AndyR said..
Haha Big brother I could see myself living at mission beach and treking all the rivers up there.
PT, inflatable for sure wouldn't dare use a hard board.
I personally think something 10ft or under is the go purely on footage on the net from over in the US with all the white water racers that are popping up over there.
Definately would throw a helmet on and look at shin guards and shoes.
PT what sort of water depth is the areas that you guys do it in??
The Payette River Games (now defunct) was up to 11' but that was more about slalom than navigating genuine rapids. I think you're right about 10' or less. We are 9'6" and that feels good for control and spinning on a dime.
Water shoes or at least wetsuit booties with thick-ish soles are good for river beds with sharp rocks.
Water depth is a piece of string question - we refer to a canoe club website that has electronic measuring of rivers all around VIC, and the spot on the Yarra that we frequent needs to be above 65cm at the measuring point to be worthwhile. It sits around 50cm through the dry season and it is not passable in some sections at that height. But even at 65cm, that can be overhead in some places or it can be less than 20cm at other places. That's why we bust fins a little too often. Sometimes we go without any fins at all.
