I'm on a mission to find all the great kayaking spots in and around Gauteng. With that in mind, I headed out to Paddle Power on the Crocodile River, 4 km upstream from Hartbeespoort Dam and had my best paddle experience to date. Feeling your entire body work as you get into a paddling rhythm is a fantastic sensation, and you know you're doing good stuff like exercising your core, back, arms and legs – which is incredibly satisfying, especially if you're someone like me and spend way too much time sitting at your desk. But continually going around in circles on a small dam, albeit in a well-appointed kayak surrounded by greenery, can get pretty damn boring. The same scenery keeps gliding by like clockwork. Before you know it, you're almost on first name terms with all the coots (small water birds) defending their little territories around the dam, you've passed each one so many times. Okay, I'm pretty eccentric, so this most probably doesn't happen to you. But my point is, after putting in about six laps at Emmarentia, my mind begins to wander and I get bored. Here's the thing though: After paddling 6 km (one lap equals one kilometre) my body still has more than enough oomph to keep going, but I invariably stop and get out because I'm unstimulated. This is great for getting a couple of paddles in after work during the week, and seriously convenient as I live down the road. But when it comes to pushing myself physically and developing my endurance skills I need a much bigger pond. My next go-to place is Lake Heritage at Cradle Moon. Significantly larger than Emmarentia Dam, and only 36 km outside Johannesburg, it's a great place to paddle – and when I'm there I find I can naturally cover much more ground. Even better, when I'm taking a breather, I can just bob about in the middle, taking in the surrounding Muldersdrift countryside while appreciating the birdlife and watching game amble along its banks. They also have a great outdoor restaurant, so I always make a pit stop there before heading home. But at the end of the day it comes down to the same thing – I'm going around in circles, again. Paddle Power, my gateway to adventureWanting to broaden my horizons, I popped into Canoe & Kayak World and spoke to Robbie Herreveld – one of SA's most respected paddlers and kayak tourer of note – to get some advice. “Paddle Power,” he says right off the bat. “From there you can go 4 km down the Crocodile River and into Harties. Just keep on Malibongwe until you hit the Broederstroom T-junction and you're there.” Well, that was me sold. Two days later I was back, this time to purchase a really cool kayak life jacket – I was gearing up for my first mini adventure! On arrival, I found Paddle Power to be everything I'd hoped it would be. In many ways it reminded me of one of those rustic pub/eateries you can come across in places like the Eastern Cape. Following the colourful handmade “To the beach” sign, I walked through some dense indigenous vegetation and found myself on a small sandy area bathed in sunshine. Large enough to take a few tables and beach chairs, with enough space left over for small kids to play and build sandcastles, I thought it was a nice touch. To my left was the river, and up the bank on my right I could see the shaded deck of the Beach House restaurant that provides great views over the river. Paddle Power's main activities include river rafting trips and abseiling, but I wasn't there for that. On hearing what I was planning to do, Pat, one of the owners, warned me how low the water level was in some areas, commenting that some visitors have a complete sense of humour failure when they get stuck on a sandbank. This made me laugh – the whole point of taking on a paddle like this is to deal with what nature throws at you and work it out. If I'd wanted an uncomplicated, predictable paddle I would have stayed on a dam! Saying hello to the CrocodileNow I haven't messed about with small boats on rivers since I lived in the Eastern Cape during the mid 90's, but everything I'd learned soon came flooding back. My first “wake up call” was quite funny. The river bank dropped down about a metre and was fairly steep, with very little space for me to get my act together while climbing into my kayak. All was going well until I swung my right leg over the hull and my left leg sunk into the mud right up to my knee. Not sure how to extract myself, I gingerly lowering myself into the cockpit and somehow managed to wiggle my stuck leg free and give it a good shake (to wash off the thick mud) without tipping into the drink. Laughing at myself for forgetting how precariously sticky riverbanks can be, I headed out downstream on my way to Hartbeespoort Dam. When Pat mentioned the river was extremely shallow in areas she wasn't kidding. The first kilometre was fairly tricky to navigate, with me having to pay close attention to what the current was doing to pick out the deeper channels. Even then, the water was often too shallow to paddle, and I had to resort to using my hands to scoot myself along until I found a deeper section. But with all the sandbanks out the way, the river opened up and continuing on my way became a non-issue. With the current pushed me in the right direction, making paddling easy, I glided through the predominantly rural landscape dotted with expensive estates with views to die for. And the birdlife was spectacular. At one point, about one kilometre from Harties, I came across a vertical cliff that dropped straight down into the water. Dotted with precariously hanging trees, I paddled under the high-rise canopy and found myself completely engulfed by swirling swallows as they hunted insects for lunch. Then I noticed a pair of Malachite kingfishers hanging out on a branch close to the water not three metres away from me doing the same thing. It was a special moment, and exactly the kind of stuff that made me take up kayaking in the first place! My Harties experienceBefore I knew it I was entering Hartbeespoort Dam. The wide open, watery vista that greeted me I found completely liberating – I'd never paddled on such a big body of water before. So I struck out for the middle, not knowing where I was going, just that I felt free. Eventually, way in the distance, I spotted what looked suspiciously liked a yacht mast, so I changed direction to go investigate. Turns out I'd stumbled across the Ifafi Aquatic Club. After paddling closer to check it out properly, I then began considering my options. Although still feeling strong, I'm no Man Mountain and fairly new to paddling, so I didn't want to push things too far on my first major outing. With that in mind, I headed around the bay where the Swartspriut River enters the dam on my way back to Paddle Power. While doing so I came across a bird sanctuary chock-a-block with breading birds on their nests. The raucous cacophony of bird cries completely bombarded my senses, making the experience quite special – so I decided to take a well-deserved break and hang out watching them for a while. Heading back to baseBy now the sun had shifted somewhat in the sky and I realised it was time for me to start heading back. I had no idea how far I'd paddled, I just knew that when I eventually got back to the Crocodile I still had 4 km to go, and with the current working against me. Travelling against the current once I was back on the river proved to be quite interesting. Whenever I stopped paddling there was no forward momentum at all – I just stopped, then started moving backwards. This meant I had to paddle hard the entire way, it was my only option if I wanted to get back to my car and crack open a refreshing ice cold beer! Negotiating the shallow sandbanks proved to be particularly tricky. Although there was still just enough water to float my boat, it was too shallow for me to paddle, so the current kept swinging my bow downstream and back towards the dam. Knowing that it's always a mistake to fight a current, I went passively with it instead until I found my gap and headed back upstream. By the time I got back to Paddle Power I was happily exhausted, not to mention famished! So I settled down on the Beach House restaurant's deck for a couple of pints and some chow while I chilled taking in the view. And, as an added bonus, the one man band was knocking out some amazing blues – perfectly finishing off what had been an epic day. I've always known that I'd enjoy kayak touring, and now that I've completed my first mini adventure I'm chomping at the bit for more. In fact, I've already given myself a new goal; paddling the entire circumference of Hartbeespoort Dam – now there's a nice big circle for me to get stuck into! - (c) 2017 NavWorld To find out more about Paddle Power visit their website www.paddlepower.co.za

Kayaking isn't rocket science, neither is it particularly expensive, but it can give you a great workout. So if activities like going for a run or climbing onto a bike don't float your boat much, maybe you should consider giving paddling a try. That said, here's how I got into kayaking – hopefully my journey will help motivate you into taking up this amazing, multifaceted sport! Not all of us were born to run, or clock-up kilometre after kilometre along winding trails on a mountain bike. Fortunately, there are many ways for active types to burn calories, get fit and have some quality outdoor fun that have nothing to do with “mainstream sports”. I definitely fall into this category. I'll happily lug heavy camera gear around with me on a 15 km day hike. But if you ever catch me running, chances are something bad's going down – like I'm getting shot at! And I enthusiastically dumped my bike chain for the rush of an internal combustion engine decades ago. My main outdoor focus has always been water. (Although it must be said, hiking comes a close second.) My childhood passion, swimming, later morphed into scuba diving which, in turn, stoked my interest in powerboats and, ultimately, moved me on to sailing – where my interests remained stuck for longer than I care to remember. That said, I don't have a competitive bone in my body, so the thought of taking any kind of racing seriously just gives me the creeps. As a result I prefer more chilled, less structured activities where I get to push myself physically – often without realising it – while simply enjoying myself outdoors. So yeah, I definitely see myself more as a “weekend warrior” than a dedicated sports enthusiast. How I got into kayaking The kayak touring seed got planted in my brain back in 2013 when I signed up for a short offshore paddling course in Cape Town. However, I was still besotted with the 18-foot daysailer I had at the time, so it remained just a fun experience. But when I moved back to Gauteng last year everything changed – now landlocked, I had to come up with a radical new plan to get my “water fix”! Chad Andrews from Canoe Concepts playing model on our NavWorld photoshoot. It was November, and I'd met up with Chad Andrews from Canoe Concepts at Emmarentia Dam for a NavWorld photoshoot. I had recently interviewed him for a beginners kayak article I was doing titled Getting started: All the basic moves a newbie paddler needs to know and needed to illustrate the thing. Knowing that I was interested in paddling (albeit basically clueless!), at the end of the shoot Andrews casually mentions “You should seriously think about join the club, it's really affordable.” “Hey, why not!” I figured. “I'm already here.” So then and there I wandered straight into Dabulamanzi Canoe Club's reception to find out how the whole gig worked. What really surprised me was how affordable signing up was. Annual membership is just R720 (this diminishes as the year progresses), I also paid R100 for the SAMSA levy, along with R80 for my tag that gives me access to the showers and boat storage area. And, when I get my own boat (which I now have), storing it would only set me back an extra R1 000 per year. My luck was in timing-wise for the beginners paddling course, too. This cost R600, but courses aren't run regularly throughout the year. When the racing season is in full swing, like it is now, they shelve newbie training so members can concentrate on competitions. Considering the whole deal to be an absolute bargain, I paid up in full on the spot. Why joining a club makes sense I've completed enough boat competency courses to know how important it is to get the basics right before heading out on your own. And the quickest, most efficient way to do this is to join a club. For a start, you're surrounded by an amazing pool of knowledge – so you tend to not pick up any of those nasty rookie habits that are so hard to shake later on down the line. And yes, while I may not be competitive, I do want to develop an efficient paddling style. That way I get to work the main muscle groups that kayaking targets properly, namely my core, back, shoulders, arms and legs. It also means I can travel further with less effort. Even if you don't want to enter kayak marathons like these guys, you can still learn a lot by just observing their paddle techniques. Another advantage is you get answers to all your questions, often over a beer. And just by kicking back at the clubhouse, watching the “grown ups” doing their stuff, you get to understand what areas you need to focus on and why. Apart from that, you get loads of good informal advice. After I'd completed my beginners paddling course and was wobbling around the dam on my own, other paddlers would often stop and make constructive comments. Things like: “I've noticed you're not holding your paddle correctly, here's how you do it”, or “try this with your stroke, you'll find the blade strikes the water more efficiently”. In no time I was up to speed. And the beauty of it all was I didn't even have my own boat! I'd simply used one of the club's beginner K1 kayaks that are freely available to members 24/7. Apart from allowing me to practice enthusiastically over the December holidays without spending a cent, it also meant that I had some breathing space to save up for the touring kayak I wanted while still enjoying my new-found sport. I opted to pay for the beginners paddling course (comprising three Saturday sessions out of four) simply because I figured it was a really affordable way to get up to speed fast. That said, I could've gone a more informal route. The club throws in one free training session for newbies, which is enough to get you wobbling around and not falling in too often! Then you can either get a coach, or do your informal thing, relying on other paddlers to point out flaws in your form as you work it out for yourself. Finding the kayak of my dreams Paddling may be paddling, but how you go about it makes a huge difference. For example, you might want to enter marathons (which in my mind is best equated to road cycling), or go the touring route (the mountain bike equivalent). Then again, you could have aspirations to shoot rapids, or enjoy the hurly-burly action of kayak polo. And the boats used for each specific sport category are completely different. That said, I knew right from the get-go I wanted a touring kayak. But having wasted more money on boats than I care to admit over the years, I knew the best option was to buy secondhand. So I dived online and, after about a month of patient searching, I found an absolute bargain. My pride and joy ready and waiting for me to have some fun at Cradle Moon. I'd been coveting the Wilderness Systems Tsunami 140 touring kayak ever since I first saw it at the 2016 Johannesburg Boat Show, but I never expected to get one so soon. Imported from the US, and a real quality build with a solid international reputation to match, it goes for R20 400 new (including the rudder system). I found one in immaculate condition, including rudder, for just R7 000! And, to sweeten the deal even further, the guy threw in a paddle worth R1 500 and a bilge pump that goes for R300. This seriously freed up my budget – allowing me to get a good Holdfast kayak mounting system for my car, a set of quality lockable tie down straps, along with a good collapsible kayak dolly to easily move my heavy 25 kg touring boat to and from the water. Right now I feel like I'm living the life of Riley. I still have a few more kayak bits and pieces I want to purchase, and some of the compact camping gear on the market is catching my eye, but I'm sure I'll be sorted by the end of the year. Right now I'm just concentrating on having fun – paddling at Emmarentia Dam in the week when I can, and taking my new toy out to Cradle Moon over the weekends where I can train and enjoy myself surrounded by nature. I also feel new destinations calling, my wanderlust is definitely growing – it's going to be interesting to see where I end up next! - (c) 2017 NavWorld