Paddler: Jim Coffey Photo: Five2Nine Productions
From Johno Foster
After hearing some fantastic stories of Mexico from friends of mine who went down last year to paddle with Esprit International, I was eager to find some time this winter for a trip. I was also keen on running some more difficult rivers than the standard itinerary so when Jim Coffey mentioned that he was trying to put together a trip to film some additional footage for the Canoe Movie 2 I booked my trip immediately.
Esprit has a great set up in Jalcomulco, a comprehensive fleet of boats including Jackson Kayaks and Esquif L'Edges, and are capable of dealing with all of the unforseen adventures that come up. While the security situation might not be at it's best, we haven't encountered any issues whatsoever - everyone has been super friendly and polite.
After two days warming up on the local Jalcomulco runs and waiting for Mike McKay of Five2Nine to arrive we made our way down to the Rio de Oro. It is a spectacular little river: it flows off of the remains of an extinct volcano, has the most sapphire coloured water that I've seen yet, you paddle right out into the Gulf of Mexico, oh and there's also a clean 40 footer followed by a 30 footer. After the Rio de Oro we headed north , picked up Eli Helbert in Veracruz, and made our way to Talapicoyan to do a open boat first descent of the Big Banana section of the Alseseca River. It was equally beautiful with many tight little canyons, overhanging walls, and some steep challenging rapids. Jim was bold enough for a first canoe descent of 40 foot Silencia falls and Eli Helbert had a clean and dry run of Meat Locker. I've now set a new bar for myself and am already thinking about returning next year. I'm still in Jalcomulco right now and participating in one of Esprit's commercial trips for the week. Lots more paddling to go before returning home. Buenas noches!
Gear List:
From Mike Mckay
Mexico is one of my favourite places to paddle. When the last minute call came in from Jim Coffey of Esprit Rafting to shoot the Mexico segment of The Canoe Movie 2 by the guys at AmongstIt, it was hard to turn the opportunity down.
My last time in Mexico I actually had a broken hand when we went to shoot the Oro (from Meat Locker on the Big Banana) and therefore it was great to return to run that river. Super clean drops and crystal blue water are highlights of the Oro.
Filming the first canoe descent of the Big Banana was great to watch. What was even more impressive were the skills of the paddlers I was filming. They all brought their A-Game and killed it. Keep on the lookout for The Canoe Movie 2 to see all the action from OPS.
For now checkout this edit of the Oro and more:
Gear List:
THANKS OPS!!!
Esprit offers epic whitewater kayaking and canoeing trips in Mexico for ALL skill levels in the most professional, safe, and fun environments. Be sure to check out there website www.whitewater.ca and check out their Facebook Page
