“During this trip, guests can experience the unspoilt vista of the Kowie River, with breath-taking views of towering cliffs, indigenous vegetation, and ample bird life, whilst being served scrumptious snacks, ice-cold beverages, and good music.”
That actually happened. Almost exactly like that.
Now, there are many ways to do the Kowie River: swim, paddle, ski, speed on a motorboat, or sit with a line in the water as you watch it all go by. And then there’s the slow cruise…
As of last week, I can now say I have experienced all of those. On an adrenalin scale, swimming the early version of the Kowie River Mile rates seriously top end; a river cruise, the other. So that you can fully understand the contrast, I just need to explain.
The first editions of the Kowie River Mile started off with a crazy leap from a floating platform somewhere below Guido’s into the churning river mouth. The timing had to be exact: a few minutes too early and they’d have had to send the NSRI rescue boat after you as the outgoing tide carried you off to sea through the open river mouth. I surmised that the compulsory bright red swimming cap was so they could find you when you got swept out to sea just in case someone got it wrong. (I’m not aware that anything ike this ever happened in any Kowie River open water swimming event by the way).
So: Incoming tide… check. Jump…
“You’ll be fine,” a hardcore practically professional triathlete told me. “Just watch the [wave] sets. Every seventh wave or so you’ll get a big one and that’s when you jump.”
Get it right and you can fool yourself you’re popping into the Rhodes pool for a cool-down. Hesitate three seconds and the river is so low you can practically see the sharks licking their lips down on the river bed as you contemplate a drop equivalent of the height of a house. The Amanzi Challenge Marina Mile Swim that takes place at 2pm* on our bonus public holiday this year (27 December), on a different route, is truly genteel by comparison.
Since then, I’ve learnt lessons about checking the tides before you paddle all the way up to Waters Meeting for a day, whenpaddling back is your only return option (it’s around 22k). Somewhere in the past was a fun but very short and unsuccessful waterskiing bout. And in the very distant past, a mysterious morning with a boy who caught lots of fish and I didn’t (our first and last date). Earlier this year I had the privilege of being in a powerboat that followed the varsity rowing. We were close enough to feel the strain and hear the cox mustering the team for a last big effort.
All by way of explaining that a trip on the river on a big boat is extremely free of physical or mental strain. Plus we got to see all the abovementioned activities during our two-hour cruise on Spirit of Adventure.
Why a relaunch?
Halyards Hotel’s barge went walkabout – or rather floatabout – during the Covid-19 lockdown, explained River Hotels marketing manager Crystal Bester.
“Everything was closed, everyone was at home and we got a call to say our boat had broken free of its moorings.”
There was some damage and it took time for the insurance claim to be processed. But the downtime provided the opportunity for the vessel to be not only repaired, but completely reconditioned and refurbished. Riverworthy and shipshape, Spirit of Adventure relaunched on 16 December with a group of VIP guests and members of the media on board for a sunset cruise.
Spirit of Adventure’s “spirit” is that of a party barge, mostly booked by groups for private events. But there are also open trips up the river three times a day that holidaymakers can book.
It’s a leisurely two-hour cruise that may go as far as Mansfield Private Reserve before it turns around for the journey back to the Port Alfred Harbour.
My colleague Bryan and I put it to the test. Our trip was on a balmy evening with scarcely a breeze and Tourism’s preview proved pretty accurate: “During this trip, guests can experience the unspoilt vista of the Kowie River, with breath-taking views of towering cliffs, indigenous vegetation, and ample bird life, whilst being served scrumptious snacks, ice-cold beverages, and good music.”
Downstairs on the double-decker boat, you can gather around the central horseshoe of the bar, from which all manner of amazing things emerge: drinks (we declined); mouthwatering snack platters (the reviews from fellow passengers were excellent – and then they got finished); and if you needed them, blankets (we truly didn’t: like I said it was balmy and calm).
The boat can take up to 70 people – but on our trip there were fewer than half that number and that was comfortable.
After skipper Mpumelelo ‘Rasta’ Isaac’s safety briefing, we were off. You’re not allowed on the top deck until after the famous Kowie bridge because if you lay down as the boat passed under it, you could reach up and touch it. And if you missed low tide, you would have to wait. But you don’t have to worry about any of that because Rasta and the rest of the team have got it all sorted.
We started off the trip socialising, then moved upstairs to be entertained, first, by all the action on and next to the river: fishers, waterskiers, and even a couple of intrepid bathers (I think) heading for the end of a private jetty in swimsuits. And then the parts of the river I’ve only seen from close to the water with a paddle in my hands. But this time with a camera in my hands instead. The trip is a photographer’s paradise.
This is a truly beautiful part of the world, with much of our natural heritage still relatively pristine and a slow-paced journey on the Kowie is an opportunity to appreciate how lucky we are.
Sunshine Coast Tourism lists 11 options for boat cruises on their website and you can get price and booking details there: https://www.sunshinecoasttourism.co.za/river-cruises/
*The Royal St Andrews Hotel Amanzi Challenge Marina Mile Swim takes place on 27 December 2022 at the Halyards Hotel. Registration is 11am to 1pm compulsory briefing at 1.30pm, race start at 2pm and prizegiving 3pm. More info: 083 270 5009/ 072 914 9791
