If you have every done an overnighter kayak trip you will know that weather conditions can be pivotal. Heavy rains can make a trip a day or two longer than usual, if you are in an unforgiving steep mountain range or better yet a jungle with numerous deadly creatures the ante increases dramatically. The Hollin River near Tena, Ecuador is no exception. At 74 kilometers the river can be run in a really long day with no unexpected rain or as two day paddling 4-5 hours a day. I suggest the two-day option, as there is plenty to look at and some great campsites along the way. Many have attempted the one-day option only to find themselves in the fetal position, hungry, wet, and brushing spiders from their faces all night. You make your choice but I would strongly advise planning for the worst and expecting the best. In Ecuador good ol’ mother nature rules, it could be raining miles upstream and with the sun shining on your face you could experience a drastically swelling river that forces you to take camp at the next available clearing.
I have limited experience on the Hollin but the runs I have completed are certainly memorable. The runs starts with some decent class IV+ drops for hours, the second day consists of braided boulder gardens at the start and then some great drops closer to the end of the run. The views are incredible, imagine trying to keep your sh*# together on some petty boogie class IV+ rapids and there is sooo much to look at. One rapid in particular where this rings true is a simple 5 foot ledge drop just before you head into a CAVE!!!
The first time I approached this rapid I was a little confused, to say the least. Picture this, approaching a ledge with 4 different chutes two of them runable ending in a cave that appears to have no exit. After approaching the lip I was able to see the line and observe the fact that there was in fact light at the end of the tunnel. What a rapid! Most rapids can be figured out via boat scouting including a super clean 20-foot waterfall at the entrance of the run. Beautiful clean water and lush jungle scenery and lots of bird life.
My most memorable run I can recall was with my good friends Randito and Dave Gore. All the moons aligned for our trip, we planned to run it in two days camping by hammocks. Deciding to do the majority of the run on the first day we bypassed the usual raft company campsite. This campsite is ideal for tent camping. Located on river left after an obvious HUGE rock about 4-5 hours into your run the site is picturesque. We opted to camp at the confluence of a small creek across from a huge beach (beach camping means LOTS of sand flies). I strung up three hammocks complete with tarp roofs while Dito worked on a chicken sandwich dinner and Dave built the fire. We ate like kings and enjoyed our 6-pack each by the fire and exchanged stories. Actually only Dave enjoyed all 6 of his beers, like the seasoned pro he is he opted to dry bag his beers in the stern. Dito and I decided to try out the handy bow storage thanks to the hinged foot bulkhead of the Jackson Rocker. Oops, turns out that Jackson was nice enough to install beer openers in the design of the bulkhead. Dito lost three I lost one. For breakfast we had avocado, tuna, and empanadas with some juice. The original plan was to have fresh fish but bringing a fly rod turned out to be in vain. Unfortunately, we noticed fish jumping in the pool downstream of where Dito attempted to procure our breaky.
Day two started with some chill class III rapids and great weather. Since it was a year of seldom rain we enjoyed a low run on the Hollin, this is ideal for camping and managing your time but not so ideal for the amount of logs that lurk under the surface of the river. At low levels be on the lookout for sneaky logs in unsavory spots. We had to portage at least one nasty placed log and probably should have portaged more. Three hours into our run we encountered a strange site to say the least. Just after a sketchy walking bridge about 25 feet from the river we noticed a rope across the right side of the river. Approaching closer we noticed the peculiar situation. A milk cow weighing over 440 kilograms had fallen from the bridge and some farmers were trying to coax the animal from the river. Dito got out, grabbed one of the ropes and started to help pull the cow out of the water. Gore and I helped coax the cow from the water from our kayaks, what a site! We all helped the farmers for about a half an hour and we were on our way, they wanted us to stick around but we still had some river to cover.
Once we passed the Rio Jondachi confluence we were able to view hundreds of Tilapia darting underneath our kayaks, we thought of pulling over and dropping a line but we were on a schedule. My ability to time river runs with drivers was at stake. Since it was our first time on the river and we only knew to look for a bridge for our takeout we became a little uneasy at 12:30, a half an hour before our scheduled take out time. We came upon a cabin resort that looked new and held the possibility of some beta. Dito got out and searched for someone to ask with no results. The resort was deserted. Not really knowing what to do we kept on. It was 10 more minutes later and we saw the most amazing site, a huge car bridge with our driver Oswaldo waiting for us. We pulled up to the beach 10 minutes after our scheduled takeout time, perfect!
The River Hollin is an incredible trip, make sure to prepare for two days even if you attempt it in one, the possibility for disaster whether it be rain or injury is present. If you wish to extend your trip to a 3 day, paddle on down the to the Lower Missualli after staying a night at the cabins just before the takeout. Remember always respect mom nature!
See you on the river,
Chris Ryman
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