That was a fun section of the Skootamata that nobody in the group had done before.
By the numbers:
Gauge: 18 cms
UV index: 6 or higher
Temps: 16 degrees
Participants: 13 ... or somewhere around there,I only have 10 fingers
Number of swims: 5
Cars in the ditch: 1
Although W.O. offers a good Riverpwicki providing enough details to get to the put-in and take-out, I take river descriptions with a grain of salt. I wouldn't agree with W.O. stating the river is suitable for novices, since at Spring levels novice paddlers would have troubles on this Class III/IV river.
Simpson chute/canyon lived up to the description. The gradient was a bit steeper than I had expected and few in the group discovered that staying upright and in the boat is a better way of running the canyon ... or it turns into a rather long swim and a hike to the bottom to the awaiting pool to collect equipment.
It is a short section of river with more than 1 access point if one wants to run laps on the canyon section.
Several participants remarked that they would come again so this section of the Skootamata got added to the list of good rivers to run in the Spring.
