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GUIDE TO GAMESHOPE BURN NAME OF RIVER: Gameshope Burn. WHERE IS IT?: Scottish Borders, Flowing into the Talla reservoir next to the upper Talla. Don’t get this one mixed up with the insane upper Talla!! The Talla is the one falling down a hillside and Gamehope is the flat uninteresting looking one (you can’t see the main section from where you have to leave your car). PUT-INS/ TAKE-OUTS: Walk up the farm track next to the burn until you want to get on, there is an obvious flattening at the top of the rapid section if you walk up too the top. You might be able to get a 4by4 up the track but not a car!! Park very carefully at the roadside as there is not a lot of room here. APPROX LENGTH: 1.5 km TIME NEEDED: Probably a few hours as you will want to have a bit of safety cover as well as photos /filming. ACCESS SITUATION: This valley only inhabited by sheep and the farmer is probably more likely to call you an idiot than moan at you! That is as long as you don’t block his track or the road! WATER LEVEL INDICATORS: This run needs recent rain but not too much. It needs less water than the Megget to be paddleable. GRADING: Grade 5. MAJOR HAZARDS/ FALLS: GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Gamehope burn is at the bottom of a very steep sided valley and as a result it has a large number of boulders in it which have rolled down the valley walls in years past. This ain’t a nice slabby burn like anything out of Glen Etive!! There are a number of falls and slides with the bottom 3 falls looking very nice!! There is one constricted double fall near the top which would merit a portage but the others look like they would all go, although I’ve only seen the burn in very high and very low conditions. OTHER NOTES: I’ve not actually paddled this burn but live fairly close to it so have been for a look a few times. I’ve spoken to people who have run it in the past and they seemed to think it was worth a go. Plus this has the added respect value of being the only G5 the Borders has to offer! CONTRIBUTED BY: Douglas Rae - Selkirk Canoe Club. http://www.levy-scot.co.uk |
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