THANKS TO:
Venture Canoes, NRS and Freebird Paddles.
Ray Goodwin’s website:
www.RayGoodwin.com
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RayGoodwinCanoe
Ray Goodwin’s paddling the Ardeche
The paddle through Pont d’Arc and down the Gorge de l’Ardeche has got to be amongst my favourite paddles – anywhere. It is the combination of enough white water, most of it very easy, along with spectacular rock scenery and, of course, the spectacular Pont d’Arc, where the river has carved a 60-metre rock arch through a limestone ridge.
I have been paddling it for 20 years, running staff training for British companies, working with schools and beginners groups, and family trips.
This time we started from the Adventure Ardeche campsite, the last camping on the river right before the cliffs close in and you lose the road. One of their bosses, Iain, had sorted camping tickets for an overnight at the bivouac site in the gorge and arranged a pick-up at the end. This is a great spot just below the town of Vallon Pont d’Arc. A breakfast of fresh croissants and a buttered baguette set us up for the day. We were seven in number; Lina, Joy and Noddy were solos, Sharon and Rod tandem, and Maya and me.
The launch was easy, just a gentle walk down from the campsite. Boats were loaded, and off we went. Easy flat water to start, and a small section below eased past a steep section of the cliff where the road carved its way through a series of tunnels. Above the road, a small grey plaque marks the high water mark of a 19th-century flood.
House Rock
When you see it in the middle of the river, you will know why House Rock is so called, followed by an easy rapid, an awkward one, and then le Charlemagne Rapid (sometimes known as Pont d’Arc rapid). We were paddling it at a reasonably low level, so the rapid is littered with rock and threaded by several channels. Difficult for the novices on hired sit-on-tops but for a paddler, a delight to play down, working eddy to eddy just for the fun of it. Maya had me under manners and her system. She liked to know what we were about to do and where we were aiming. Then would run through her turning strokes to confirm. She was often asking me to confirm when she should do them.
Many years ago, I was here with a group of young trainee instructors from PGL. The river was high, all the rocks were underwater, and there were large waves in several places. I set the individuals the task of choosing their lines and then coming back to me to explain them. After a while, all were back. Between them, individuals had chosen four different lines. Some were cautious, but the final one from Ollie and his mate were the wildest.
Beaming excitedly, they described their route that crashed through each of the biggest waves on the right. Then there was a period of silence…eventually, someone asked me, “Which one do we take?” I grinned and said, “The one you have individually chosen.” Ollie and his mate stared open-mouthed for a moment, and then it dawned on them that I had let them off the leash. They whooped and hollered their way down, arriving at the bottom with massive grins.
Then to the magnificent Pont d’Arc. The river used to flow around a channel to the left, looping around the base of the limestone ridge. Over millennia, the river cut into and eventually through the ridge’s base, carving out the magnificent arch. We paused to explore the caves at its base before moving on.
Chauvet Cave
In 1994, cavers discovered the wonderful Chauvet Cave in the cliffs above that dry river loop. The most extraordinary collection of prehistoric cave paintings. Ones we are all familiar with, overlapping horses, rhinos and a total of 400 paintings – one of the world’s treasures. Sadly but rightly, access is restricted to just a few researchers a year. The French learned from the disaster in the Lascaux Cave, where mould started destroying the paintings. But it is a fantastic effort; just a mile from Vallon, they have recreated the cave’s interior. Laser surveyed and painstakingly recreated artists redid the painting. Do make a visit when you are in the area.
A short way below Pont d’Arc, and past numerous campsites on the river left, the road eventually moves away, and the gorge closes around the river. We were heading for the second of the two ‘bivouac’ sites. The first does not open early in the year. The two bivouacs are the only places you can camp overnight in the gorge, and yep it is possible to paddle it in a single day, but sometimes it is nice to linger.
From here on, we started finding traces of beaver, small twigs and branches with the bark stripped completely clear. The parallel grooves of the beaver’s two big teeth could be seen on some remnants. But alas, no sight of the elusive animals. Seeing they are crepuscular by habit, an early morning or late evening paddle is best to see them (Note: I had to look that word up!).
Meanwhile, Maya enlightened me with tales of TikTok, Minecraft and the like; I feel I am becoming an expert without ever using either. Mind she must be careful not to set me off on history or geology; she reckons I bring out my teacher voice when detailing either.
I came alert as we approached Black Tooth rapid, but the water was high enough to make this easy. In lower water, it is an absolute nightmare for the inexperienced. Photo Black Tooth 1.
BLACK TOOTH 1
The river bends right, and if you stay right and point right (red arrow), all is easy enough. But if you continue to point left, a small rock creates a small partial eddy below it (blue arrow). Photo Black Tooth 2.
BLACK TOOTH 2
The unwary and unknowing catch this, and the craft does a quick turn left directly above the Black Tooth. A burst of speed to continue left and miss the rock can save the situation, but most freeze. Photo Black Tooth 3.
BLACK TOOTH 3
The authorities station Pompiers (fire/rescue service) here at the busiest time of year. They do nothing to stop incidents but are there to sort out anything serious. There have been fatalities here and lots of injuries. So a little caution, but competent paddlers should find it straightforward.
A walking route follows the river, only possible at lower levels because the route fords the river several times. I dropped Maya off to have a little mini-adventure on one section, along with Lina and Joy. We towed the spare boats to the end of it. In contrast, they scrambled along the ledges with the aid of metal handrails, a futuristic-looking ladder and some metal steps. We could hear the giggles and like from below and catch glimpses of the fun.
Reunited, we cracked on down. Heavy rain was forecast overnight, and we wanted to get to Gournier Bivouac before it had set in. Stunning scenery and pleasant rapids. Finally, the landing for the bivouac. The warden was there to greet us. Asking that we carry the canoes well above the river in case it rose during the night. A wise precaution is that the river can rise quickly in very heavy rain. In the past, fleets of canoes and sit-on-tops have been washed away, even making it to the Rhone.
It turns out we were the only ones on the site; at the height of summer, this feels crowded, and the rain had put everyone else off. The warden explained the toilets were open but not the showers, and then she departed for the evening. Up went tents, tarp over ours to provide more shelter and a cooking area. A shed, used to store rubbish bags, was liberated by Lina and into it went all our wet kit. Mind it was too small to sleep in.
wild boar
In the past, wild boars were frequent overnight visitors to this site. On the first occasion, I took Lina down the river we camped here. We had a small tent, so I left some gear outside. Because of the boar, I hung everything in the trees. The rental places in Vallon provide white barrels, with red screw lids, to their customers for food and kit. These are typically left on the ground overnight.
The boar have worked out they can roll them around the ground, and in the end, the lids will come off, and then clothing and such are scattered as they search for food. We were sorted that night, kit away, when Lina found a small Tupperware pot with tea bags.
Thinking little, we left that one item on a park table. A noise woke me in the night, and I stuck my head out. A boar had its feet on the seat and gently picked up the pot. It noticed me and turned its head my way with the pot still in its mouth; we held a look for a moment or two before it turned back, slowly putting the pot down in its place before trotting away.
Lina came out to the Ardeche a few times while I was working there. As she explains, “The first year, Ray didn’t expect me to paddle, so I spent a lot of time in the bow sunbathing and drinking the occasional beer. He expected me to paddle in the second year, and in the third year, I paddled my own canoe. Such is how a relationship develops.”
This time we were all getting sorted, and Maya set off and was at the foot of the steps leading up to the building, toilet and all. An almighty crack and a big limb broke off a tree at the top of the steps. Some 30 seconds later, it would have fallen on Maya. Sometimes it is good to be lucky, but it still gave me a bad shiver.
The rain set in well and truly, so we were all early to bed. I listened long into the night as the rain hit the tarp above us. How much was falling, and how high would the river come? The authorities close it above a certain level, and I didn’t want to be stuck here.
By morning the rain had stopped, and patchy mist obscured the enclosing cliffs. But it was clearing and was dry. Gear loaded the first rapid is immediate, Toupin. The current and downstream V point straight at the cliff on the river left. It is honeycombed with holes and syphons – a dangerous spot for a swim. Joy, Lina and Noddy went down easily, aiming for the eddy on the river right.
Then Sharon and Rod. They were attempting the same but were slowly heading for the eddy, but they made it in an area of swirls and boils. Added to the problem, they both have knee problems and can’t kneel, so they are less stable, and a lack of edge into the turn finished it, and they went for a swim.
However, by heading for the eddy, they were clear of the cliff face and its dangers. They swam to the side while Noddy efficiently rescued the boat. An easy line for the experienced, so Maya and I just started wide and took an aggressive angle across the V and into the eddy. I was so enjoying myself I dropped the gunwale into the water to tighten the turn.
The day was clear, with more great scenery and plenty of smaller rapids. Madelaine (or La Pastiere) is another for a bit of alertness and thought. The river narrows alongside the right bank with a wide pebble beach to the left. The current becomes a jet and heads straight for a big flat-topped rock. There is a line left in shallower water, but Maya went right, cutting across just above the undercut rock and into an eddy to pull us clear. An easy turn, and we were clear. In the height of summer, the river can be wall-to-wall plastic (some 1,500 people a day go through the gorge).
nude sunbathers
This is one of the spots for a spot of largely harmless carnage as the inexperience barrel straight into the rock, maybe even distracted by nude sunbathers on top of it. Yep, there is a nudist camp just below this, and folk often come up to Madelaine to assist swimmers. Mind a bit off-putting as you are being reached for by someone whose willy is dangling above your face. This day was too cold, but I had warned Maya in advance on a previous occasion. As we sped past, all I got from my bow paddler was a fit of giggles.
Onwards around another big loop with the remains of a leper colony high above (buildings, not people). Past the legendary windy corner. Yep, just as its name says. You often pass it and get the first real blasts of wind in your face and the start of a battle to get to the finish. But no wind on this trip. The first folk began to catch us up, and we were no longer alone on the river. A final straight, the land to the left opens out, and a get out at Sauze to meet the arranged pick up.
Another trip down the gorge and a different set of experiences to the last one. There are a lot of good rivers in the area and a couple more good sections of the Ardeche further upstream, so a great area to visit. But the Ardeche Gorge has got to be top of my list.
I look forward to the next time I paddle it. Maybe it is time for Maya to paddle her own boat.
Many thanks to Ian at Adventure Ardeche for sorting us with camping, bivi tickets and the shuttle. Check https://adventureardeche.com or email: info@adventureardeche.com They can help sort for folk and even provide boats and instruction.
There is a wonderful guidebook to the area by Peter Knowles, Best Canoe Trips in the South of France. Published by Rivers Publishing.
WELSH OPEN CANOE SYMPOSIUM 2022
SYMPOSIWM CANW AGORED CYMRU 2022
28-30th October 2022
The Open Canoe Symposium has become the premier event for open canoeists across the UK. The hosting of the event now rotates annually between Wales, England and Scotland in a three-year cycle. Its aim has always been to bring together people of all levels of experience and ability in a sharing of enthusiasm for and knowledge of all aspects of open canoeing.
SPECIAL GUEST
This year we have invited the renowned Canadian adventurer/ paddler/writer/speaker Kevin Callan to join us. Kevin is a prolific guide book writer as well as an adventurer with many books and articles detailing his thoughts and adventures, a renowned speaker and a member of the council of the Canoe Museum in Ontario.
Kevin Callan
VENUE
Gwersyll Glanllyn is an Outdoor Education Centre situated on the shores of Llyn Tegid (Bala Lake). Owned by the Urdd (a Welsh National Youth Organisation), it is situated about 4 miles west of the town of Bala on the A494. The site has direct access to the lake shore and is within easy reach of a variety of other canoeing venues.
FOR BOOKING FORMS AND SYMPOSIUM DETAILS CONTACT:
Symposiwm Canw Agored Cymru
Welsh Open Canoe Symposium,
Gwersyll Yr Urdd, Glan-llyn, Llanuwchllyn,
Bala, Gwynedd, LL23 7ST. Email: glanllyn@urdd.org
Please note that Glan-llyn are acting as our booking agents in good faith for ease of administration. However, their staff cannot answer queries about the Symposium. For general enquiries please use Ray@RayGoodwin.com
