Staying Home Sucks, home
River Findhorn in flood
Findhorn, Gorge New Gauge. Photo: Steven Brown, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Findhorn, Gorge New Gauge

Kayak spot · UK

Whitewater: a river with rapids

Is it worth the trip?

55Fair out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: Wind 3 kn gusting 7, Air 9 °C, River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Wed 4 · 55 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
4kn
Air
8°C
Rain
0 mm

Thu 5 · 55 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
8°C
Rain
0 mm

Fri 6 · 57 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
9°C
Rain
0 mm

Sat 7 · 55 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
5kn
Air
8°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 54 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
5kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 50 out of 100

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

Tue 10 · 52 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Tue 358, fair
  2. Wed 455, fair
  3. Thu 555, fair
  4. Fri 657, fair
  5. Sat 755, fair
  6. Sun 854, fair
  7. Mon 950, fair
  8. Tue 1052, fair
  9. Wed 1142, poor
  10. Thu 1243, poor

The spot in three facts

  • Grade IVits hardest rapid V
  • Moving waterthe water
  • Best Jul–Aug7 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number
Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Findhorn, Gorge New Gauge
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Tue 3Nov58, fair1 kn3kn9°C0.4 mm
Wed 4Nov55, fair2 kn4kn8°C0 mm
Thu 5Nov55, fair3 kn7kn8°C0 mm
Fri 6Nov57, fair3 kn7kn9°C0 mm
Sat 7Nov55, fair2 kn5kn8°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov54, fair1 kn5kn7°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov50, fair3 kn10kn5°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov52, fair4 kn14kn7°C0 mm
Wed 11Nov42, poor10 kn22kn2°C2.7 mm
Thu 12Nov43, poor6 kn13kn2°C0 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 Jul–Aug

Good kayaking days in a typical week, each month, for expert 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. Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May5of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun6of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug7of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep6of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct3of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov1of 7: a trip from Wed 4 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 Findhorn, Gorge New Gauge

River Findhorn in flood at Randolph's Leap
Photo: Steven Brown, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Flood level marker stone, River Findhorn
Photo: Ian Taylor, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
River Findhorn at Randolph's Leap
Photo: Julian Paren, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

More kayaking near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Findhorn, Gorge New Gauge

A river section on the Findhorn, from a put-in down to a take-out. Grade IV, its hardest rapid V, on the international scale. Suits expert paddlers only, by its grade. None within 10 km, the nearest 28 km away. For expert paddlers the best months are usually July and August, with about 7 good days in 7; in January, February and December, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Forres. Within 5 km we also list 4 kayak spots.

  • River Findhorn
  • Grade Grade IV, its hardest rapid V, on the international scale.
  • Who it suits Suits expert paddlers only, by its grade.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire None within 10 km, the nearest 28 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$2,600 each

about US$1,390–US$2,600 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 2 November 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$423–US$886
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$141–US$235
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$322–US$543
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$584
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$188–US$349
Totalabout US$1,390–US$2,600

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Forres

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Forres

about 20 min by car · 16 places to stay

about US$121/nightcountry average

See 16 places to stay in Forres · Booking.com

About Forres 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 15h 20m

About 15h 20m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → EDI, direct, then 3h 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