McConnell's Mill
Youghiogheny River, Ohiopyle, PA
This morning started out with me and Andy working on basic skills in class II water. I always love watching a beginner gain confidence - by the end of the morning, Andy was comfortably ferrying, had a good run down Zee, and even tried surfing. I can't wait to introduce him to the Loop! In the afternoon, I did a few loop runs, the first w/ Christine & Glenn, the 2nd with Glenn. I had a great day - this was the first time I really felt like I had smooth flat spins in Donut Hole, and I'm (slowly) getting better at chasing down errant boats in my AllStar (and I got lots of practice today!)
-L. Lindzey
Cheat Canyon, Albright, WV
I'd been wanting to kayak the Cheat Canyon since I first saw it in a raft this spring. It was finally at a (barely) runable level - low, but still fun - this Saturday, so I dragged Nik, Cornell and Matt down to Albright. Only Matt had kayaked this section before, and this was the hardest river Cornell had attempted. It was an absolutely gorgeous day: clear blue sky, sun soaking into red cliffs contrasting nicely with clear blue-green, FRIGID water. A splash to the face gave me an instant ice-cream headache, and rolling made my teeth hurt from the cold. I don't usually get to see the rocks underwater that create the river features I so enjoy kayaking ... and I'm not sure that I like to =)
Quote of the trip: Cornell, at lunch "I am NOT a flower"
-L. Lindzey
Canton Air Sports, OH
Air Sports: three new Explorers members attended while three others failed to show up at the UC turnaround--par for the course when it comes to skydiving trips, unfortunately! The day started out fairly overcast but transformed to mostly sunny by early afternoon. It was one of those fall days on which sitting in the sun feels glorious while sitting in the shade for too long is quite uncomfortable. The airfield was wet and muddy enough that the pilot elected to take off from and land at Miller Field, a tiny airport a few miles away from Canton Air Sports that sports a concrete runway. The three tandem students each enjoyed their jumps, while Greg and Mike got two jumps in each, including one that involved a high canopy opening--shortly after exiting the plane--for more time (and fun) under canopy. Even with gloves on, spending that much time high up in the air on a day as cold as this one temporarily resulted in some lingering finger soreness!
-M. Jehn
Ohiopyle, PA
Last weekend, we decided to do a beginner's trip on the Loop. We met at the storeroom at 8am, loaded boats for Laura, Matt, Glenn, Hugh & Peter, and headed out to Ohiopyle. This was Hugh & Peter's introduction to the Loop, and the first Class III water they'd seen from a kayak. The river was higher than I prefer for a beginner's trip - 2.5 feet, as opposed to the normal summer flow of 1.8 feet, but the weather was perfect and there was less carnage than I've ever seen on a first-timer's loop run. We'd meant to meet up with Cornell and Ivan in Ohiopyle, but they ran into some delays in Pittsburgh, so we missed each other. Rumor has it that they had a great time, and ran the loop twice.
Here's what Hugh had to say about the day:
I thought the loop run was excellent. It was nice starting off slowly in the easier first rapids, because it allowed me to get comfortable on the river again. That made it easier when we got into the more difficult rapids. Also, one of the most beneficial things was being able to closely follow others' lines so that I could learn how best to approach a difficult obstacle/wave. What's also really excellent is that the loop provided a nice progression from the middle: It wasn't a huge step up in terms of difficulty, and getting comfortable on the middle really prepares you well for the lower.
I don't think we could have asked for better weather...72 degrees at 10am on Halloween! And it was nice to do just the loop, because it didn't tire me out too much, and gave me plenty of time to get back for Halloween activities.
And Peter:
As my introduction to class III water, it was a lot of fun. Despite having some control difficulties, I felt pretty comfortable. We got down with only one swim, which was nice. And I was glad to have the unseasonably balmy weather, though the water was plenty cold once I got wet.
-L. Lindzey