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Path by the River North Esk
North Esk, Lower. Photo: Shaun Ferguson, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

North Esk, Lower

Kayak spot · UK

Whitewater: a river with rapids

Is it worth the trip?

Not for new paddlers. Suits grade III paddlers and up, by its grade.

The spot in two facts

  • Grade IIIits hardest rapid IV
  • Moving waterthe water

Full forecast

every day, every number

Not for new paddlers. Suits grade III paddlers and up, by its grade. See it for grade III paddlers.

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.

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 North Esk, Lower

Across the North Esk valley
Photo: David Purchase, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
A view across the valley
Photo: Andrew Morrison, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Looking across the North Esk valley
Near North Esk, Lower. Photo: David Purchase, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

More kayaking near here

1 place

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About North Esk, Lower

A river section, from a put-in down to a take-out. Grade III, its hardest rapid IV, on the international scale. Suits grade III paddlers and up, by its grade. No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map. The town to stay in is Edzell.

  • Grade Grade III, its hardest rapid IV, on the international scale.
  • Who it suits Suits grade III paddlers and up, by its grade.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map.

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: Edzell

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

Closest

Edzell

about 15 min by car · 8 places to stay

about US$121/nightcountry average

See 8 places to stay in Edzell · Booking.com

About Edzell 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 14h 05m

About 14h 05m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → EDI, direct, then 2h 15m 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 50 km.

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

Saved: this link opens the same trip

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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.