South Fork Merced River

After reading the pages from the Californian Bible about the South Merced being one of the most quality multi-day trips in the world, I have forever been keeping my eye on the flows in that area. After a day off and recruiting another West Coaster, the man the legend Jared Mitchell, the flows were down the a level we we're confident we would handle so it was time to rally to Yosemite. This is a long run, almost 40km and involves a LOT of paddling. With a lot of West Coast of New Zealand character boulder gardens and then a random massive slide chucked in, this was an amazing trip that I would do again in a heartbeat. Here is some, of the numerous, fantastic rapids.


- Keith coming through a big rapid early on day one (P. Jordy)


- Barny running a rapid with a NASTY sieve (P. Jordy)


- Barny and Keith is some classic boulder gradens (P. Jordy)


- Me avoiding a big hole (P. Barny)


- Keith and I routing a long rapid (P. Barny)


- Keith punching a big hole (P. Barny)


- Me with plenty left to do in this long rapid (P. Barny)


- Barny looking to avoid a big hole (P. Jordy)


- Barny firing a HUGE slide (P. Jordy)


- Keith coming into the entrance of the big slide (P. Jordy)


- Jared checking out a solid drop (P. Jordy)


- Me on the lead in to the big slide (P. Barny)


- Barny getting artistic with the artistic rep (P. Barny)


- Barny running a solid ledge drop (P. Jordy)


- Keith punching a big hole (P. Jordy)


- Me coming down a sweet ledge (P. Barny)


- Dodgey undercut anyone? (P. Barny)


- Me on the last big slide (P. Barny)


- Barny running our lunchtime drop (P. Keith)

With a setting like Yosemite, countless white-water, being remote and the people you elect to go in there with... this is surely going to be an epic adventure one way or another. Put this on your bucket list.