Paddlers are eagerly waiting to take on the 54th instalment of the Berg River Canoe Marathon, from July 14 to 18.
With many obstacles and challenges, the 240km four-day ordeal is the longest distance canoe race in South Africa.
Katiso Hlahatsi, from Victoria Lake Canoe Club (VLC), will be taking on the Berg challenge for the first time.
The u-23 Hlahatsi has been paddling for years and has been training on long tough races with a group of dedicated paddlers from the local club, in preparation for the race.
Recent river races, in Gauteng, have been geared towards helping paddlers to train for the Berg marathon.
Among the preparatory races was the Johannesburg Country Club (JCC) 40km Klip River Race, in which Hlahatsi came home as the third u-23 finisher, in a time of three hours, 24 minutes, in 13th position overall, on Sunday.
The Berg marathon’s first day is an exhausting 62km challenge, starting at Paarl and paddling past Wellington, towards the Malmesbury area, before curving off to finish at Zonquasdrift, which is a five to six-hour hard paddle.
Day two is over 45km and requires another three to four hours of exhaustive paddling, through the Palmiet Islands and channels, towards the Misverstand Dam to end at Bridgetown.
Bushed after two long, hard working days in the cold wind and rainy conditions of the Western Cape, the paddlers are faced with a 75km third day, bypassing Piketberg, to finish at Zoutkloof, in the Hopefield area.
Those who are strong enough have to do nearly another 60km on the fourth day, bypassing the Berg River Station, to finish at the Velddrif Bridge.
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