Benoni local and small groups practise for Dusi
The river level was excitingly high due to rain and the paddlers enjoyed a few days of good exciting rapids in good flow.
The Drakensberg FNB Drak Challenge is an exciting canoe river race that takes place annually on the Mzimkhulu River in Underberg during the last weekend of January.
However, due to the level three lockdown, the event was cancelled.
This, however, didn’t stop a few small groups of Gauteng-based paddlers who had already booked their accommodation for a few days in the mountains.
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Benoni local Mike Barry and a few other small groups were looking forward to enjoying the peak rainfall season in the valley where the river is rain dependent and much more fun and less rocky.
They made their way as originally planned to the river near Underberg and paddled down in small groups for safety despite no official racing being organised.
The river level was excitingly high due to rain, according to the paddlers, and they enjoyed a few days of good exciting rapids in good flow and the beautiful scenery.
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The river trip provided excellent training for the upcoming Dusi endurance canoeing race, which is normally scheduled for the end of February, but has been shifted to late March due to the lockdown announcement.
The paddlers kept their distance in boats, but waited for each other around corners to gather and keep an eye on each other, just to ensure everybody was safe.
They enjoyed the daily training on the exciting rapid filled river getting on the river near Castle Burn Lodge and getting out at the Swartberg Bridge daily, a distance of approximately 25km.
