Staying Home Sucks, home
Cabera pusaria - Flickr - berniedup
Ustou, the nearest town, 9 km away. Photo: Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Salat, Espis - Salau

Kayak spot · France

Whitewater: a river with rapids

Is it worth the trip?

60Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Tue 10: Wind 7 kn gusting 33, Air 15 °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 · 48 out of 100

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

Thu 5 · 53 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
19kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0.4 mm

Fri 6 · 53 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

Sat 7 · 52 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
7°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 64 out of 100

Wind
8 kn
Gusts
27kn
Air
12°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 66 out of 100

Wind
8 kn
Gusts
30kn
Air
14°C
Rain
0 mm

Tue 10 · 67 out of 100

Wind
7 kn
Gusts
33kn
Air
15°C
Rain
0 mm

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Tue 348, fair
  2. Wed 448, fair
  3. Thu 553, fair
  4. Fri 653, fair
  5. Sat 752, fair
  6. Sun 864, good
  7. Mon 966, good
  8. Tue 1067, good
  9. Wed 1160, good
  10. Thu 1253, fair

The spot in three facts

  • Grade Vits hardest rapid VI
  • Moving waterthe water
  • Best Jun–Aug7 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know the river level, weirs or your skill.

Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Salat, Espis - Salau
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Tue 3Nov48, fair4 kn13kn5°C0.2 mm
Wed 4Nov48, fair4 kn12kn5°C0 mm
Thu 5Nov53, fair2 kn19kn7°C0.4 mm
Fri 6Nov53, fair4 kn13kn7°C0 mm
Sat 7Nov52, fair2 kn10kn7°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov64, good8 kn27kn12°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov66, good8 kn30kn14°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov67, good7 kn33kn15°C0 mm
Wed 11Nov60, good7 kn27kn10°C0.6 mm
Thu 12Nov53, fair4 kn19kn9°C6.6 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 Jun–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. Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr3of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May4of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun7of 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. Oct5of 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.

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Salat, Espis - Salau

A river section on the Salat, from a put-in down to a take-out. Grade V, its hardest rapid VI, on the international scale. Suits expert paddlers only, by its grade. None within 10 km, the nearest 11 km away. For expert paddlers the best months are usually June, July and August, with about 7 good days in 7; in January and December, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Ustou. Within 5 km we also list 1 kayak spot.

  • River Salat
  • Grade Grade V, its hardest rapid VI, 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 11 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$1,420–US$2,650 each

about US$1,420–US$2,650 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 LEU, estimated from distance and season, changing at MAD, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$483–US$1,000
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$141–US$235
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$329–US$543
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$584
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$154–US$289
Totalabout US$1,420–US$2,650

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Ustou

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

Closest

Ustou

about 20 min by car · 6 places to stay

about US$121/nightcountry average

See 6 places to stay in Ustou · Booking.com

About Ustou 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 18h 05m

About 18h 05m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → LEU, changing at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD), then 1h 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

The nearest named schools, clubs and kayak or canoe hire within 25 km, in a straight line. Listings, not a recommendation. 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.