river crossings

There are so many variations to a theme with rivers that on your own there is only one basic rule if it dosnt feel right and you are not confident of success find another place to cross

Probably best to attend a Mountain Safety run river crossing course. Then all you have to do is practice the techniques they teach you and make the right desisions....it's not the best idea to cross a flooded river...learnt the hard way...

Agree with above. I've assisted on many of these MSC courses and recommend they are attended annually especially if you are in a leadership role. Basic rules of thumb are: if the river is discolored, there is debris floating down, you hear rolling boulders or the current is swift enough that you can't keep up walking briskly with a stick tossed in then don't attempt to cross. Another guidelines are that the river is no deeper than above your knee but it depends very much on other variables too such as the river bed itself. For a solo crossing, I'd be extremely conservative in my judgment.

The main thing about rivers is that you never NEED to cross. You are usually quite safe standing on the river bank. If the river is not safe to cross then DON'T cross it! This gets a bit tricky to accept when it is raining and the warm dry hut is on the other side but on the whole if you are not in the river then it won't kill you. There are a number of methods for crossing rivers and I have quite safely crossed rivers up to chest deep. As has been said, the only way to learn is to go on a "River Safety" (not river crossing) Course to learn the best methods and to try them out.

Just going back to your original question about the best way to cross a river on your own. First you have to know how to find the best place to cross and choose somewhere with a good run out. Then IF you cross, you leave your boots on your feet, loosen pack straps so you can get out of your pack quick if you have to. Walk with your feet apart (like if you had wet your pants) and shuffle them along one at a time. You need to always be able to reverse your tracks by shuffling out backwards so you can get out if the river seems too big. A stick held with both hands, across your chest and acting like a third leg on the upstream side of you will help with balance. But once again, practice these methods on a course is the best way to learn.

All good advice From experience if youve put in a hard day a bit tired and muscles are stressed take a moment to rest and cool down. Cramp in both legs in the middle of a deep fast crossing is interesting to say the least.