It’s a tribute to modern vehicle manufacture that the biggest problem I’ve encountered since buying a car last year is to describe its colour. ”Oyster silver” means little to anyone beyond the motor trade, while ”brown” requires several adjectives, such as ”light” and ”silvery”, to remove the look of horror from the faces of friends and relatives.
Now, after a weekend in the foothills of the Drakensberg, I have a much more accurate phrase: ”dried red mud — with a metallic sheen once washed”. Finding the car’s natural habitat in terms of colour was a by-product of watching the Hansa Powerade Drak Challenge, a two-day canoeing marathon down the Umzimkulu river.
The rains that turned the dirt roads around Underberg into exciting four-wheel slalom courses transformed this pretty little trout stream into paddler heaven, and a record entry of 886 people in 642 craft started at Castleburn, in the foothills of the Southern Berg, on Saturday morning.
Even in spate, the Umzimkulu does not match the roiling brown rage of the Umkomazi (the first South African limerick I heard started: ”There was a young woman from Umkomaas, who stood in the water up to her …”), but the clearer water was not necessarily an indication of easier conditions and the river claimed 68 boats over the two days.
Some of those who survived with canoe intact were still left up the creek. Shaun Biggs, third after day one, lost his paddle at Tokolosh Rapid and had to negotiate the rest of the treacherous Underberg Gorge using his hands. His seconds managed to get him a replacement paddle and he trailed home 44th overall. Abbey Miedema, who was just behind eventual women’s winner Carol Joyce at Glenhaven, saw her challenge ended by a broken paddle.
If the waters didn’t claim your equipment, you still weren’t home and dry. Multiple Dusi winner Hank McGregor, who had raced neck-and-neck with Len Jenkins for the lead on day one, failed to spot a submerged rock at Glenhaven and hurt his leg in the subsequent swim. He limped to the finish more than four minutes behind Jenkins, with Brett Bartho a further two minutes behind in third.
Miedema and McGregor were just the high-profile casualties of Glenhaven on Sunday, justifying the natural caution that made me decline chancing the notorious rapid the day before, when the media travelled part of the course on rafts. These two- and three-man inflatables, which revel in the confidence-inspiring name of ”crocodiles”, provided a first-hand glimpse of what attracts ever-increasing numbers to canoeing.
The first rapid brought a single, stern instruction from the experienced canoeists who piloted the craft: ”Even if we capsize, don’t lose your paddle.” A practical admonition, which served the added purpose of removing all fear. When you’re hurtling between large black rocks, with water at times splashing several metres above your head, you don’t have time to be frightened if you concentrate on hanging on to the unwieldy stick in your hands.
The adrenaline bug gets you quickly. After a couple of rapids, when the river was flat, we were all peering hopefully forward to spot the next bit of white water, almost oblivious to the beauty around us.
The adventure ended (for our ”crocodile”) at the camping ground. For the record, none of the rafts — even those that went down the Glenhaven rapid and over the Mineshaft — capsized.
Almost on cue, as we deflated the rafts and piled into the organisers’ bakkie, the rain started again. It had ended by the next morning, filling the river again and making Canoeing South Africa’s dreams come true, but the dirt roads that led to the race viewing sites and the finish were a challenge — especially on low-profile tires.
Living in the Berg foothills or being an active canoeist are among the few reasons for driving a 4×4. Just remember to buy your vehicle in ”Oyster silver”. It’s the perfect disguise.