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GUIDE TO THE RIVER TUMMEL (Loch Tummel to Loch Faskally) NAME OF RIVER: Tummel. WATER LEVEL, ACCESS AND HAZARD UPDATES: Here. WHERE IS IT?: The Tummel is a dam release river which has two separate canoeable white water sections. The upper Tummel flows from Dunlastair Water (E of Kinloch Rannoch) into Loch Tummel and the Lower Tummel flows out from Loch Tummel to Loch Faskally near Pitlochry. The lower section is the better of the two. PUT-INS/ TAKE-OUTS: To get there go up the A9 and just past the first turn to Pitlochry take a right turn down a minor road (signposted Foss) - this road goes back under the A9 then runs along the south side of the Tummel. The get in is just below Clunie Power station and the get out is at the picnic site at Faskally power station (entrance through a large ring-shaped stone gateway) about 0.5 km after the river flows into the loch. APPROX LENGTH: 3 miles. TIME NEEDED: Anything from an hour to a day. ACCESS HASSLES: No problems reported. WATER LEVEL INDICATORS: It is often do-able in the summer when other things dry up. Dam release. I've only ever paddled it when its only been flowing on minimum compensation flow, at full flow the river, in particular the Linn of Tummel is much more serious. It often releases on Sundays. GRADING: Grade 3, Linn of Tummel is grade 4 or 5, depending on water level. MAJOR HAZARDS/ FALLS: Linn of Tummel, Z or S Falls Janet Moxley adds 1/12/00....'When I wrote the original bit I hadn't paddled the river for a while, and had forgotten a couple of things. Firstly there is a branch in the middle of a small rapid a bit upstream of Saw Mill which can catch the unwary or inexperienced. Second there is Saw Mill itself which may need inspection for intermediate paddlers as it is a fairly solid Grade 3 with a rock which can potentialy pin at some levels. And finally there is the S bends which I glossed over rather too much.' Mike Buckley-Jones (Feb '02)...'A little additional comment. On the final drop, take care not to go too close to the left as there is a hidden ledge just below the surface! Hurts most in low water but it's there!'. Dave McCraw (May 2003)...'Be aware that in very high flows (such as the current release) the Tummel becomes an entirely different river, big, bouncy, and intimidating. We didn't get as far as the Linn because one of our number (alright, it was me!) had a twenty minute pin ordeal on the Z-S falls. The rapid still isn't any more than grade IV, but the line was tricky and the walking away from a pin like that would be very unlikely because all the luck in the area has just been used up. Please inspect before you run at spate levels.' GENERAL DESCRIPTION: For the first few km the river is straightforward grade II passing through some pretty woodland. Coronation Bridge, a Victorian suspension bridge mark where things start to get a bit harder (the bridge is an excellent place to jump from but beware of belly floppying - you can end up with a big red slap mark on your bum which can be difficult to explain! Don't blame me if you hurt yourself). A short way after this, there are a couple of grade III-ish drops, which can
easily be portaged on the right. The final drop is the Linn
of Tummel. This is often marked by tourists in summer. Get out and inspect/
protect on the right. When I've done it it's been top end of grade IV, but allegedly
goes to V+ at high levels. The fall is a 2 stage drop. Lead in is on the left
down the tongue, picking a line to avoid getting hit broadside on by water coming
in from the right. If you mess up at this point there's not much time for a
roll before the second drop which seemed to go OK on most lines, but right way
up is probably best, although I have seen it done upside down! After this it's
flat to the get out which is equipped with barbecue site - a nice place to finish
and not far to carry the boat. Below this and approximately 200 metres above the Linn of Tummel there is a pourover with a pool and fast eddy return. If you poke the nose of your boat into the pourover, cartwheels (for the experienced), enders and pirouettes can be pulled off pretty safely. I wouldn't say that the Linn of Tummel is a grade five in high water but it is an idea to keep to the right of the top fall or you can expect a swim if you end up left unless you can pull a high brace. It's best at this point to decide whether you're swimming or rolling as any hesitation could lead to a sore head if your roll fails. If you swim at medium levels keep your feet up and expect to be under the bottom fall for a good few seconds. Janet Moxley adds (1/12/00).....In my original description I missed out Saw Mill falls, a longish Grade III below the branch wedged in an easy rapid, but above the bridge. It can be run straight down the middle, but at lower levels there are a couple of rocks at the bottom which can pin. Below the Bridge there is the S Bend (IV), which has a deceptive start through an easy looking small gap between two rocks on river right leading to a large pool above the main rapid. This small gap can pin if you let the water push you across it, which it tries to. The main bit of the S Bend should be run down the main shoot rather than the chicken shoot on the left (which will pin unless it's very high), but take care to avoid a small channel to the right of a flake which is not wide enough to get a boat through. S Bend probably more technical than the Linn, which seems to seems to be more forgiving despite being a larger drop.' OTHER NOTES: Plenty of other paddling further up this valley...look at the upper Tummel, Gaur and Garbh Ghaoir. CONTRIBUTED BY: Janet Moxley, also Donald McAllister, Dave McCraw and Mike Buckley-Jones. |
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