Date:    25/06/2022
River:    Avon River, Christchurch, NZ
River Conditions:   2.045 cumecs at Gloucester Street bridge. Water clear. Grade 1.
Weather Conditions:   Sunny and warm, light NE winds.
Number on Trip:    1 person.
Time on River:  1 hour.
Comments:  We had a long weekend to celebrate Matariki, the Maori new year and on the Saturday the weather was perfect, around 17 degrees, sunny & still, so what better way to round off the day than a paddle on the Avon.

I got changed and grabbed the Blitz Special and headed down to the river. A couple of swans swam over to see if I had any food, but moved off as my kayak slid into the water. I decided to head upstream, as I hadn’t paddled for a while and it is always easier to paddle with the current on the homeward stretch.

The river was mirror smooth and it was great to be back in my kayak after almost two months since my last paddle. Soon I was powering upstream and everything felt good & familiar. I said “Hi” to the Rev, a Muscovy-Mallard cross duck who calls our stretch of the river, home. As I paddled alongside Avonside Drive, the traffic noise reminded me why I preferred to paddle downstream. The peace of the Red Zone can really transport you away from the noise & worries of the city.

After passing under the Fitzgerald Avenue bridge, you gradually move away from the busy roads and the peace of the Red Zoned Avon Loop descends on the river. We used to enjoy walking through this area when we lived nearby and it still is a lovely location even if all the quaint old cottages have disappeared.

There were quite a few water fowl on the river and with the narrowed river around the Barbadoes Street cemetery, making for a swifter current, there was a tendency to drive startled birds before my kayak as I powered up the “rapid” sections. Once I got to the “Fire Station Rapid” near our old put in when we lived on Peterborough Street, I paddled up as far as I could go, before the water became to shallow & swift, then turned towards home.

After passing under the Barbadoes Street bridge, I stopped to check out the old brick barrel drain, where St Mary’s Stream flows into the Avon. Apparently its’ source is a spring in the grounds of St Mary’s vicarage off Manchester Street and it was bricked in and redirected under Salisbury Street early in Christchurch’s’ history. In 2005, a short section of the stream was opened up to form a pool & stream, and a reserve was created to highlight the cultural & historic significance of the site of Puari Pa, which was home to the chief, Tautahi after whom, Otautahi/Christchurch is named, as well as being an important food gathering location.

From here travel was swift with the flow. I did the obligatory slalom around the pillars of the Stanmore Road bridge as I paddled under it. The light was fading as I neared home but the reflections and light made for some nice photos.

It was nice to finally get a paddle in and I wasn’t to worn out when I got home, so I used the time before washing off the river water & sweat, to arrange some recently salvaged basalt blocks from a demolished house’s foundations, into a border for some of our garden beds. A geologist’s garden can never have too many rocks.