I’ve always loved the road through Knockin to Bala. Going over ‘The Mountain’ is generally how I refer to it and it’s a lovely fun road to drive. It tends to symbolise either the start or finish of a kayak trip so there’s either a sense of anticipation for the festivities to come or the satisfaction of a good river trip with friends. I must admit to usually having a spirited drive along there. I’m not boasting about it, I just like the road and am usually in a car that’s fun to drive so that’s what ends up happening.
Driving towards Bala on the Friday night a small part of me was already looking forward to the mirror image drive home at the end of the following day. We arrived at the campsite fairly late so we set up camp and went to sleep thinking about the river trip ahead. But my trip back along the mountain road wasn’t to be at the end of the day. It was 7.35 am and we had just received a call that would change the complexion of the day totally.
I’d woken reasonably early and had come out of the tent to see Fraser walking down to the river. We chatted briefly and off I went for a shower. I nipped back to the car as I’d forgotten something and turned to see Fraser rushing over towards me. He’d just had a call from Dave Clarke telling us that Dale had been involved in an accident on his way to meet us. From this point on we were on autopilot. Boats were removed from the car and off we went to hopefully assist a friend in need.
Now, Dale is unflappable. He laughs in the face of danger. He is patience personified leading lesser paddlers down rivers they thought would be beyond them with a confident calm. ‘Yeah you’ll be fine’ is his oft used mantra. He is indestructible and for this weekend was planning on piloting the club Topo-Duo down the upper Tryweryn with Beka Jayne as his victim passenger. Hearing that there had been an accident and that the news wasn’t good was weighing heavy on me as we retraced the route back eastwards.
Arriving at the site of the accident it was immediately apparent that this was a serious crash. Dales car had received a bit of bodywork courtesy of the local fire service and the man himself was looking decidedly the worst for wear. The Topo-duo had attempted to continue its journey towards Bala independently of Dale such was its enthusiasm to tackle the Upper T. Anxious minutes passed and eventually Dale was in the in the ambulance with reports coming to us that he had some memorable injuries but was in no more immediate danger. Other club members arrived at the scene so we tidied as much of his gear up into our cars as possible and with him on his way to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital we turned and made our way back over the mountain towards Bala. It’s fair to say that by now the gloss had gone from our day.
We regrouped at the Café and chatted. Dave Clarke (who had arrived at the scene of the accident with Paula, Dales mum for those who haven’t met her) was adamant that we should still paddle and that it was ‘what Dale would want’ and so we decided that we would paddle. With the shuttle done and with me in a bit of a grump (what???) we got on the water.
Now I know we’re a good way into this trip report and I’ve barely mentioned the river. You may well now feel a bit cheated when I announce that it was a pretty uneventful trip down the lower Tryweryn. The official trip leader was Fraser Watson but he handed over the reins to me to lead for a fair proportion of the trip. I’m currently working towards my 4* white water kayak leader (or whatever the heck it is called these days) so this was a good opportunity to lead a group. In the group we also had Neil and Alice Smith, Rob Harrison, Ro Puttergill, Beka Jane, Dave Garland and Matt Kendell. We should also have been joined by Sara Wright but despite getting to the river she didn’t feel well and so didn’t paddle. Mike Ward also bailed at the last moment too.
We made our way down the river with very little drama or maybe the dramas of earlier in the day had dulled the senses. Who knows, but I think for the most part the time on the river was enjoyed by all and certainly helped take my minds of the earlier excitement.
Notable mentions should go to Beka who paddled the river like a champ despite her relative inexperience and nerves. Also Matt should be mentioned for all the swimming he did. And they were swims Matt, deep down you know it’s true.
Finally I feel duty bound to mention Rob Harrison. Rob has had a mixed relationship with both the upper and lower Tryweryn. The upper has beaten him up a fair amount. The lower draws you in then throws Bala Mill Falls at you right at the very end. There can be some self-imposed pressure to attempt the falls. They are by far the largest feature on the river and there is absolutely no shame in portaging them but if you’ve had a good trip then the urge to give them a go can be quite strong. Chasing the feeling of successfully negotiating them has quite a draw. And so it was that Rob found himself giving them a go, a brave move given his swim down the falls a few weeks previously. I set off down to help provide safety cover from the rocks below the falls and Rob followed Fraser down from the last eddy above the falls. They both made the eddy directly above the falls, no mean feat in itself, and we all held our breath. It’s a strong flow over the falls and, giving it the beans out of the eddy, rob broke into flow and was away. This is where it all went wrong. The jury is out over what happened next but the basics are that the boat was taken out from under him and he was over and swimming. He was soon scooped up and safe on dry land smiling but vowing never to try them again.
And that was it. We pottered down the final part of the river to be met by Sara, Liz, Arron and Ellie-May. Shortly after we after that Dave and Hayley Clarke arrived to collect Dales gear and give us an update on his condition. You’ll be pleased to know he is now home and on the mend.
Kit was packed away and the journey home was thankfully made without incident. Over The Mountain of course.
I for one hope that Rob will reconsider the falls because as someone once said:
‘Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts’.
Thanks for reading.