Due to fences and trees the first race is a little messy but the river contains only races or easy rock channels until a little way past the "Quarry" access. From here the riverbed changes dramatically, becoming smoothly sculptured granite shelves or boulders, requiring good manoeuvring skills. This is heralded by a right-to-left solid rock slope of about 1 1l2m in fall and continues with small rocky drops and longer bouldery runs of good grade 2 standard. A fall of about 1m in a notch in the rocks usually proves entertaining. The country in this stretch is quite lovely, with the picturesque, grassy pastoral fields complementing the granite-bedded river and the huge, attractive casuarinas. A longer twisty rapid (Kinghorn Falls) around a massive boulder is the last good grade 2 in this stretch, and the river is quiet as it follows the main road after passing the ford. lt is advisable for beginners to pull out here in order to avoid the "maze".
A few hundred metres above the finish the river splits into two channels, and each of these channels splits up into a myriad of routes through trees and rocks with possible log blockages. Some of the drops in this area are somewhat difficult although quite short. There is a concensus that the right-hand channel provides the better path, but both are difficult in high water. For recommended water levels see the final introductory paragraph.