The Skeena
Earlier this year, Tristan Oluper and a friend he likes to paddle with had a wild idea: what would it be like to spend five days bushwhacking and then whitewater kayaking in and around the Gamsby River south of Kitimat?
The trip they took, and then documented in this new YouTube video, ended up being crazier than Tristan could have possibly imagined.
“The river flows through the Kitlope Conservancy protected area and is home to an array of wildlife and some of the most remarkable canyons I have ever been in,” he recalls.
The trip wasn’t without difficulties. “In one canyon section after a short portage and upon re-entering the river my paddling partner broke his paddle and slightly altered his boat during a seal launch. (Launching into the river off the rocks),” Oluper says. “It was a tense moment during our trip but level heads and preparedness won the moment.”
Was it worth it in the end? Absolutely, he says, explaining that “[we] had our minds blown around each corner. A truly remarkable place.”
Viewers agree. “Amazing mission and love the canyon scenes. Incredible. Well done,” one writes.
