car park, lead to the river and kayakers can put-in on a flat stretch immediately as they arrive at the river, from the car park side. To reach the wave they must paddle upstream (left) and the weir will appear on the right. The first weir should be ignored, as it is un-runnable. Hurley Weir's steps can be run, but will wear the hull of a kayak, and so is advisable to get out at the island where the weir steps, start and put in at the shingle "beach" below. Gates The four main weir gates are opened and closed to control the river levels. The number of opened gates will also determine the nature of the wave/waves, and the suitability/difficulty level for kayakers: 1 Gate – Medium-sized wave, normally on weir river right. Best for longer, faster boats. 2 Gates – Big wave accompanied by a large hole. 3 Gates – Optimum level. When the 3 gates opened on river left, classic conditions apply: a big central wave with two holes either side. Doesn't normally stay on 3 for long, and during peak periods there can be queues of 40 or more people. 4 Gates – A powerful set of linked holes. The farthest hole away from the eddy sometimes referred to as "The Dark Side", as it is the farthest away from the only eddy. Still relatively safe, but retentive at certain levels. Capsizing results in a flush the vast majority of the time. Note: at certain levels, the wave train often "goes left" and turns the eddy in a large spinning mass. This has the effect of constantly pushing people who are queuing in the eddy into the main current. Water levels Usually more rainfall means more gates will be open, but this also depends upon the levels at weirs upstream, and as such it can be difficult to predict. For the weir to form a good wave for kayakers, it generally needs to be late autumn, winter or early spring. Hurley is known to work during the summer, but for short periods of time. 9 months is the average consistent period of use. During the winter, a vague rule of thumb is 10 mm of rain is needed to open a gate. In the summer 15 mm may be required, and persistent rain is needed to keep levels up, due to ground levels of water being