If it’s too wet to climb, follow the water

I’ve been boating all summer in a Thrillseeker ( an inflatable kayak), which has allowed me to maximize the number of fun days we’ve been able to have lately (West Virginia has had a shit ton of rain this summer). Having gotten use to that water craft, I’d been itching for something a little more spicy. Enter Liquid Logic’s Delta V 88. It came highly recommended by my friend Peter, so I poached the end of summer demo sale at Wilderness Voyageurs and scored my hard boat of choice.  

Third time out, and I get the opportunity to go Creekin’! My friend, Joel showed me his favorite spot close to his house, Teter Creek. It’s about an hour from Morgantown and totally worth the drive. Water was a little low, but it still made for an epic experience for my first creek. I did get a couple bruises and had a little swim. While sliding through down through a notch, the pillowing water along the river left edge flipped me. I started to setup to role, when my paddle just left my hands. It apparently ledged itself directly particular to the flow in the shoot that flipped me. It took about 10 minutes for me to figure this out, as I scoured the eddies and stream banks for my missing paddle. Not seeing it anywhere, the only place I could think it might be was in the channel where it so abruptly left my hands. Shoving my leg down into the flow, I immediately hit a straight shaft…found it!

Most of the photos below are from a few shots during Joel’s second lap of Teter’s. The whole holler is gorgeous and ripe for some great image making. Definitely looking forward to coming back soon for both the creekin’ and the photo opp.