CANN RIVER

Author - Thomas Elms

Cann River: Gauge Track to Broome Track

Eastern Victoria. Cann River.

Class: III-IV+

Season: Winter, otherwise a rain event of 50mm or greater

Time: 4-8 hours dependant

Level: 1.4 to 2.5 m (1.8m is a good level)

Gauge: Weeragua

Shuttle: 1/2 hour on good gravel roads

 

Character:

The Cann River has it all, spectacular scenery, amazing wildlife, waterfalls, gorges, and when the water is high, phenomenal kayaking. The grade of this river varies substantially between water levels, as does the length of the paddle. The first rapid is scout-able from the put-in and features a relatively straightforward centre chute. At low water, be wary of a serious sieve on the river left. The next 3km of paddling includes the most consistent whitewater of the trip. At lower water levels this section is a bit scrapey with lots of shallow chutes and rocky drops. Prepare to move slowly and leave lots of your boat behind. However, at 2.0m this stretch becomes a ridiculously fun continuous class IV, with a few class IV+ features thrown in for extra excitement. The end of this section is characterized by the “Notch” rapid, the largest feature on the river so far and the gateway to Cann River falls. The notch is formed by two large slabs of granite, which slope down towards one another forming a V-shape. At higher water levels the chute washes out to form a steep slide with a moderate size hole at the bottom.

 

Directly after the Notch Rapid, the river opens up, leading you into the beginning of Cann River Falls. The falls span the entire width of the river, nearly 100m at its widest. This section must be scouted, a task that is significantly easier at lower water levels but can become a serious challenge at levels exceeding 2.0m. The falls feature several channels, and drop over 15m in total, with the largest single fall being ~7m. A mandatory walk for most paddlers, at 1.4m few lines exist, the safest of which being far river right, however, all routes fall into VERY shallow pools that may not be visible at higher water levels and would pose the risk of serious injury to anyone who might attempt it. The far river left also displays one of the worst sieves I have ever seen, easily viewable at this water level. At 2.0m, the falls become difficult and dangerous to scout, with large volumes of water making stopping and getting out in the middle very risky. To walk this rapid at levels over 2.0m, the left-hand bank is the easiest and safest to get to, taking maybe 20 minutes to walk over the hill while providing an excellent view of the entire falls.

 

Directly below the falls is a short grade IV boulder garden and then the first long flat section. The river flows without any features, except for the occasional gravel race or wave train for about 5km. This section is extremely shallow, at levels below 1.4m the river becomes a channel barely wide enough to fit a boat and only about 20cm deep. This causes a continuous dragging of the bottom of the boat along the sand making the paddling just as much of a psychological battle as a physical one. This section can take nearly 2 hours to complete and being forced to follow the deepest channel means paddling far further than 5km. At 2.0m this section however is continuously moving and only takes 20 minutes.

 

Preceding the gorge is another chute-type rapid on a right-hand corner, this rapid is grade III at both low and high-water levels. This rapid can be identified by small granite cliffs on the river left, and the gorge below thanks to the huge granite cliffs that appear on the river right-hand side. Scouting the gorge can be done relatively easily by getting onto the large central island in the middle of the river. At low water levels, the gorge contains a steep, rocky boulder garden before being met with a large boulder over 5m in diameter that blocks almost the entire channel left of the island. Be wary, this boulder and the rocks around it have large volumes of water moving underneath them and would be a dangerous place to get caught. At high water, this becomes less of a problem as the river spills slightly wider, allowing for paddlers to easily move around the sieves. Both sides of the island are paddle-able, but the river right side is very shallow at 1.4m but at 2.0m both channels provide fantastic grade IV-IV+ moves lasting around 400m. Be aware of sieves in this area as well.

 

The gorge marks the last major series of rapid on the river, leading into the most dangerous part of the journey. 500m below the end of the gorge the river becomes extremely shallow and splits into two narrow channels about 1km in length. Both channels are extremely choked with logs and sticks, with very dense undergrowth on all sides. At low water, it’s slow progress, having to pull yourself over boulder gardens, around branches, and through thick growth. At high water, it’s a completely different story. The fast-flowing water means limited stopping and forces you down channels completely saturated with sticks and branches, forcing you to avoid too many strainers to count. I cannot stress enough the dangerousness of this section at high water especially, there is no room for error and the likelihood of a pinned boat is extremely high. The channels converge, and the rest of the paddle is once again a shallow sand scrape. Do not underestimate these sandy sections, they are the reason the minimum water level is 1.4m, anything less and getting a boat through would be a real battle. Because of the shallowness, with a large group the 7km paddle from the bottom of the gorge to the finish took over 2 hours, but at 2.0m only 30 mins. The finish is close when you can see a house with green sheds on the river left, a few bends around the corner there is a wooden sign and steep banks, making the end of the Broome Track and Get-out point. An alternative finish is another 10km downstream at Furnell Jetty.

 

Putting In: Gauge Track.

The Gauge Track branches off Tamboon Road on the right about 5km south of Cann River Township. The Gauge Track is a well-maintained gravel road that takes you almost the whole way down to the river, however the track deteriorates in the last 200m making this last stretch only accessible to 4WDs.

 

Taking out: Broome Track.

Branching off on the right about 15km down Tamboon Road, Broome Track is a well-maintained unsealed road. Cars can be parked in full view of the river.