• For Archive News part1: June-October 2003 go here
• For Archive News part3: January-February 2004 go there
• For Archive News part4: March-April 2004 go there
• For Archive News part5: May 2004 go there
• For Archive News part5: May 2004 go there
• For Fresher News go there

For Global paddling news, go here

Saturday 20.12.03 Breaking ice in Inahos.

Who's afraid of the cold and icy river days? I know a few Team members, that tried hard to find an excuse, to avoid paddling this weekend. One of them, in the end admitted that, beside his various social obligation, he was too cold to come. He thought that, being honest about it, we would show mercy, but no, not TeaMeXTReMe! We show no mercy, nor we forget and be discrete. No SPYRO ZIAKA!! We are ruthless! We break the ice on the river surface and we get in. You can stay home LOSER! This photo is however dedicated to you.

TEAMadara, travelled this cold Saturday to central Greece and the familiar grounds of Inahos river. Once again we left Athens early, with only 15min delay, and guess why? Correct! Pavlos and Konidis were late again! These guys, are endlessly creative, when it comes to find a good excuse, why they are late. To cover their total disability to load their boats and manage to get all their gear without having to turn back home, they invent senarios that would leave George Loukas speachless.

After the top excuse that Konidis had used at Mourgani - having been locked into the bathroom, removing the door using only a leatherman tool, to finaly escape through the caged window - this time, Pavlos made the excuse call. He was waiting outside Konidis house, who would not answer his phone, but he wanted to check our time of RV, before waking up the primadonna. In the meanwhile, the rest of us were loading boats into the cold winter night.

After more delays at the highway cafe, as the duet had also missed breakfast, we managed to reach the river area at 10.30. That would be a good time to put in, for normal paddlers. I can't recall if there is any such person in our team! We had to find a way to spend some more time before putting in, just to stick to our habit to enjoy another sunset in the river. What can I say, perhaps we are just too romantic!

I admit it, the idea to scout the upper Inahos was mine. And we started to do so. Pavlos's - no 4x4 - car, seemed to have no trouble spinning around the icy roads and the frozen fields, trying to follow my fearless Terios. We had scouted the first kms, when we stopped to ask information from a local shepperd, who wanted to sell us a lamb instead. We made some -over the map- conferance, to decide whether we would continue or not.

But we were not just the three of us today, we had a guest with us. Dimitris Thomopoulos, an oldy but not so goldie, a veteran kayaker, a kayaking and rafting instructor, a main dude in well known outdoor activities company - I wont say the name, as I might have problem with many of my sponsors - the man with the locker on the kayak tail, the man with no spray skirt and no shoes, etc etc etc.
This poor man, had heared a rumor about us, getting late all the time and spending a lot of money in headlamp batteries - such empty accusations from our ennemies!?

We agreed to put in around one o'clock, to have the sun behind us, as we all had forgotten our sunglasses...For more Go here >>>

December 6th Upper Lousios or Ouzo?

TEAMadara took advantage of the last warm and sunny day" before the heavy winter weather, forecasted for this week.

With their new creek boats to test, Konidis and Pavlos couldn't possibly stay away from water another week, so here we are again, to the familiar parking place of Polygenis arc bridge, where Lousios river flows throug the V-shaped gorge of ancient Gortis.

What? You haven't run Upper Lousios before? A furious Konidis asked Mary, with a crazy shine in his eye...and your telling me now, at this hour? I couldnt stop loughing, as I was watching another TEAMadara classic put in episode. A few minutes earlier, I had announced, that I would definetely not paddle today, as the pain in my back was worse than I hoped.

Mary, remained speachless, as Konidis started discrabing the river, much more difficult, than my description, an hour ago. Turning to look at me, I couldn't stop loughing, as I knew that in medium-low flow, Upper Lousios was a fair III+ with a couple of IV- stretches, that wouldn't be much of a trouble for Mary. Dimitris was obviously overeacting, and Mary, became so nervous that she was ready to quit paddling today, joining George and me, in our supporting duties - ouzo at the village of Hellinikon, under the warm Arcadian sun.

You'd better harry, if we are going to paddle today, shouted Konidis again, and Mary, anxious to quickly put her dry top on, managed to tear up the latex neck for good. That was it, I should better stop loughing and help Mary fix her dry top, or the support team would soon outnumber our paddling party.

Around 12.00h, TEAMadara hits the first rapid, with me following along the small path to the left, carrying photographic duties, as Pavlos, Dimitris, Spyros and Mary, were slowly tackling the succesive boulder gardens in this most classic creeking run.

November 23rd In the dark ways of Erymanthos.

It's been a long day yesterday, as Team had a daily trip to run Erymanthos, one of the most technical and remote rivers in Greece.

The flow was pretty low, reducing the difficulty under the usual forth grade, but the river was still technically demanding and Looong.

Trying to stay in shape, we "decided" to keep the challenge strong, by pushing the time limit once again.
We "managed to put in, 4 hours before the expected total darkness, when the best time we have ever achieved in this river, was 4.5 hours!
And guess what...we did it again!

• For Archive News part1: June-October 2003 go here
• For Archive News part3: January-February 2004 go there
• For Archive News part4: March-April 2004 go there
• For Archive News part5: May 2004 go there
• For Fresher News go there

For Global paddling news, go here