Rivers and canals are often a hotbed of history and culture, as
these were once the main way to transport goods from place to place. Today,
using these ancient highways to explore a destination is a quieter and more
relaxing affair than the usual transport of planes, trains and automobiles. Here
are some of the finest waterways of the world and the best way to float along
them.
Paddle the Wilderness Waterway, United States
The Florida
Everglades are a watery labyrinth designed by a god who clearly enjoyed a spot
of canoeing. Paddling the Everglades’ every bend could occupy a lifetime, which
makes the Wilderness Waterway as much a relief as an adventure. This
99-mile paddling route takes about nine days and threads along the national
park’s western edge, winding through the area’s 10,000 islands and briefly into
the Gulf of Mexico. Campgrounds and camping platforms are no more than nine
miles apart, and you will share your journey with alligators, dolphins and
manatees. Canoes and kayaks can be hired in Everglades City.
Take a felucca down the River Nile, Egypt
Take a tiny
felucca down the world’s longest river, leaving behind the souqs of Aswan and
cruising on the current towards Kom Ombo, Edfu or Esna. Feluccas can deliver a
very personal passenger experience, with the lateen-rigged boats typically
carrying between six and eight people. Nights are spent aboard the felucca
(bring a sleeping bag) or camping on an island in the Nile. Felucca trips to Kom
Ombo are overnight, while sailings to Esna mean four days and three nights on
the river. Start in Aswan to source a captain and boat.
Raft the Franklin River, Australia
Though Tasmania’s
Franklin River is not far from the city of Hobart, it remains among the world’s
most remote and pristine rafting waterways. Once you launch from below the Lyell
Highway, you are all but committed to eight days and 100km of rough-and-ready
river travel, until the Franklin finally spits your inflatable raft out into the
Gordon River. Surrounded by the impenetrable forests of the Word Heritage-listed
Tasmanian Wilderness, the
journey morphs from the haunting stillness of the Irenabyss to the fury of the
five-kilometre-long Great Ravine, which boils with invitingly named rapids such
as the Cauldron, Thunder Rush and the Churn.
Jetboat the Shotover River, New Zealand
For high-octane
thrills in a high-octane city, head for Queenstown on New Zealand’s South
Island, where one of the signature activities (among a smorgasbord of
adventures) is jetboating the Shotover River. Jetboats skim through the river’s steep-sided
canyons, fishtailing and throwing themselves into 360-degree spins. The
30-minute dance on water takes place deep in the mighty Middle-earth scenery of
the Southern Alps – Tolkien geeks may recognise the Shotover as the Ford of
Bruinen, if they can look beyond the spinning bow of the jetboat, that is.
Canoe the Bowron Lake Circuit, Canada
Set beneath the
Mowdish and Cariboo ranges in British Columbia, Bowron Lake
Provincial Park offers one of the world’s finest canoe journeys. The
renowned canoe circuit crosses through 10 lakes and paddles along three rivers
in its 116km course. The circuit takes between six and 10 days, and numbers are
strictly limited so reservations are essential. A shorter (three to four days)
alternative is the West Side return route from Bowron Lake to Unna Lake. The
circuit can be paddled from mid-May to mid-October; September is considered the
best month because of the vivid displays of autumn colour.
Narrowboat along the canals, England
With more than
3,000km of navigable canals and rivers, England is the ideal place for leisurely
canal boating. You can hire your own narrowboat and play skipper, or you can
have somebody else do the work on a hotel boat. Popular narrowboating canals
include the Kennet and Avon Canal, running between the Thames and Avon rivers;
and the busy Llangollen Canal, which crosses from England to Wales and is
reputed to be the most beautiful canal in Britain. Across the Channel in France,
the World Heritage-listed Canal du
Midi that flows between Toulouse and Sète is another classic.
Dugout canoe on the Sepik River, Papua New Guinea
Flowing more than 1,000km from its source in the Papua New Guinea
highlands to the Bismarck Sea, the mighty Sepik River is navigable for much of its length. Motorboats
ply most of the trade routes along the river, but for visitors the most popular
and most redolent mode of river travel is by dugout motor-canoe, puttering
between villages on the Middle Sepik or among its lakes and tributaries. The
best place to arrange Sepik travel is in Wewak, while on the river itself you
will be able to find motor-canoes for hire at Ambunti, Pagwi and Angoram.
Cruise the Volga, Russia
Europe’s longest river is a
prime destination for a cruise, with ocean-style liners as large as the Kremlin
barging their way along the Volga. Cruises typically operate between St
Petersburg and Moscow (though neither city is actually on the Volga), or extend
further downstream to Volgograd, the city once known as Stalingrad. Ports of
call along the way usually include Uglich, a town perched like an onion-domed
fairytale above the river; and the island of Kizhi, with its World
Heritage-listed Kizhi
Pogost featuring Russia’s finest wooden buildings.
Sail the Niger River to Timbuktu, Mali
It is an unusual
highway into the desert, but sailing up the Niger
River to near the legendary Timbuktu is a fantastic entrance. Passenger
boats operate on the river in the high-water season between August and
mid-December, and you can expect five very crowded days travelling between
Koulikoro and Korioumé (18km from Timbuktu). For relative comfort there are also
pinasse (motorised canoes). Laden with either cargo or tourists,
pinasse depart from the city of Mopti and take around three days to
reach Korioumé.
Tubing on the Nam Song, Laos
The Laotian town of Vang
Vieng sits among an inspiring landscape of limestone spires and is best viewed
from a reclining position atop a floating tractor tyre inner tube on the Nam
Song. This idle pastime is so pleasurable it has become a staple on Southeast
Asia’s backpacking circuit. Tubing trips usually involve a three kilometre
scenic float, made even more enjoyable by the presence of several bars on
islands and beaches en route. As idyllic as it sounds, make sure you keep a
clear head for there is the occasional horror story; in times of high water
rapids along the Nam Song can be quite daunting.
