Why Nile special was so special
Waves come in many different shapes and sizes, they all have their own characterises and deciding upon which wave is the “best” is much like trying to decide which country has the most delicious food (England obviously). The conversation as to which is the greatest wave always ends up as on obfuscated mess with no clear decision ever drawn from it.
However there is one wave that shares a spot in every kayakers heart. A wave called Nile Special.
Nile Special is located near the source of the White Nile in Jinga, Uganda. There are bigger waves and there are faster waves but none of them manages to combine the multitude of fantastic components that Nile Special does.
Located next to the shore of a village named “Nacartu” (Kayak in Lugandan). The weather is an enjoyable average of 30 °C. Lining the banks are groups of smiling African children, eager to make new friends, to earn some money for small jobs and to simply enjoy interacting with foreigners. So often people are frightened of things that are different but the Ugandan children revel in it. I feel they firmly believe that copying newly heard accents or the way that people from different countries walk is the most hysterically funny thing in the world (and I agree with them). Taking a break from surfing during a session is often filled only with downtime and boredom but there is never a dull moment when taking a breather at Nile Special and hanging out with the local kids.
Most big waves require hiking back up to the top and access is a convoluted, sweaty and tiresome affair but Nile special has a half a mile of eddy access and a tow rope system which enables you to take an obscene amount of rides each session. Downstream of the wave is just more waves and flatwater, making it completely safe.
The nature of this wave is nothing but friendly. Most big waves are exceedingly hard to even front surf and there is a steep learning curve of nuances before you can even come close to setting up for a trick. Nile special is gentle, easy to set up on and despite its relatively big size a beginner could expect to comfortably cruise around on it in their first session.
For the more experienced kayaker, any trick was possible on this wave. It favoured right tricks but a real shredder could easily go both ways on it. I learned almost all of my big wave tricks on this wave and even created some new ones.
The combination of all of these factors has created an anomaly of a freestyle kayaking spot. One that is simply unparalleled in its ability to put a smile on every kayakers’ face. Unfortunately, the Isimba dam has flooded the wave and much of the remaining whitewater on the Nile, meaning that we will never get to surf that beautiful wave again.
I would never want to be one of these people that turns every negative into a positive because some things do just suck. However, I am going to use the loss of Nile special as motivation to do more in the fight against hydropower. Currently the Glen Etive in Scotland is under threat, please visit this website for information on how you can help prevent this hydro scheme from happening.
See you on the water,
Bren
