Umzimkulu River – Thrombosis Gorge
Umzimkulu River – Thrombosis Gorge · kwazulu-natal
Grade
V
Length
1) 8km 2) 25km
Duration
1) 2-4 hours, depending on amount of scouting. 2) 6-7 hours
Type
pool drop
About
Technical pool-drop section that includes Thrombi Falls, an 11m waterfall. Hardest rapids are the first five or six after put-in — short, easy to scout, decent pools between. Then a pair of long technical rapids, scoutable by eddy-hopping. A natural weir follows — runnable but scout. A solid class 4 forms the entry to the 11m waterfall: exit on the left above the entry rapid and walk down to scout. The fall has nearly ended badly for several paddlers; do not feel pressured, and if running, stay clear of the left. Most paddlers take out at the waterfall via a long uphill hike on river right. If skipping the fall, paddle ~100m back upstream from the entry rapid and exit river right. Take-out is on private farmland — arrange with farmer first. If continuing, some of the best rapids on the stretch come soon after the waterfall — all runnable, scout the larger ones.
Access
Put-in
Take-out
Permits
Permission from farmer at first take-out
Recent sessions
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