Many years ago I worked down in France taking groups of British school children on two day descents of the Ardeche Gorge. When my scout troop was looking for ideas of where to go in the summer it was an obvious choice of location. A small group of us headed out for an exciting summer camp away in sunny France. We got up to lots of things like climbing, walking, crashing in big waves on the Med, cultural stuff and of course the highlight of the trip – the canoeing for two fill days over many rapids and biviing out in hammocks in the bottom if the gorge.

We paddled improper canoes, unlike 99.9% of other people who paddle down on the big ‘few skills needed’ sit on top kayaks. The scouts proved that they where up to it easily, wit.h only the one boat capsizing. We used Danny, Experience Ardeche, as our paddling instructor, he knows the river really well having paddled it for almost 20 years and living out there. He’s a great guy and I’d thoroughly recommend him to anyone wanting to paddle the amazing Ardeche.