Paddle, Camp, Repeat: Discovering WA’s Blackwood River on a Red Paddle Voyager

What do you get when you combine a bunch of adventurous women, a wild Western Australian river, and Red’s awesome 13’2" Voyager Inflatable SUP? An epic adventure, that’s what!

The SUP Dream

Two years ago, Hayley Williams discovered stand-up paddleboarding (SUP) and immediately envisioned something beyond the ordinary. While most new SUP paddlers are happy to stay upright and dry, Hayley had already imagined her board loaded with camping gear for a multi-day adventure on a wild Western Australian river.

With her grand vision in mind, all that remained was to get herself a board and learn how to SUP. Easy, right? Yep. She found a board, signed up for lessons, and soon met a bunch of like-minded adventurers.

Paddling Buddies

Keen for an epic adventure was Keryn Brockman who, when she originally heard Hayley’s plan, said, “Oh, that sounds great,” never imagining she’d be part of such a wild idea. Then there’s super-mum and paddling machine, Justine ‘Seize the Day’ Throssell, who believes no paddle is a bad paddle and life is for living. As for Hayley, she loves the idea of stripping back all the unnecessary stuff and carrying everything she needs to survive.

Choosing a Board

In the lead-up to the adventure, the group tested different locations and SUP boards, finally settling on the Red Paddle 13'2" Voyager inflatable as Justine already had one and loved its versatility.

Red designed the Voyager with epic expeditions in mind. Its 150kg load-carrying capacity meant packing up and heading on an adventure was very achievable on the Voyager. Once they had matching Red Paddle boards, the women took them through their paces – upriver, downriver, come rain or shine.

13'2" Voyager statistics:

• Volume: 347L
• Weight: 13.65kg
• Width: 30 inches
• Length: 13 feet 2 inches
• Bag size: 980mm (h) x 380mm (w) x 360mm
  (d)

What to Pack?

You know that classic desert island question where you can only take 10 items? Well, Hayley is just the person to help with that. The woman knows how to make a list!

Setting forth into the wilds, it’s important to have enough fresh water, shelter, warm clothes, emergency items – and, of course, food. Add to that something to sit on, cook on and sleep on, and you’ve got yourself quite a haul.

As a seasoned pack hiker, Hayley knows the importance of packing light. She’s got all the right gear, and figured she could carry more than her usual hiking load on a SUP. It was just a matter of keeping everything dry.

The Storyteller

How did I become involved? I’ve been a SUP fanatic for years and an adventure seeker all my life. I met Hayley and Justine a year ago. We occasionally paddled together, and I followed their escapades on social media with interest.

When Justine reached out to ask if I could cover their story, I couldn’t resist. As a freelance writer and adventurer, I live for this kind of thing. The catch? To write accurately, I needed to experience it firsthand. So, I joined them for the final two nights of their five-night expedition. Someone had to do it, right?

The SUP Instructor

With adventure well and truly in the air, Nicki Jones of Perth SUP School also caught wind of our capers and wanted to be part of the epic paddle action, so she joined me. Nicki is a SUP instructor, wild ocean swimmer, yoga teacher and all-round amazing human being. She is also an Augusta local, who’s been on her share of SUP expeditions, including paddling the fjords in Norway.

Thanks to Red Paddle Co, we both acquired inflatable boards and set to gathering what we needed from Hayley’s exhaustive list.

The Prep

As our fearless expedition leader, Hayley ensured we all had what we needed. I thought I was organised, but Hayley is next level. As any camper knows, whether you’re going for 10 nights or two, the gear list is the same. Factor in waterproofing, plus personal flotation devices (PFD), and you’ve got yourself a SUP packing adventure.

The Dry Bags

I already have more dry bags than handbags, and thought I would have enough, but nope! A shopping spree for dry bags was in order, including a shiny new 60L Red bag – the perfect size and shape for a SUP. I also needed to bring my DSLR camera, so I experimented with different ways to transport it. In the end, I opted for a hard, waterproof case strapped securely to the front of my board. I wasn’t about to lose such an expensive piece of kit overboard!

The Test Run

In the lead-up to the trip, with Hayley’s list in hand, we packed, stacked, strapped, and tested our loads on the Derbarl Yerrigan / Swan River, much to the amusement of Perth locals who were very curious about our loaded boards and thought we were having a camp-out in the city. Our group chat buzzed with suggestions: How best to tie down your load? What food to take? How much water? And what if it rains?

The answers: tight, light, enough, and suck it up!

Ready, Set, Paddle!

Hayley, Justine and Keryn started their expedition on the Blackwood River, launching from Warner Glen Campsite 30km from Augusta, and ended four days later with lunch in Augusta via Alexandra Bridge and Molloy Island. Nicki and I joined them at Alexandra Bridge. Let’s break it down.

Day One

Following an episode of extreme car shuffling, the crew delivered two cars to Molloy Hideaway Holiday Park and then Hayley, Keryn, and Justine set up camp at Warner Glen Campsite. They spent the evening with feet up in front of an open fire, resting up before their first day of paddling. Excitement was in the air!

Day Two

16.98km: Warner Glen Campsite, Chapman Pool upstream towards Schroeder’s Weir return.

Following a dodgy sleep on micro-mattresses made for 20-year-olds, they sprang out of bed and scoffed something delicious and dehydrated (there is such a thing) for breakfast, before inflating their boards and paddling upriver towards Schroeder’s Weir to check out the rapids. Being a day trip, they only took snacks and water.

When they pushed off from Warner Glen Campsite, the Blackwood River was empty of people. They travelled 8km upstream and made like wild salmon, pushing into the rapids as far as they could before turning downstream and heading back to camp to fire up the campfire and hunker down for the night.

Day Three  

13.03km: Warner Glen to Alexandra Bridge.

Now came the serious business of dismantling camp and loading everything they would need for the next leg of their journey! They said goodbye to the remaining car and set off for Alexandra Bridge into a gnarly headwind and intermittent rain. After a tough four-hour paddle with breaks, the crew reached the campsite and set up their second camp like pros! They were kicking back on their lightweight chairs grazing on snacks when we arrived.

Nicki and I swung into Alexandra Bridge campsite mid-afternoon following our own car shuffle, and set up our tents in the afternoon light. The sun had come out, and all was good with the world. A curious kookaburra swooped in for a visit while we inflated our boards. We then spent the afternoon rummaging through bags, looking for essentials. Ever tried to find a stray toothbrush in a full dry bag?

The crew looked tanned and tired after two days on the water. Their camp, with Red paddleboards neatly lined up and their matching green tents, was a beacon of order. After slathering on mosquito repellent, we gathered around the fire where we cooked dinner on our tiny gas stoves and washed it down with a wine or two.

We shared stories of past adventures – paddling trips, horse-riding escapades, you name it. The cows in the neighbouring paddock created quite the ruckus, adding to the symphony of the night, along with the occasional dog barking at possums. 

Sleep was elusive thanks to the hard ground, cold temperatures, a sense of anticipation – and let’s not forget, the bloody cows.

Day Four

15.88km Alexandra Bridge to Molloy.

We woke to find possum footprints on our boards – someone was keen for a SUP adventure! We packed down our campsite and stuffed everything back into dry bags. By this point, my packing organisation was completely off the charts, but what the hey! As long as I could strap it on the board and it stayed dry. For Nicki and me, aside from a practice run on the Swan in Perth the weekend before, this was our first rodeo. 

Once we had checked the pressure of our boards and everything was strapped, tied and cinched, we snapped our PFDs around our waists and glided away from the river’s edge onto the glassy Blackwood. We felt like the only explorers on Earth and there was not a soul until we arrived in the water-ski area and stopped for our first break. A young family water-skiing on the river checked out our setup and loved what we were doing.

It was a stunning paddle through the tall forest and the Red Voyager inflatable board met all expectations – stable, roomy and capable of hauling all my gear. The three intrepid women were feeling their muscles, having already paddled over 30km in two days. When we rounded the bend closer to Molloy Island, the headwind made a show – it seems this neck of the woods is notorious for it – and almost six hours after we left Alexandra Bridge we arrived at Molloy Hideaway Holiday Park to an audience.. school holidays!

Camp was hectic with kids fishing and riding bikes, and the AFL grand final in full
swing – a contrast to the glossy calm of the Blackwood River. We lost Nicki to
the grand final for a bit, and once we had retrieved cars from two locations,
set up camp and showered, it was off to the Karridale pub for a slap-up meal
and refreshing beer. Back at camp, we relaxed around the fire before making our
way to bed – and, despite the sounds of a busy campground, out like a light!

Day Five

10.14km Molloy Holiday Hideaway to Augusta river-mouth.

A sleep-in was in order, followed by a leisurely breakfast and camp coffee. On the cards for today: the last leg of the trip from Molloy Island into Augusta for lunch at The Colourpatch Cafe. The three women had another night booked at Molloy Hideaway Holiday Park, so there was no pack-down for them and they didn’t need to carry anything on their boards for this stretch.

Another crazy car shuffle ensued, because no-one felt like paddling back after a big lunch. Nicki and I had to get back to real life, so we shoved everything into our cars. I didn’t join the group on this stretch, but waved the four paddlers farewell from the jetty. By all accounts, it was a difficult paddle. The gnarly headwind showed up and made them work for their lunch!

Nicki farewelled the women in Augusta after lunch while Hayley, Keryn, and Justine drove back to camp and enjoyed the serenity at the Holiday Park for another night.

I drove back to Perth with a carload of dry bags and a wet tent, and the biggest smile on my face. Until next time, yours in SUP.

Stats

Weight carried: approximately 45kg per board, including firewood and 10L water bladders.

Board pressure: 20psi.

Distance travelled: over 56km.

Camp setups: three (which also meant three pack-downs).

Bungee cord: around 30m between us.