The Miramichi River in New Brunswick, Canada, is a noted destination for Atlantic Salmon fishermen, but that's where the resemblance with Hampshire's chalkstream rivers ends. In Canada anglers and paddlers readily co-exist and share their natural resources.
I particularly 'enjoyed' reading the following account of a guided paddling adventure on the Miramichi:
"My fondest memories of that trip include the day Asa organised it so that we could 'run the river', which in other parts of North America is called 'white water rafting'. We set off with three canoes and three guides loaded onto a truck and drove upstream quite a few miles. Unloading the canoes into the river where it ran near the road, we then climbed aboard and were given the most thrilling helter skelter ride I have ever experienced; how those guides managed to steer through those high boulders and that rushing water I don't know, but it was the thrill of a lifetime." [1]
Scroll down here for images of what the Miramichi looks like for paddlers.
The irony of this account is that it is the recollection of the third generation Head Keeper of the Houghton Club fishery on the River Test; his former employers are less forthcoming when it comes to providing opportunities for ordinary members of the wider public to experience the pleasure of paddling or fishing in their own country.
[1] "A Particular Lunn: One Hundred Glorious Years on The Test", Lunn, Mick with Ranger. Graham, Second Edition 1991, A & C Black (Publishers) Limited, p.153
I particularly 'enjoyed' reading the following account of a guided paddling adventure on the Miramichi:
"My fondest memories of that trip include the day Asa organised it so that we could 'run the river', which in other parts of North America is called 'white water rafting'. We set off with three canoes and three guides loaded onto a truck and drove upstream quite a few miles. Unloading the canoes into the river where it ran near the road, we then climbed aboard and were given the most thrilling helter skelter ride I have ever experienced; how those guides managed to steer through those high boulders and that rushing water I don't know, but it was the thrill of a lifetime." [1]
Scroll down here for images of what the Miramichi looks like for paddlers.
The irony of this account is that it is the recollection of the third generation Head Keeper of the Houghton Club fishery on the River Test; his former employers are less forthcoming when it comes to providing opportunities for ordinary members of the wider public to experience the pleasure of paddling or fishing in their own country.
[1] "A Particular Lunn: One Hundred Glorious Years on The Test", Lunn, Mick with Ranger. Graham, Second Edition 1991, A & C Black (Publishers) Limited, p.153
