GUIDE TO THE AFON TWRCH
(Talardd to Llanuwchllyn)
NAME OF RIVER: Afon Twrch.
WHERE IS IT?:South End of Bala Lake. Map.
PUT-INS/ TAKE-OUTS: We were turned away from the "official" and legal (I might add) put-in at Talardd.
Take out at Picnic site at Llanuwchllyn, a great spot to check the level.
APPROX LENGTH: 4 km.
TIME NEEDED: An hour.
ACCESS HASSLES: Not great. The legal put on will probably result in being turned away. I can't recommend groups bigger than 4. It is worth perservering though, for a lovely run can be had.
WATER LEVEL INDICATORS: Walk up river left to the final double drop, if it looks like it goes then the whole run probably does. If you can flair the whole double drop on river right then the rest of the river is going to be intense.
GRADING: Continuous 3 with 2 significant drops at 4+ and a weir, Harder at higher water.
MAJOR HAZARDS/ FALLS:
Watch out for trees, sheep, landowners. The two major rapids are worth inspecting. Boof the shallow weir in the middle or portage right.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION: It's a ditch, a mighty fine ditch. The upper reaches are twisty and a little frustrating but eventually the volume builds so that just before the good bit there is plenty of water.
OTHER NOTES:http://www.2sa.org.uk/KayakPhotos/ - Pictures show the two significant rapids (at least 4+ in my opinion, if a benchmark 4 is Town Falls, although this depends if you include consequences of messing up as part of the grade....).
CONTRIBUTED BY: Roo Evans, paddled Jan 2006.
