TRAVEL REPORT

Kayaking on the Orange River

Or should I say floating down the river?

It’s not a secret. I love water. I love swimming in the water. And paddling on the water. If it’s the ocean or a lake doesn’t matter. Or a river. Anything, where I can play on, is perfect.

And here we are now. After days spent in the desert, we’re camping now on the Orange River. The river is the border between South Africa and Namibia. A river that just had its water level raised by four meters due to heavy rains in the mountains.

A river that might not look attractive to you. Because of its color. All rivers in Africa are brown. Or let’s say most of them. Due to the amount of sand, it’s transporting. And dust. Especially after it ran dry for a few months.

I don’t mind sand. I’ve lived in the sand for so long now. The sand turns into mud in the river. Making it maybe a bit weird when walking in it. But the best part of this river is that there are no predators to be found.

No crocodiles. No hippos. Just peaceful fish swimming in the water. And birds that fly across the border. Living on the riverbanks.

So here we go. We signed up for the kayaking experience on the river. Our host drove us 14 kilometers upriver and dropped us off. Together with another couple and two inflatable kayaks. They wished us good luck and off they went.

We weren’t even in our kayak yet and the other couple was out of sight already. Putting an Olympic pace up they seem to have the goal to get as fast as possible back to camp.

You can’t say that about us. Not so much at least. Our mission was to have as much fun as possible. To experience the river. Embrace nature. And simply enjoy the journey of getting back.

We’re exploring side channels and floating slowly in between the reeds. The current is pretty strong in the main channel. So even without paddling, you’re moving fast. Downriver.

We’re passing lots of birds on the river banks. Especially herons are to be seen in numbers. The Grey Heron lives in the reeds. Their nest is well hidden in there. Protected from any possible enemies.

In one side channel, we get stuck. It turns out to be a dead end. At least for us in the kayak. We had to turn around and paddle back. Against the current. Not so easy. But worth the exploring.

It’s very peaceful. You don’t hear cars. Or people. Just birds. Their melodies are gently sounding across the river. What a relaxing background music.

Slowly it is getting hot in here. Being surrounded by refreshing water we do the obvious. Jump in the river to cool down. First, just one person at a time so that we find out if we can climb back in the kayak.

But it works perfectly. While using a little bit of muscle power. You get back in. The kayak. And it’s worth the effort. Because floating next to the kayak is so much fun. Going with the current. Now and then I can feel some reeds touching my feet in the water.

Eventually, we reach the sandbank which the lodge owner had mentioned. It’s not actually a sandbank. It’s a rocky island in the middle of the river. The water is very shallow around here.

We get out of the kayak and walk around a bit. But after taking a few photos we’re getting too hot. A quick cool-off in the river and we push the kayak back into the deeper water.

The water is actually quite clear in this area. Obviously. This stretch is covered in rocks. No sand to make the water milky.

Just downriver of the sandbank, a group of tourists gets into the water. With their kayaks. And their tour guide.

We paddle for a while next to them. And start chatting to their guide who’s wondering where our group is. Yes, we’re in here alone. Without a tour guide. And the other couple is probably already back at camp.

Why would I need a guide? There’s no danger in this river. We can both swim. And can’t really get lost in here. There’s only one way to go. With the current. Just get out of the water when you see your campsite.

I jump off the boat again. With my cap. So that it can cool down my head later. Back in the kayak.

I love the feeling of being in the water. Only holding onto the rope on the side of the kayak I get dragged along. With the current. Watching birds fly over me. And others drying their wings in the morning sun.

A group of herons takes off as we’re drifting by. Despite using heavy wing strokes, they barely get any lift. Remaining just above the water they are struggling to fly away.

But they anyway sit down again. In the next stretch of reeds. On the other side of the river.

Talking to the other tour group earlier we got asked if we came into any rapids. We denied the question. Not knowing they would still come. Just as we were getting relaxed in the kayak we could hear them.

The loud sound of flowing water. It almost sounded like a waterfall. Knowing that can’t be the case the only option left was rapids being ahead of us. Which turned out to be true.

Not knowing what to expect we tried to steer to the smoothest stretch. It quickly started getting bumpy in the kayak. But it turned out to be fun. So much fun we now aimed for the roughest spot.

But the fun didn’t last long. Soon we were out of the rapids and the river looked flat like a dam again.

Now it was really getting hot. The sun started to beat down on us. Not sure if sunscreen can help anymore. We started to paddle. How far do we still have to go? Nobody knows. At least not between the two of us.

We start doubting ourselves. Did we pass the campsite? Did we paddle past it? There’s no way we could have done that. The channel is very narrow and the camp easily recognizable.

While we were tubing yesterday we saw the camp from the water. So we know how it looks. We’re just starting to get tired. And hot. That’s all. Just keep going. We’ll get there. Eventually.

It turns out we have been playing around for the most part of this trip. The last four kilometers were the real challenge. The part we really had to work. And paddle.

As we were getting closer to these rocks the wind picked up. These rocks were a sign for us we’re close to camp. A landmark we orientated ourselves on. But now we were barely moving. Despite the strong current. Because of the strong headwind we were facing now.

But it will be good for us. To get some exercise for a change. We both love doing exercise. Maybe not in these temperatures. And this time of the day. I think it’s close to midday. The time you should spend in the shade at your camp. Reading or taking a nap.

Since giving up is not really an option we keep on getting closer to our destination. With every paddle stroke. With every moving muscle, we are coming one step closer to camp.

Eventually, we jump off the kayak again and float next to it. It must have looked weird for the people from the camp. An empty boat floating by. I was hiding behind it in the water. And my partner hooked his foot in the line at the back of the kayak so it dragged him along.

One last effort was carrying the inflatable out of the water. Up the riverbank into the shade. Then the long-awaited beer and rest in the shade were what we were celebrating.

Or were we celebrating the kayaking excursion with a beer? Can’t remember which way around. I guess it doesn’t matter. We had fun.

The rest of the day we spent in the shade at our campsite. Now and then I ran down to the river to jump in and swim a bit. But not for too long since swimming meant getting burned in the sun.

This camp offers overnight excursions down the river as well. Five days, four nights kayaking and wild camping right on the Orange River. You paddle a couple of hours a day. The rest of the time you relax on the river banks.

This is definitely something I am going to do the next time I come down here. We couldn’t do it this time since you have to plan those activities in advance. And you know we don’t do the planning thing. We go with the flow. But for that experience, I will plan my next trip in advance. For sure!

“To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries.” — Aldous Huxley

Have you ever been kayaking? Where have you done so? Was it on a lake or a river? Share your thoughts and experiences with me in the comments below. I would love to know where your favorite kayaking place was and where I should go to next!

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Anne Bonfert is a traveler. Photographer. Writer. Teacher. Skydiving instructor. Adventure enthusiast. Nature lover. And fell in love with the African continent.

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