2023 – whitewater kayaking in Norway with 2 babies

In 2023 I spent 44 days kayaking, which I am happy with considering I gave birth to our second child, and did not travel anywhere for kayaking. My boyfriend kayaked as much as me so that together we got 88 days which is not bad for a small-kids family! The secret is certainly to live in a small place with a big river, river is calling and logistic is smooth. 30 min drive up to Bua canyon and then 20 km padle down on class 4/3 all the way home that takes 2 hours when the flow is high.

After the snow left the landscape, I started the season in May. First day on the water was on the river by the beach at home, 9 days after giving birth to my second child. Birth went good, much better than the 1st one that had already gone really well. I think it is mainly because I manage to keep breathing all the way to birth without stopping breathing when contractions are really strong at the end. So came the spring flood and I could be on all the local rivers that were running strong after the quiet winter when water flows silently below the ice. When you listen to the river in the winter it is often completely quiet, the snow makes everything so silent, unless the ice on the surface is moving after big temperature changes, that is the sound of the river in the cold months. I was expecting I would not be able to paddle anything class 4 really before 3 months after birth, that would be the end of the summer, but eventually I got the full season and was real happy with this happening beyond all expectations. After my first baby I had setup a precise plan to be back on the water and compete, and that was right for me to do then, to have some structure and that thing would happen because I had arrange for it. But now for the second child we were already working as a family with child and I was relaxed to give my body time and that I would be back on the water when I decide I am ready for it without needing to plan it. A big highlight in the end of May was the local whitewater festival Trondelagsrunden that came in town in Støren after a long pause in and following the COVID years. It was organised by the kayak clubs of Trondheim (TKK and NTNUI) and I was asked if I wanted to contribute, which I gratefully accepted. That was possible because my boyfriend accepted to take care of kids when I will be busy. It is always about making a decision for yourself and finding the support you need in people that can and want to help you! I am always moved and thankful to the generosity of each and everyone that made possible all those days out on the water.

So we had no competition in the festival but a friendly gathering of 20+ people begynners and experts that delightfully floated down the local runs full of life. My contribution was to set up a kayaking introduction session in the swimming pool for kids, which was a huge success with 7 participants, for a commune of 2000 inhabitants that is fabulous. This fired me up to organise more begynner activities through the all season, in total I organised 7 days of activities and 25 complete begynners tried our amazing sport of river kayaking. Highlight of May was a run on the local homerun favorite Bua canyon, the river was ice free weeks earlier than usual. I had my Nirvana but still got 2 fun backflip, as the flow was high enough and I was not completley back in shape. Another big thing is that my boyfriend started his first full class 4 kayaker season, as he started the season right into a high flow run on Bua canyon. It was real fun to see he had now became experienced enough and kept the confidence and motivation he had from the start, when he started river kayaking for real in 2018. I also think it is a result of us working well as a family, and that we quite fairly shared the days kayking on the water between him and me and that we got some baby sittings help of friends and grand parents to even be sometimes on the water together.

June started strong with 7 days on the water in the 2 first weeks, before travelling for a big family birthday in France. Highlight of June was Gaulfossen with a perfect flow of 100+ m3/s, high enough to be terrifyingly exciting but low enough to keep all the steepness in the waves and not be too bad consequences to recover if mistakes : no prisons eddies yet on that flow, but still serious swim through a long pushy canyon if you do not roll. Went down this ginormous ROLLER COASTER in my antix 1.0 with my favorite high water friend Sergey Ko, after 10 years leaving both in Trondheim we kayak less days than before but always meet up when big water shows up in Gaulfossen and everyone else is a little scared, that is a good tradition! Though this year our high water run was 100 and not 400 m3/s, we too became more humble.

July 7 days on the water before going on a norwegian holiday with the full family camping by some pretty rivers. In July river starts to get too dry home, and it is a good moment to travel Norway, we went to Sjoa, my boyfriend could do Finna that was a big thing. Then we went to FRYA, it was my turn and I had convinced everyone to go, but eventually I had a bad feeling the water could be too high seeing the trees onto the bridge downstream, and the trip being remote it would take too long for the baby if we had to spend lots of time so I send the crew without me. That was indeed ridiculously high unfortunately, even though OK according to gage, I think it is because the river course was on a rise and drop from an unusual big flood that the gage could not catch correctly. So they hiked down a long way to putin from a farm high in the sun. Padled for 20 minutes, got scared and barely manage to stop before the key rapid, the one where you should hope for the best and go left hard in a blind drop into a magnificent pool. So they hiked out, on the other bank. As high up, to another farm in the sun. We politely told the family leaving here sorry we had to come out from the river here. They answered of course be welcome, paused, looked on the valley, very deep, from there you could see almost symetrically on the other side the farm they hiked from to the river. And said «Oh yeah you came from here» as if it was the most natural thing in the world. The situation was surrealistic. The place is very beautiful. Sun, lovely valley view and Frya ! We had an excellent dynamic as a family and friend gang. The one not kayaking for kids would do shuttle and relax, walk around in the nature while the other one was on the river making logistic smooth for the entire group. Sjoa itself was way higher than usual. And it was raining a lot, sometimes sunny. We camped in the Sjoa kayak camp. Our daughter loved it. She would run out in the rain, play with the water, wash her doll, jump in the paddle of water, walk on the wooden bridge and path along the water, run very fast in her pink boots. She was completely wet. And then was getting dry clothes. She loved it. We all love camping, we are so close to the nature, we dont need to make any effort to be outside we are already out there.
August 12 days on the water. I made my first pull up, 4 months after birth, so strong so fast! But I got a sharp pain in my arms and shoulders out of the blue, from holding the baby when breast feeding certainly as our new baby is a solid one about twice the weight of his older sister it feels like. Luckily pain disappear in 2 days, from there on I used always a nursing pillow, that solved it. So we made a trip to VOSS (IS BOSS) where I helped the live kayaking legend Marlene Devillez, such a precise navigating woman, on her women clinic camp as a coach while my boyfriend helped with driving and kids. Back home from this long adventurous family road trip, I made a beautiful trip to UPPER FORA. I went there many time, paddled every rapid but the one ugly waterfall where leaves a troll i suppose. I know the place is incredibly scenic, above tree line and so spectatular. And yet, every single time, I am completely chocked how incredibly beautiful it is. I had my last laps on THE BUA CANYON, 12 TRIPS in total. August is late summer when the stars are so bright. It is the month we got most rains on average, and this year even more, with a flood 2 meters higher than the yearly flood level, I didnot sleep really well that night when the flood wave passed but it didnt take the house.

September 7 days on the water. In september autumn arrives and it is night earlier, you need precision for evening trips. I padled twice the Gråura on Driva (Oppdal) on 40 and 32 cms, such a nice alpine style section with white stone and boulders. I ORGANISED A COMPLETE RIVER KAYAKING BEGYNNER COURSE certified by the norwegian federation of kayaking which is an ambitious zero to hero program in 20 hours. It happened on a weekend on the home river gaula after the end of the fishing season, and that was an intense experience. First organising : finding gears, instructor to help and can give norwegian certificate, 3 kids and 1 adult who wanted to join, and then organise and lead on the water. Everyone loved it the first day for the 10km trip from home to Støren in the afternoon, in the morning we stayed on the flat water, and scouted and float holding together down big waves but straigth rapid. On the 2nd day we did a 4 km long section class 3, and 2 got scared yet reacted really rational and courageous. It doesnt always work to float down holding each other, when it is class 3 you need to navigate your boat yourself… In the afternoon we did a freestyle initiation in the flat water. I felt verry sorry about their experience, and appreciated how well their parents comforted them and were not disappointed at us either. Everyone reacted well in this intense feelings that rivers can bring, and for the course next year we will not offer the top section. It is such a place that 50% run successfully and are fully delighted while the other half get scared, it is not worth exposing begynners to such a risk of having a bad experience, or eventually account for longer portaging and scouting to make it a proper mission without swimmers. The weather had been spectacular, more than 20 degrees while september average is 9 degrees. Out of the water I joined the training for young mums sponsored by the the commune, very motivating to train together and tough with a 8 kg baby. Then I made most of the still warm waters home to learn kickflip with help from the excellent book and video from Bartosz Czauderna Freestyle unlocked. Fun to learn something new!
October 3 days on the water. Last kickflips training home, and then a trip 3 hours south to beloved Sjoa to padle Åmot on a low flow has it had been running unusually so high the all season. That was a beautiful trip, we went luxuary renting a cabin for the night – as it was snowing and the favorite campsite was also gone after the summer flood it was an easy decision to make as we could afford it, also we like the people in Sjoa so it is nice that they get some income ! So much power in the water even on such a low flow around 40m3s. Åmot is a true classic for a reason : beautiful, technical, spectacular and big yet forgiving and gentle. Being alone on the water also give a mindset of peace and focus, intimidating and joyful at the same time. We tried to find company but it was too cold for locals and waiting for a club trip was not an options with kids as clubs need much more time and started to padle when we were both done.
So came the snow early in November this year, it was not so cold and it was soft and gave more light to the landscape. I had an idea it would be cool pictures and fun experience to go on the river before the ice closed it. But didnt make it. It is liked kayaking on the moonlight, it seems a good idea when you are comfy home, or when you are outside in the sun, but when the moment arrive I just never want to do it really.
Then it was very cold in december, 9 degrees below average said the meteorlogical statistics in Trondelag with 2 weeks on minus 20 degrees and the river got its perfect ice layer that got hidden below the snow and covered by animal tracks. Mainly we stayed home enjoying the temperature above 17 degrees inside, a big change from the previous winter thanks to isolating the house.
To conclude I have to say one big highlight of the year was to padle in shorts always with very few exceptions. And very often jump in the water at take out ! That is for sure one of my true pleasure with kayaking, feel light and alive on the fresh waters of the rivers. Of course even in shorts I have my woolen socks and woolen top under drytop, you still need to respect water temperature!