One writer went kayaking down a world-famous river only to be warned not to fall in after realising it was full of shark-infested waters
“Don’t worry”, she said, “You’ll be fine,” she said… Well I wasn’t just worried, I was heart-poundingly, leg-shakingly, ready to run a mile terrified, as we prepared to take to the Brisbane River in Queensland on Australia’s east coast.
“If you fall in just pull yourself back up and turn over,” my guide told me reassuringly, elegantly getting back into the kayak she’d just pretended to fall out of. I knew one thing for sure, if I fell in the water I would be looking much more like a cross between a beached whale and a flailing seagull when I tried that manoeuvre. But falling in the water was not on my agenda (no thank you) as I’d just made the mistake of looking up what was in the water; sharks!
Ok, they were bull sharks and while aggressive were unlikely to take an interest in me unless I unwisely decided to go for a leisurely swim, but still… sharks. I didn’t want to be like the unsuspecting paddleboarder in Cornwall who caught the attention of one of the sea creatures.
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But, I was here now and my brilliant guide from the Riverlife Adventure Centre calmed my nerves enough to at least climb into the kayak and push off from the pontoon. At which point I sped backwards down the river in the very strong current as I frantically paddled to get back to the rest of the group. Somehow I could tell I was going to be far from a natural at this.
I’m not one of life’s thrill-seekers and add in the fact that I really can’t swim well and this was all something of a challenge all round.
I was determined to give it a good go though and at least I was doing this on one of the daytime tours, costing from just over £35. Kayaking at sunrise or twilight, which they also offer, seemed a little beyond my capabilities.
So, we set off along the river, paddling madly against the tide and soon I was feeling a lot more comfortable and even a smidge cocky.
Then it happened. A boat went past. Suddenly the wake hit us, rocking the kayak like I’d just jumped on a rollercoaster. Of course our guide had prepared us for this too “turn into the waves so you go over them and it doesn’t rock you side to side”.
Advice I thoroughly failed to follow on the first wave, wobbled frantically with a small shriek and almost plunged into the water. Suffice to say I faced every wave after that head on.
Once I got used to the river traffic I relaxed into the experience, even managing to wave at tourists along the riverbank, admire the 80ft (25m) high Kangaroo Point Cliffs, which you can also abseil from Riverlife Adventure Centre, and look at the water dragons – large lizards sunning themselves on the rocks.
Despite my fears and not a small number of large wobbles, I managed not to fall in and the sense of achievement (and yes, relief) was palpable when I returned to the pontoon 90 minutes later.
Another one for the bucket list ticked off – shark-infested river survived. Ok, the sharks are also probably further up the river and not swimming round the city centre but I’m counting it.
Kayaking tours can be booked at riverlife.com.au with prices from AUS$75 (approximately £36). You can find out more about Brisbane at visitbrisbane.com.au and queensland.com.
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