Staying Home Sucks, home
West Highland Way crossing the River Etive (geograph 4955734)
Etive (Upper). Photo: Chris Heaton, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Etive (Upper)

Kayak spot · UK

Whitewater: a river with rapids

Is it worth the trip?

52Fair out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Mon 2: Wind 3 kn gusting 7, Air 8 °C, River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 56 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
8°C
Rain
0 mm

Tue 3 · 52 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 54 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
12kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

Thu 5 · 51 out of 100

Wind
7 kn
Gusts
18kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 52 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
6°C
Rain
0 mm

Sat 7 · 50 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
5°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 46 out of 100

Wind
0 kn
Gusts
4kn
Air
4°C
Rain
0 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 154, fair
  2. Mon 256, fair
  3. Tue 352, fair
  4. Wed 454, fair
  5. Thu 551, fair
  6. Fri 652, fair
  7. Sat 750, fair
  8. Sun 846, fair
  9. Mon 944, poor
  10. Tue 1045, fair

The spot in three facts

  • Moving waterthe water
  • 1.9 kmthe section
  • Best in Jul6 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number
Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Etive (Upper)
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Sun 1Nov54, fair6 kn17kn7°C0 mm
Mon 2Nov56, fair3 kn7kn8°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov52, fair3 kn7kn7°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov54, fair5 kn12kn7°C0 mm
Thu 5Nov51, fair7 kn18kn7°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov52, fair4 kn10kn6°C0 mm
Sat 7Nov50, fair4 kn10kn5°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov46, fair0 kn4kn4°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov44, poor3 kn8kn2°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov45, fair4 kn14kn4°C3.3 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Best time to go

best in Jul

Good kayaking days in a typical week, each month, for grade III paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
  2. Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May4of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun4of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul6of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug5of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep3of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov0of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
  12. Dec0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec

Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.

Typical weather, not a forecast, and not the river's level: a month that is often good to be outside may still be low water.

Map

put-in, take-out, its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of Etive (Upper)

West Highland Way at Kingshouse (geograph 4206135)
Photo: Dave Kelly, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

More kayaking near here

3 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Etive (Upper)

A river section on the River Etive, from a put-in down to a take-out. It runs 1.9 km along the river. Suits grade III paddlers and up: a river with no grade stated, which we never offer a new paddler. None within 10 km, the nearest 27 km away. For grade III paddlers the best month is usually July, with about 6 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Kinlochleven. Within 5 km we also list 2 kayak spots and 1 climbing area.

  • River River Etive
  • Grade No source states its grade: check a guidebook before you paddle it.
  • Length 1.9 km along the river.
  • Who it suits Suits grade III paddlers and up: a river with no grade stated, which we never offer a new paddler.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire None within 10 km, the nearest 27 km away.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,390–US$2,590 each

about US$1,390–US$2,590 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to EDI, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$422–US$884
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$141–US$234
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$322–US$543
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$583
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$188–US$348
Totalabout US$1,390–US$2,590

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Kinlochleven

Closest

Kinlochleven

18 min by car · 17 places to stay

about US$121/nightcountry average

See 17 places to stay in Kinlochleven · Booking.com

About Kinlochleven its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$121 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 14h 15m

About 14h 15m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → EDI, direct, then 2h 25m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

River level

River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go.

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

No paddling school, club or hire mapped within 25 km.

Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits