Steep Creek Kayak 1 Day Clinic

Improve Your River Running in our Steep Creekin’ Kayak Clinic – April 14, 2024 – New Haven River, VT!

Come join us on April 14th on the New Haven River in Bristol, Vermont for the 2024 Steep Creeking Clinic! Experienced instructors will focus on applying basic and advanced kayaking skills to the creeking environment.  Instructors will also go over the appropriate risk mitigation strategies and considerations for kayaking in varied environments. 

The New Haven River in Bristol VT is the place to go in Vermont for A+ whitewater. Almost the entirety of the river is roadside and in the warmer months there are multiple popular swimming holes as well as a public park which provides us boaters with many access points and parking areas. The access, high quality rapids, and large runnable flow range makes it an absolute staple for creeking in New England.

The run can be broken up into three distinct sections:

• The Upper is about a 1 1⁄2 mile long section with primarily class II and III rapids with a few class IV drops depending on water level. This section is most often run when the river is near flood stage or as a warm up for the day.
• The Lower is the longest section coming in at around 6 ½ to 7 miles. It is a fast paced class III+ run. The rapids are comparable to the Dryway on the Deerfield River however almost twice as long for twice the fun. This section is the best one to do when the river is pumping. It is a great spot to practice moves and reading water and even has a few larger class IV rapids at the end of the run.
• In between these two sections is the crown jewel of the river… the ledges. All said and done the section is only about 1 mile long but contains around numerous class IV rapids with a total descent of nearly 200 feet. The section gets its name from the granite ledges that make up the run. Each rapid is packed full of fun, challenging features, multiple lines, big drops and fast slides broken up by the best boogie water in the state.