What is the Tyne Tour?

[Elsa]

Just wondering what type of paddling it is and whats grade?

Cheers

[TheKrikkitWars]

Largely flat, 2 significant rapids which are sort of worth the effort... levels dependent it's often more fun in a trad boat but with high levels, the one 3/4 on the river (the name of which escapes me) is a must run as bank access in prohibited there so when the river is high enough for this grade to be realistic open boating it is not at all easy.

There are a great many good rivers in the Tyne Catchment (see the NE England Guide) that run when it rains, so the worse the campsite gets the better the time you'll have.

Also the party is fairly good, though in some circles it's been called legendary!

[Jim]

You are bound to receive mixed messages about the Tyne Tour because it attracts such a wide variety of paddlers, all looking for something different.

The weekend is centred around Hexham which is the takeout for the normal North Tyne run, which as Josh has tried to say is mainly grade 2 with a couple of harder bits, the longest and hardest being Warden gorge where access issues prevent bank inspection, so unless your group is up to running a long grade 3 (reaching grade 4 at higher levels) on sight (there are plenty of eddies, you can eddy hop down) it might not be advisable. At the other end of the scale there are hundreds of paddlers there each year who consider the rapid pretty easy, and the only bit worth going for. As long as you fall somewhere in between (as I believe several thousand paddlers do each year) you will have a good time on that section.

The important thing to note is that the tour is really a celebration of the start of the open access on the Tyne system and that levels dependant there are many more sections (mainly easier touring sections) available. Canoes, tourers, families etc. often start from Wark or Bellingham on the North Tyne (dam release from kielder) egressing before the 'normal' section, or if there has been sufficient rainfall there are 3 or 4 good touring sections on the South Tyne (one of which can also be finished at Hexham). For the more advanced paddlers a relatively large amount of rain is required to bring the harder rivers in the area into condition, and in many cases the access and egress points could not cope with the high volume of traffic for the tour so these are much less publicised. It used to be the case that only locals really ran these if conditions were right on the tour weekend, but the details are much easier to find these days and on good years more and more non-locals are managing to explore other rivers of the Tyne system and beyond - I would like to stress however that it is important to make sure there really is enough water and that paddlers don't cause parking problems in some of these more remote rural locations since that would reflect badly on an event which is generally a huge success.

In fact, if you are going to research the sections in advance please note that in order to cope with the numbers, the tours use some different access points than are generally used the rest of the season, the obvious one being the put on for the 'normal' North Tyne run, which starts 2km further upstream than usual at Barrasford (at a rapid).

Another feature of the Tyne Tour has usually been the Tyne Descent race (it has been poorly entered in some years but was growing again) which offers a variety of classes from serious down river racers to topo-duos and open canoes. In the past it was a long race from Wark to Hexham (thus including the hardest bits), but more recently has been cut down to just the 'normal' section from Barrasford to Hexham (still including all the rapids but less flat water to start with) which seems to have been a popular revision. I entered in solo canoe a few years ago and ran the section, which normally takes about 2 hours in kayak including playing, in around 1.5 hours and had a lot of fun.

So you see, there is a wide variety of paddling available, although less of it at the harder end of the scale, but there is something for everyone.

Most importantly it is a major social gathering, I know paddlers who go every year and don't always get their boats wet....

Jim

[Elsa]

Thanks Jim!!

[Adrian Cooper]

the one 3/4 on the river (the name of which escapes me) is a must run as bank access in prohibited there so when the river is high enough for this grade to be realistic open boating it is not at all easy.

I think you mean that open canoeing becomes more interesting. ;-)

[Paul Stewart]

Tyne Tour website

[Paul Stewart]

Also the party is fairly good, though in some circles it's been called legendary!

The Norfolk Hillbilly Crew conga is legendary stuff.....

[Subtle0ne]

Ha Ha

[TheKrikkitWars]

the one 3/4 on the river (the name of which escapes me) is a must run as bank access in prohibited there so when the river is high enough for this grade to be realistic open boating it is not at all easy.

I think you mean that open canoeing becomes more interesting. ;-)

I think its a question of how big your bags are!

[Wilf]

This explains it for me.

Too many people in one place. But if you like crowds, it might be your thing.

[Adrian Cooper]

To be honest, for canoeists it's a great weekend. You can start from Wark with some nice grade 2 down to Barrasford for a wake-up. Warden Gorge is a nice set piece. If you start early and do the longer trips, you tend to come across fewer paddlers.

For people looking for grade 3 they may find it disappointing with a bottleneck at Warden and find themselves being carved off the wave by larger boats.

[Billy The Fisherman]

This explains it for me.

Too many people in one place. But if you like crowds, it might be your thing.

That’s a bit harsh, I paddle and fish there and see very little if any conflict; a little courtesy and tolerance goes a long way.


TheKrikkitWars sums up the partying well and Jim the paddling.
The TT does get busy at peak times on the hotspots. One advantage of the area is that even if the weather is dry, Kielder dam releases a good volume so the North Tyne is paddleable. Given some rain and your options really open up ranging from flat water up to sustained grade four river sections. Camping is available right next to the river and is “lively” especially at closing time after the ceileidhs.

Good crack, good company and some great paddling, what more could you want?

[bigben]

Good crack, good company and some great paddling, what more could you want?

summed it up I think!

[AndyK]

Its always a great weekend, especially the ceilidh on saturday night. This is the first time for years that I cant go and I am gutted (I do get a go in a sea king instead though so its not too bad).

Definatly go especially if there is a group of you. Just camp at the far end of the green away from the universities if you want any chance of sleeping.

[Andy J]

Rememberable boating...



The monster ceilidh...


And of course, Donnies on the Friday night!