I arrived to a flood in the Sjoa. The river was grey and very, very high. However, as in Valsesia, my arrival coincided with the annual Sjoa River Festival. Festivals are a fantastic way of meeting new friends and new paddle buddies. The Sjoa Festival offers guided descents of the local sections for paddlers who are either new to the area or looking to push themselves safe in the knowledge that someone is looking out for them. I joined a trip on the Utta led by the lovely Paula and Beth. This section is about grade 2 I think, but as it looked more like an inland sea to my “new to big volume” eyes, I was more than happy to start off easy. After a successful and fun trip I was feeling much better about the whole thing!
High water play run
The festival is based in Heidal, conveniently close to Strie Strommer, the local kayaking shop, with some people choosing to stay at the Sjoa Kayak Camp lower down the river. The festival is a great week, with lots of kayaking including a team race on the Playrun, the Ula Extreme Race and the Sweet Rumble. There is also coaching clinics and a fairly infamous party. More than anything else, the festival was a great opportunity to catch up with friends and make plenty of new ones. Many of whom I would continue to paddle with throughout the summer.
Unfortunately I don’t have many photos of the week, I was too busy having fun I guess!
In search of adventure 