The idea for the HRG kayaking club was originated over a year ago by Swedish paddler Inka Trollsas, who after spending 8 seasons in Nepal had never met a single female river guide. In an industry so huge that ‘Rafting’ is given as an option for why you are entering the country in your customs card – it seemed crazy that not a single woman worked in this industry. Something had to change, and this is where the HRG club came in.
Kelly, Malaika, Hessie, Hayley, Sofa, me, Spanna and Emi representing Aotearoa
The Sun Koshi River is an amazing 10 day kayaking trip, which starts off with flat water and easy grade 2 rapids and then builds up progressively to peak with 3 days of quality high volume grade 3-4 sections and then settles down again to the finish. This meant that the Nepali girls could be in kayaks on the easy stuff and then jump on the raft for infamous rapids like Huckapor, Dead Man’s Eddie and Jungle Corridor.
Home sweet home while on the river... me, Sofa, Kelz, Hayley, Hes, M*, Spanna and BrunoThe first few days flew by, with the majority of the time being dedicated to teaching the Nepali girls everything about life on and off the water. Everything on this trip was new to them; most of them could not even swim 2 weeks before the trip, but half way through the Sun Koshi they were fearlessly throwing themselves into rapids that some of the foreign girls even swam on!!!
Inka, Radha and Malin enjoying the beautiful river, outstanding weather and great company
Occasionally there would be a big hole or wave train that was dotted between kilometers of flat water and the Nepali girls wouldn’t even blink an eyelid or even think about portaging. One of the local girls Radha was such a natural kayaker that she surfed out of a massive hole that she got caught in on her 4th ever day on the river.
Radha showing us how to kayak on her 4th day in a boat!!!
They learnt how to read white water, build toilet tents and look after foreign women knocked out with the D&Vs (Diarrhea and Vomiting). They amazed us all with their natural ability, positive attitudes and determination to be the first Nepali women to break into the white water industry… and this is from girls as young as 18 who had never even seen a drybag before!!!
Hessie enjoying an early morning venture to the beautiful toilet tent
And then there were the sicknesses. With a group of 35 people on a multi-day kayaking trip in Nepal with no access to clean water and minimal hygiene standards - we were destined to get sick. It seemed like everyday there was a new casualty who had to be confined to an oar boat as there was no way that they could paddle due to D&Vs, exhaustion, dehydration and the inability to hold down food or water.
It looks innocent and delicous... but its cooked in water that has run through China, Tibet and half of Nepal before it got to us and our bellies... it quickly come out...of both ends...not so cool!!!!!
Then Huckapor rapid loomed upon us. We guessed that this was the first Grade 4 rapid that the Nepali girls had ever seen, due to the expression on their faces when they stood on the bank looking at it!!! Huckapor intimidated more than just the Nepali girls, as only half of the foreign women paddled it, but everyone who chose to paddle the rapid styled it.
Scouting Huckapor
Then there was Dead Mans Eddie which is another big rapid notorious for the accident that gave the rapid its name. It is a long rapid that in higher water could be real knarly but at the flow we had, it was big and fast but super friendly. All the foreign girls jumped in the kayaks and styled it with ease. 
With these two rapids out of the way everyone sighed with relief thinking that the hardest rapids on the trip were over… but then Rhino Rock and Jungle Corridor came upon us and hit us hard!!!! Rhino Rock is a really long sustained rapid with massive waves, big holes, and about 5 different runable lines. As we thought the major rapids were over we just boat scouted this rapid - but then the paddle signals changed with almost every paddler who ran the rapid. There were so many lines that you could take but impossible to know which one was best and what feature was in between them. All of the Nepali girls were in the rafts but a few of the foreign women explored some interesting lines and took some good beat-downs along the way. But what a beautiful rapid!!! We all could not believe that it did not have a reputation that preceded it because it was one the classiest rapids on the whole river.
Huckapor rapid
And then there was Jungle Corridor, a section of 5 beautiful big volume rollercoaster rapids which always ended in flat pools and about 20 women smiling from ear to ear and screaming with laughter about how fun that rapid had just been!!! None of the Nepali girls were ready to run a section like Jungle Corridor so they were all on the raft which meant that we able to take off our teaching hats and be let loose on the river!!! Jungle Corridor was definitely a trip highlight, and some of us mulled over the idea of hitching a lift 20km upstream to do it all over again!!!
Team extreme always trying to find a challenge...
And then all too soon we were on the flat water heading to our final destination. The last few days were focused on getting the Nepali girls back on the water to develop their kayaking skills, but before we could say ‘Namaste’, we were at the take-out ready for our 20 hour drive away from the river we had called home for the last 10 days.
When the river opened up and turned into the plains
The Sun Koshi trip may have officially finished, but the river training programme had just started for the Nepali girls as there was still the Peak UK Himalayan White Water Festival to enter, 2 weeks of river rescue, raft and first aid training to start and another kayaking trip on the Seti River with most of Team Kiwi and USA. 
Emi leading the pack at the get out
The HRG Sun Koshi River trip will be remembered for so many reasons by those fortunate enough to be part of the journey; For the scenery, the local villagers, the generosity of the people and companies that supported the HRG club, the attempted macaroni cheese, the illnesses, the 2 films that are going to be made about it, the flat water, the white water, the yoga, the fact that 30 women were on the river at one time, and that after the trip all the Nepali girls got offered jobs from 5 of Nepal’s leading raft companies… and this is just the tip of the ice berg to why this trip was pure and simply EPIC!!!
