The last weekend of March, people from all over BC, Alberta, and further afield gathered at the Gordon River near Port Renfrew for the Gordon River Fest. Hosted by Devin Ryan and Anna Bartnik it had close to 150 people in attendance.
The river was at a low level; however, the stoke was high. It was a moderately nice weekend with the days being sunny and the evenings a bit cool. There were approximately 50 racers on Saturday through the Class 4 section of the upper in the afternoon. Quite a few people hiked in to watch the race near the midsection, which is also a steep hike. It was truly amazing being back at the river, as I had missed last year’s race. During the day, a group did the flood run, and lower laps were completed by other groups. A few people ran the middle section after the race.
The evening culminated in a performance by Stank on the stage near the river. This was also when the raffle draw took place, and loads of people got some prizes from the awesome sponsors of the event. The party went well into the evening with music and a light show that was pretty fantastic. The sumo suits evening came up to clear up tight races.
Always love coming down to this beautiful river, and it was nice to get a few upper laps in with friends and a lower section on the Sunday.
Look forward to the event again in 2027. A great one to hit if you’re on the island for the spring paddling season.
Enjoy the pictures.
Paddlers and safety at Terminator Rapid.
A few people of the fest – party life, sunshine chilling, and the morning snow on Sunday.
Raffle draw in jars, people under the lights listening to Stank.
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