biggest kitchen we’ve seen yet and many shower stalls flowing with endless piping-hot water! Not that steamy showers are a huge neccessity this week because the weather is tricking me into believing that we are actuallly in the middle of July. It is downright HOT. Luckily, the icy Nantahala River is a five-minute stroll, tops. This week’s location is a bit unusual for us as we are normally in more remote areas. It is almost a special treat for the students to be able to interact with other kids, boaters, Appalachian Trail hikers and vacationers, not to mention having the ability to buy a pizza for lunch! Our campsite is just right for us, 7 wooden platforms and canvas tents surrounding a fire-pit. Tino made excellent use of the fire-pit for his mentor activity last night. The group grilled out over an open fire, letting tasty meats and veggies cook slowly on a bed of coals, then building the fire back up to roast s’mores!
As previously mentioned, this week is focused solely on playboating. The students will be competing in the NOC Shoot-out this weekend, up against all the playboating superstars. (I’ll be sure to post the results!) After many hours of practice on the NOC wave this week, I’m confident that they will do great! The wave here is a bit special – it is a man made wave, formed by a collective effort of throwing rocks into the river. There is even a sign posted which reads, “Please do not change the wave!” There will also be an attainment (upriver) race, which some of the staff are competing in.
The group is getting along great. We are taking advantage of this excellent group space to play evening games of Catan and Scrabble. Last night we celebrated Alex Anderson’s 16th birthday with a German chocolate cake. All the students are upbeat and excited about this weekend’s competition.
Our base here is somewhat of a traveling-teacher’s dream, with tables and quiet study space galore. Several students are working on cool projects to break up the monotony of indoor work, such as Tino’s survival class, which is stirring up some fresh, country apple jam!
I hope everyone is doing well back home, and be sure to check back after the weekend for competition results.
Callie
Tags: Academics, Freestyle Kayaking, go huge, Go Huge Experiences, high school, Kayak School, new river academy, whitewater kayaking
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2010
The recent photo project by Matt Hill about abstract photography. I think these images are pretty sweet.
See you on the water!
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Tags: Academics, Freestyle Kayaking, Gap Year, gap year abroad, go huge, Go Huge Experiences, go huge kayaking, high school, kayak, kayak high school, Kayak School, Kayaking, matt hill, new river academy, Photography, whitewater, whitewater kayaking
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Saturday, February 27th, 2010
Lorenzo en el Rio Negro
Katie Kowalski
hanging out in camp
Every morning, the students emerge from their cozy tents, tucked away in the security of the mossy trees. Our campsite here in Hornopiren is perched atop a grassy knoll that slopes gently downward into a craggy ravine, directly to a gorgeously turquoise 10-foot waterfall. This waterfall makes up one of three that we have been running on the Rio Negro, whose tantalizing whitewater is so close to our tents that we can hear it in our dreams. We are enjoying the wonderful countryside hospitality of our host, Dona Tato, who has been serving up three delicious meals a day- she is even spoiling us with homemade pastries for breakfast. Nights are rolling away while we congregate around the campfire, singing along to Tino and Matti’s guitar and Andy’s fiddle. Lorenzo’s ghost stories have us all convinced that his family’s home is haunted.
Weather has been delightful- sunny, warm, perfect, and has allowed for our classes to cluster around the funky, hand-made wooden tables in the yard. My AP English students had a fun project this week, where they learned the importance of being familiar with both sides of an arguement before taking a stance on it. I had them prepare to write a persuasive essay on a controversial topic, repeatedly warning them to investigate the opposition’s viewpoint as well. When the day of the in-class essay arrived, the looks of horror on their faces revealed my sneaky plan. That’s right, they had one hour to write an essay that was exactly the opposite of the thesis they had planned. Matt’s photo classes have been utilizing the gorgeous sunsets and surrounding countryside to explore the world of landscape photography. Taylor and Eric made slideshows showcasing Al Capone and the Flapper era for Tino’s history class.
Today we had a race down the Rio Negro, on a small section beginning with a 25-foot waterfall and ending with a bang as the students landed that boof from the top of the 10-footer. What a great way to end our time in Hornopiren. I left the students back at camp, packing up their tents and gear bags, preparing to rise and shine at 5:30 am tomorrow. We will get on an eight hour ferry to Chaiten, where we will be about two hours away from the town of Futaleafu. I’m sure everyone shares my excitement in experiencing this legendary river!
Tags: Academics, Chile Rivers, Freestyle Kayaking, gap year abroad, go huge kayaking, high school, Huge Experiences, Photography, whitewater kayak photography
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Monday, February 15th, 2010
Tino and Lorenzo in the quincho
(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!
attentive to Tino's talk-up at the Palguin
lining up to do it again at the Palguin
Tags: Academics, Freestyle Kayaking, Go Huge Experiences, new river academy, Photography, whitewater kayak photography, whitewater kayaking
Posted in Academics, chile whitewater rivers, Kayak Gap Year Abroad, Kayak School, Kayaking, Photography, Uncategorized, Whitewater Countries | 1 Comment »
Sunday, February 7th, 2010
(c) Zoe Ross
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!
Callie
Tags: Academics, Chile, Freestyle Kayaking, Gap Year, Go Huge Experiences, Huge Experiences, Kayak School, study abroad programs, whitewater kayaking
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Saturday, February 6th, 2010
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!
Tags: Academics, Chile, Freestyle Kayaking, Gap Year, gap year abroad, Go Huge Experiences, high school, Huge Experiences, Kayak School, Kayaking, matt hill, new river academy, whitewater, whitewater kayaking
Posted in Academics, chile whitewater rivers, Culture, Intructional, Kayak Gap Year Abroad, Kayak School, Kayaking, Uncategorized, Whitewater Countries | Comments Off
