Kayak Session Magazine

On May 16th, 2024, Bren Orton went missing on the Melezza River. As one of today's most skilled, celebrated, and recognizable paddlers, Bren's accident sparked a global outpouring of shock, grief, and loss. The remembrance of Bren's impact was rapid

GThe early bird gets the shot. Nick Troutman revels in Idaho's early morning light at kelly's Whitewater Park. Paddler: Nick Troutman Location: Kelly's Whitewater Park, North Fork Payette River, Cascade, Idaho. Photography: John Webster■

This September 2024, The Paddle Sports Show returns to Strasbourg, on the border between France and Germany. This central location in Europe allows dealers, retailers, distributors, and paddle enthusiasts across Europe to attend more easily. While th

This year marked the 11th edition of Iceland's largest whitewater festival and its biggest yet. Every year, the Icelandic community awaits this weekend from another dimension! The festival runs on the longest days of the year. It starts on Friday at

This year the freestyle ICF World Cup series was hosted by the city of Plattling, a small but very well-known city in the heart of Bavaria, Germany next to the Isar River. Plattling had previously hosted the 2011 World Championships. The 2024 committ

This year, the organization of the annual event formerly known as Neilson Race was passed to a new generation, led by the dynamic members of the group “The Young Dawgz,” including Raphael St-Pierre and Andrew Oxley. Renamed NeilsonFest, this event pr

After four years of dry seasons, the return of snow to the Alps has brought life back to the rivers of Valsesia. The abundantly flowing water created the perfect conditions for the 2024 Valsesia River Festival, organized by renowned kayaking school G

Another spring, another iteration of the Myllykoski Bigwater Festival. The 19th annual race was held on the 20th of April, and this year it was a stout one. The morning of the event, the temperature hovered around -4°C and the river was at a challeng

While short days and frosty mornings are typical signs of winter approaching, the annual Waip Out event has come to mark the start of the cold season for some New Zealand kayakers. The third annual event was held this year over the weekend of May 4th

The Bigfork Whitewater Festival in Montana celebrated its 49th Annual event this year, bringing together participants from across the interior northwest to compete on the challenging “Wild Mile” section of the Swan River. Despite concerns about low w

Some come for the signature trick ramp, built at the Cunard put-in each year; some come for the chaos of a mass-start race, and some come to kick it with the community they love. Whatever the reason, for the last three years Fayetteville's local padd

The first edition of the Río Ara Race took place on the 11th and 12th of May and was an unexpected success. The race was organized by local kayakers and the whitewater kayak club Aguas Bravas Gállego. More than 30 participants from different regions

The ninth edition of the Durance Festival took place July 12th-14th, in Chateauroux les Alpes with record flows, plenty of sun, smiles, and fresh beer. With record high flows in the Southern French Alps for the time of year and the organizers’ desire

From June 27th to 28th 2024, kayakers from all over the world gathered once again in the beautiful valleys of Voss, Norway, for the Extreme Kayak World Championships. Due to heavy flooding last summer, the championships were not able to be held at Oe

Late June means one thing for kayakers around Whistler, BC: The Callaghan Race. Since its inception in 2010, the race has evolved into a vibrant, inclusive weekend where paddlers from all over gather at the riverside campground to participate in thre

Every summer athletes from across the state, country, and world convene to enjoy the superb whitewater playground the Rocky Mountain snowmelt provides. The annual ‘Colorado Tour’ has been a staple of the competitive whitewater scene for decades. With

As May turned to June, the traditional Trnava Xrace whitewater racing event took place at the slalom course Trnavka in the Czech Republic. This year marked the tenth anniversary of the event, drawing in extreme kayaking enthusiasts. Water released fr

Over 110 paddlers came together during the weekend of May 31- June 2nd at the Nantahala Outdoor Center in North Carolina to share their passion for paddling and raise over $7K for the Shannon Christy Memorial Fund, a fund that donates to nonprofits c

Downriver freestyle is the hot topic in whitewater kayaking. This subdiscipline has seen accelerated progression over the last few years, challenging what was thought possible. It feels as though a major wall has been broken down, allowing the sport

After a several-year hiatus for international athletes, the Nujiang Wild Water International Open was held over the New Year. It was back in full force for its largest-scale event since the inaugural competition in 2010. Competitors from 18 different

French kayakers Paul Aubertin and Mylo Nicholas from Eggstream Kayak went on a mission in March 2024 to scout and first descend the Zakalj Waterfall in Rijeka, Croatia, on the Rjecina River. The Rjecina only runs a few times a year and is heavily dam

This June, a group of young kayakers from Germany and Switzerland embarked on an adventurous rally to the kayaking paradise of Norway. Among them were Holger Jung and Nico Redling, who took the opportunity to paddle down a barely known waterfall in s

Thanks to frequent rains during the spring, the European kayaking community was gifted a great start to the season in nearly every region of the Alps and the Piedmont region in northern Italy. Many kayakers came together to enjoy the prime flows duri

Iceland saw a late spring dump of snow, which meant the snowpack could still be seen in the mountains until July! Many of Iceland's iconic waterfall runs depend on snow melt, which can be unpredictable with aligning weather systems. Fortunately, in M

High in the Andes of Southwestern Colombia, the Caqueta River begins as a trickling waterfall at nearly 13,000 feet in elevation. As it descends towards the Amazonian plain the Caqueta grows quickly, becoming one of the highest-volume rivers in the c

Amongst the current generation of kayakers in Southwest BC, the Upper Ryan River in Pemberton has been little more than folklore. 15 years ago it was known as one of the steepest and stoutest sections in the area. Then, as the put-in road became more

Tucked away deep in the unsuspecting hills of the Kaimai Mountain Range lies many treasures. Rivers that are so enjoyable, it feels like you are sessioning a skate park. You'll find big waterfalls, continuous rapids, countless boofs, and monster slid

Lovers of North Carolina Whitewater, American Whitewater needs your help! A pending case in the Office of Administrative Hearings challenges the public's right to recreate on sections of the Boone Fork and Watauga River, located near Boone, North Car

A huge snow pack plus heavy and never-ending rains led to a spring to remember all over Europe. While these conditions brought amazing paddling conditions for many paddlers across the European continent throughout this past spring and early summer, i

On the 16th of May 2024, Bren Orton disappeared beneath the Italian whitewater of Melezza. His fatal accident came as a shock to me and the rest of the crew bound for Iceland in the following days. Martin Vonheim, Zack Mutton, David Sodomka, and I me

It's late spring; there's still plenty of water flowing around the state of Idaho, but maybe you want to take a break from the heavy, self-supported overnight trips, just for a second. You may still want the peace of the outdoors with few and far aro

As morning broke on the 17th of November 1989, students began lacing up their Botas sneakers in preparation to march the streets of Prague. Fifteen thousand citizens were unaware that the communist national police were getting ready just the same. Th

Kayak Session: Thomas, tell us about yourself. How did you find kayaking? Thomas Neime: I grew up in a family of kayakers close to the Saint Pierre de Boeuf whitewater park, not far from Lyon, France. I started with slalom, competing and training reg

It is easy to think of freestyle as an aspect that stands alone, apart from the rest of the whitewater disciplines. To think that unless you want to win competitions or already have it as part of your kayaking, why take the time for it? In reality, I

As we enter an age where environmental protection is moving closer to the forefront of the public eye, we are starting to see more extreme measures taken to reduce negative human impact on the environment. This includes the complicated task of removi

No whitewater around? I hope you spent your winter training hard in the pool and are ready to take your new skills to the moving water! However, even after the best winter pool workouts, when I get on moving water, I'm gassed! It is simply a differen

When the media talks to me, one question is almost guaranteed: how many first descents have you made? As my answer ballooned from 55 to 80 to 132, my “first descent” ego grew. Those numbers were accepted without a single follow-up question. A reader

WHAT IS THE ROTATOR CUFF AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT? Four very small but important muscles make up the rotator cuff: the supraspinatus, the infraspinatus, the teres minor, and the subscapularis. These small muscles work with other larger muscles such as

For more information on these and other issues that American Whitewater is working on, go to www.americanwhitewater.org In recent years, it has been widely reported that Missoula-based wildlife biologists John and Frank Craighead “came up with the id

A suit for all types of Paddlesport, featuring Peak's unique, innovative fully waterproof leg entry system. The 10 mm YKK Aquaseal zip allows easy entry and total freedom of movement when out on the water. Designed with a standing position in mind, f