Birthday with the river gypsies

Paddling trips are - happily! - much more than time on the river. We've been sussing out local boaters at the put in of the biggest runs we've done for years, settling in for long beer-ful evenings in the bar playing pool, and making the thousands of tiny team decisions that shape each day.

In our first week Matty has been a bit crook and his initial strategy - drink beer and get out on the water - finally backfired and he took a few days off to work on his tan. Mike and I paddled with Norwood and his crew on some classic Californian sections of the Yuba River.


There's still a lot of snow up there and with warm rain and rising temperatures the rivers went off their chops. While I scrambled along the bank, Kenny and Scot ran most of the Sierra City to Downieville section.



We've just met up with Leland, Andria and Hudson, oggled their new guidebook (check out brushymountain.com) and it seems that with the levels like this the best thing to do is to hop in the car and drive north. Otter Bar! Here we come.

Thanks for the birthday wishes!
Polly