SUP-survival or the Szeszupa River
The Szeszupa River is a river in the northern part of the Suwałki Region, a left-bank tributary of the Neman River. Its source is in the Suwałki Landscape Park, between the villages of Szeszupka and Turtul, near another well-known river in our region, the Czarna Hańcza. The trail is 298 km long, with only 27 km within Poland.
This is an undiscovered, wild river for more advanced kayakers.
(source: http://www.splywyszeszupa.pl)
I would also like to add that it is also suitable for more advanced SUP riders :-)
According to the trail description, I started the Szeszupa rafting trip in the village of Udziejek, near the old mill.
I finished in the village of Poszeszupie, about 4 km after Rutka Tartak, where common sense dictates that the trip should end.
After watching the first few dozen meters of the river and following the advice of Marek Taraszkiewicz, I gave up on the Finn altogether.
For the rafting trip I used my favorite Starboard iGo ZEN 12'6”x30” Touring board.
Even though the Szeszupa is very winding in places, my Starboard managed perfectly without a fin!
And on the six lakes that the Szeszupa trail covers, the Starboard Touring without a fin also floated unexpectedly well, well, maybe it rocked a little more from side to side :-).
If I had to describe the Szeszupa rafting in one word, I would say SURVIVAL!
It took me almost 6 hours to cover 20 km with a strong current in some places.
There was everything along the way: rocky rapids like the ones on the Dunajec River, fallen tree trunks, searching for the river mouth in the reeds of the lakes, falling down and getting up under numerous low bridges, portaging around the mill in Rutka-Tartak and finally going around the electric shepherd through the wild bushes with which a resourceful farmer had blocked the river bend :-(
After 6 hours of struggling with the river, I was relieved to get ashore near the bridge in Poszeszupie.
I highly recommend it to thrill-seekers! I strongly advise against it for everyone else!
Practical information:
equipment
practically any board without a fin
with a fin the route will take twice as long and twice as many falls
outfit
appropriate for the weather, I recommend neoprene shoes due to frequent portages over fallen tree trunks, thickets and rocky rapids
logistics
There are only a few kayak rental companies on the Szeszupa trail that can make transfers
I used the proven triathlon car-bike-SUP method:
This is an undiscovered, wild river for more advanced kayakers.
(source: http://www.splywyszeszupa.pl)
I would also like to add that it is also suitable for more advanced SUP riders :-)
According to the trail description, I started the Szeszupa rafting trip in the village of Udziejek, near the old mill.
I finished in the village of Poszeszupie, about 4 km after Rutka Tartak, where common sense dictates that the trip should end.
After watching the first few dozen meters of the river and following the advice of Marek Taraszkiewicz, I gave up on the Finn altogether.
For the rafting trip I used my favorite Starboard iGo ZEN 12'6”x30” Touring board.
Even though the Szeszupa is very winding in places, my Starboard managed perfectly without a fin!
And on the six lakes that the Szeszupa trail covers, the Starboard Touring without a fin also floated unexpectedly well, well, maybe it rocked a little more from side to side :-).
If I had to describe the Szeszupa rafting in one word, I would say SURVIVAL!
It took me almost 6 hours to cover 20 km with a strong current in some places.
There was everything along the way: rocky rapids like the ones on the Dunajec River, fallen tree trunks, searching for the river mouth in the reeds of the lakes, falling down and getting up under numerous low bridges, portaging around the mill in Rutka-Tartak and finally going around the electric shepherd through the wild bushes with which a resourceful farmer had blocked the river bend :-(
After 6 hours of struggling with the river, I was relieved to get ashore near the bridge in Poszeszupie.
I highly recommend it to thrill-seekers! I strongly advise against it for everyone else!
Practical information:
equipment
practically any board without a fin
with a fin the route will take twice as long and twice as many falls
outfit
appropriate for the weather, I recommend neoprene shoes due to frequent portages over fallen tree trunks, thickets and rocky rapids
logistics
There are only a few kayak rental companies on the Szeszupa trail that can make transfers
I used the proven triathlon car-bike-SUP method:
- I left my SUP in Udziejek
- I went by car with my bike to Poszeszupie
- I returned to Udziejek by bike
- I went SUP
- I returned by car to pick up my bike
- sounds complicated, but apart from the rafting, it gives you the opportunity to drive around the area
Let the photos speak for themselves for the rest of the description :-)
Kind regards
Paweł Jędrzejewski
