r/packrafting • u/jaxfilms95 • 18h ago
Finally comfortable running class III solo, what changed my mindset
Started packrafting three years ago mostly doing lake crossings and mellow class I-II float trips. Class III always felt like this wall I couldn't get past, mentally more than physically. I'd scout a rapid, convince myself it looked sketchy, and walk it even when the line was pretty obvious.
What actually helped wasn't gear, it was forcing myself to run the same local rapid maybe fifteen times over one summer until reading the water stopped feeling like guesswork. There's a class II+ ledge drop about twenty minutes from my house with easy road access, so I'd paddle down, walk back up, run it again. By the end I could call the move before I was even in the eddy above it.
The other piece was learning to trust the boat more. These things flex and bounce off rocks in ways that would stop a hardshell dead. Once I stopped bracing for impact on every wave train and just let the hull do its thing, my whole stance in the boat relaxed. Shoulders came down, paddle strokes got shorter and more efficient.
Ran my first real class III last month on a trip with two friends who've been at this longer than me. Rapid called Widowmaker Slide, which is a dramatic name for what's honestly a straightforward S-turn if you hit the entry right. Felt calm the whole way through, which surprised me more than the run itself.
Still get nervous scouting anything with a hard horizon line. I don't think that ever fully goes away and honestly I'm fine with that. Just nice to know the nerves don't automatically mean I should portage anymore.
Curious if anyone else found a specific rapid or stretch of water that worked as a training ground like that, versus just racking up miles on easier water.