From Kirsten Bradley, Fort Smith Paddling Club

The main festival weekend is July 29 – August 1, but we have river trips, clinics and a big air surf competition in the weeks leading up to Paddlefest, and many paddlers arrive early. The water’s warm, the days are long - come on up and stay awhile! 

Check out this link for more details, more photos, or to register online. We’re asking folks to register before July 15 so we’ll know how many steaks to order. http://fskayak.webs.com/slaveriverpaddlefest.htm

The Slave River, near Fort Smith NWT, is an awesome river for all ages and skill levels - from expert paddlers to brand-new beginners, and our festival has clinics and events for everyone. Paddlefest includes instructional clinics, river trips, and fun, friendly competitions. There are events for kayaks, canoes, voyageur canoes, kids and adults. Rafts are always welcome! The Slave offers every type of paddling imaginable: from flatwater canoeing around beautiful islands to wild Class V and VI whitewater. 

New this year, the "Edge King Throwdown" Big Air Competition is going to be July 26-27 - about 3-4 days before Paddlefest starts so we can go out onto the river and not have to worry about spectators. This will be an event by boaters for boaters. The feature we use for the competition will be based on the water levels that week/ day. This could be any number of places. The Edge, Sweet Spot, Rollercoaster, Rockem Sockem (not likely unless the water is uber low), Monster Schizer, Outrageous, No 1,2,3 wave, or something crazy like Pelican (if we ever figure out how to catch it consistently). There's $1000 in prize money split by the top three, and a crown with the words "Edge King," going to the top spot. For complete rules, check out this link: http://fskayak.webs.com/bigaircompetition.htm

Friday, July 29 is our voyageur canoe race and flatwater flotilla. This is a 45 km flatwater paddle (or you can start halfway this year) along the old fur-trade route that ends up in the Aboriginal community of Fort Fitzgerald. The paddlers will be welcomed in Fitz with a big community feast, where we will learn some traditional Dene Games, and watch a Handgames tournament in progress. Our club will likely have a war canoe in the race again, and there will be canoes available to borrow too if you want to paddle flatwater for the day (or bring your sea kayak). 

Saturday is our main spectator day, with fun, friendly whitewater competitions at Mountain Portage rapids, including a World Kayak Throwdown. We have events for whitewater canoes too, such as the popular “canoe surfing and rescue” team event. Sunday includes downriver races for beginner, intermediate and advanced paddlers, and more fun competitions. Sunday night is our awards supper, and Monday morning is a pancake breakfast.

Paddlefest includes lots of activities for spectators too, so bring the family – they can watch the whitewater events, join our community feast, learn Dene traditional games, try paddling, or go on a guided hike to learn more about the local area. 

Hope to see you on the Slave this summer!