Today at 7:45 we headed to the town of Bourg St. Andeol to go kayaking / canoeing. After about half an hour, we arrived at the location and began loading up for the bus ride. There were 5 of us, meaning one of us had to use a kayak and go alone. Naturally, that would be me. After a 30 minute bus ride around an amazing gorge, we arrived at the Ardeche river. The total trek was 27 kms and was supposed to last all day. We each packed our lunches, and at the put in we were given barrels to put in our canoes and keep everything clean. The river was very wide in most places, and rapids were rare, meaning that most of the trip was self-propelled. The canyon / gorge that the river runs through is gorgeous. It is much deeper than many gorges I have seen, and the overall beauty of this place could compete with Yellowstone. The rock faces were huge, causing and endless echo and a great sight. As awesome as it is, it is almost taken as commonplace here, used only for some camping and canoeing. I guess the alps being less than 3 hours east probably get some of that credit.
The weather was perfect today, and my kayak, although not a legit "kayak", was very maneuverable. The water was very refreshing, and at one point I just rolled over for the heck of it. We took three breaks during our long trip, two to eat. When we finally arrived, about 5pm, we were all exhausted, and three were really sunburnt (not me though). We sat down for an ice cream before heading back, making for a good end to a long day.
The rest of the description I will leave to the pictures. Hopefully these will give justice to the great trip. Also, I will be leaving Saturday to go on church retreat with a local church here in town. I'm hoping to speak plenty of French and meet lots of new people this weekend, I will post when I get back!
Au revoir
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