Between the French Pyrenees and Spain

Photos: Val Grollemund and Piere Mahé

When we go paddling, you never know what the water level and the weather will be like…
Our journey started at the third French competition (Free Kayak Tour) to St. Pé de Bigorre near Lourdes. A weekend between cool weather, rain and sun, but the wave was there and atmosphere was cool - everything you need for a great contest. For more info about the contest check out Mat’s article.
A big thanks to the organisation who stopped the race for 6 minutes so all competitors could watch the show on French national TV:

kayak-tessin from thiebaut raphael on Vimeo.

After the weekend we decided to go to Spain and look for some steep rivers with Eric Deguil and Val Grollemund. However, just before we went to the other side, we had a good opportunity to do the Carol River which rarely has a good water level!
 
Then, on the way to Spain, we did a short section on the Rio Ribagorçana, it was short but steep. At the first drop I broke my paddle and got a little hole in the nose of my boat! 
“A good paddler and a paddler alive” ;-)… So I stopped my run and took some footage of Eric in the final part where he also broke his paddle in a 15m high waterfall. Those were some expensive few metres on the river…



I followed the Spanish Pyrenees with my family, tested the local food “Tapas” and visited Huesca city and the quaint village of Aguero, located below the fascinating rock formation of the Mallos de Riglos in Aragonth where you can watch vultures soar above the peaks. Near this place, we did a big water, the Rio Callego, where the landscape was beautiful and I taught my son and daughter how to kayak before going back to France for the “Pyrenees Buddies Race”…
 
The climate change was quite radical, from +17°C in Spain to 0°C in France, near Laruns village… An awesome first French extreme competition, very well organised. It almost didn’t take place due to the snow (fifteen cm snow fell in May during three days, completely unheard of…) Finally, the “frozen frogs race” did take place with more than forty competitors coming from Belgium, Ireland, Spain and France. We had a nice sunny Sunday afternoon to complete the very cool weekend in style!




You can check out the video filmed and edited by myself on Kayak Session. It’s called “Pyrenees Buddies Race”


Pyrenee Buddies Race 2010 from Kayak TV (Kayak Session Mag) on Vimeo.

More pics clic on photo :

Espagne et pyrénées

Easter Corsica 2010

photos :Raph Thiebaut et Eric découvretoi for the OC1.


The Plan was simple, NO PLAN … ☺



Organized by Raph Thiebaut, KS and CKM with the same concept as last year, took place the 2010 easter Corsica Kayak on April 4th-10th.
With an awesome river and beautiful scenary, Corsica is really a good place for novice and distinguished paddlers and to bring friends and familly.






Evenings, at the Ernella base camp "Chez Milou" all kayakers sharing water levels of the day in order to preparing next river plan. Eat some local food, beer and wine in front of old Corsican video. "allez Bernard"
all people came over the world enjoyed the Island of beauty and Traditional song with a super Sokkhom DJ for the party.















I took the second week with my familly, visited Bonifacio and Propriano village in the South of isle, did some sand castle, make a painkiller and ran the Rizzanese river for the last time ...








here is the Easter Corsica kayak video.
Footages and editing by myself ;-)

2010 Easter Corsica Kayak Sessions from Kayak TV (Kayak Session Mag) on Vimeo.

Then we go back in France and we gone in drôme valley where I learned the OC1 on the grade II III with a beautiful landscape!


Web site event : http://www.opencanoefestival.com/


More photos here (clic on the pics)

Corse 2010

Stefun

French Tour 2009

French Tour 2009 from Kayak TV (Kayak Session Mag) on Vimeo.

http://www.kayaksession.com/newsletter/bestofwebKS5.html

Big thanks to Kayak Session ;-)

See you

New paddling magazines!!

The French paddling magazine « Canoe Kayak Magazine » CKM N° 214 has just arrived in our letter boxes, with a lot of advice on the sea kayak and an article written by myself about creeking in the Jura mountains.

JURA’CREEK PARK

Then, on the international level, Kayak Session Magazine published some awesome pics of me with a nice article on the upper vecchio, article written by CKM and KS during the Corsica event last year.

Moreover, included with this KS N° 33, you get a free DVD “Corsica Video Guide” to show what kind of rivers you can find int the deep gorges of Corsica.

I’m very happy to have participed in the shooting of this DVD, a great film edited by Marc Gacon from Switzerland.

The CKM and KS team awaits you for the second Corsican kayak festival which will take place from April the 4th until April the 10th.

More info here


Have fun

Stefun

Incredible end of the year !!

Heavy rains in the Franche-Comté valley since December 23th, awesome session on 24th on the Malate wave at 400 cbs, another one session on december 30th at 300 cbs and last one on December 31th at 550 cbs (the best water level). Followed by a long session on the La Scie wave with some friends, Inouk, Val, Kiki, Boulox and Marmak team to finish the year well !!

Many thanks to Jo for the pics

See ya

CAUTION !!! The Malate wave is running (it not changed !! cool !!) but there is still a ban on navigation because the footbridge is not yet finished… so, it’s possible to paddling on the wave the weekends and days off .

Thanks.

More photos here :

La Malate et La Scie 31 decembre 2009

and all the best !!

see you

Stefun

freestyle 2009 from pion stephane on Vimeo.