Ever wanted to kayak in a river? Whitewater kayaks are shorter than their sea or flatwater cousins and can pull off all kinds of dynamic moves. Rivers are full of whitewater rapids and eddies which you can use to bounce around, surf, turn, and play as you head down. Learn to whitewater kayak at one of the prettiest class II rivers in the northeast! Anyone who has been on another MITOC beginner paddling trip is welcome to enter the lottery for this one! Seeing the same river more than once is great practice!

River info. We'll be paddling the Fife river, a beautiful 5 mile section of class II water in the Berkshires.

Logistics. This is a full day trip. We'll leave between 7-8 AM and drive 2 hours to the river, run a car shuttle, and put on. We'll be on the river for 4-5 hours, and start driving back to Boston around 5 pm to be back around 7 or 8pm. Bring water, a light lunch, and snacks to last the whole day. Wear clothes and shoes you are comfortable getting wet.

Pre-trip meeting. 7-8 PM Friday, August 21 at the MITOC boathouse (N52 on the corner of Windsor and Front St). Bring any gear you are uncertain about. This meeting is required to make sure you have gear that fits.

Costs. $15 for kayak rental, gas (expect around $20-$30 / person). MITOC offers generous fee waivers for anyone worried about these costs. We will ask you to pay the rental fee at the pre-trip meeting.

Boat sizes. Boat sizes are approximately by weight. If you are near the border, you can safely size down (for a more playful ride) or up (for a more stable one). Here's a rough guide:

• S: 90 - 140 lbs
• M: 140 - 185 lbs
• L: 185 - 240 lbs

Cars & Transport. We need one more car that can transport at least one boat! Ideally, that car could transport 3-4 boats and some people. We will potentially take some people off the waitlist if we have more cars that can drive!

Dropping the trip Please try not to drop from the trip if you win the trip lottery! These trips are usually oversubscribed, and it's really unfair to people on the waitlist. If you get on the trip and have questions, please shoot us an email and ask!