When we first came to New Zealand we did a very Kiwi thing and bought a kayak. We were full of excitement and enthusiasm to get out on the sea, do a spot of fishing and have a gentle paddle over to Matakana Island to relax on the beautiful tropical beach...ahh bliss. We bought a big 3 person kayak with lots of places to stow belongings and the picnic and even the picnic table. The first time we took it out it was so windy we could only manage to go round in circles and the second time we got stuck in a rip tide and only just managed to get back to shore. We also discovered that crossing a major shipping lane with container ships coming and going at a fair rate of knots to get to Matakana Island probably isn't the best idea and we soon realised that was why no one else did the crossing. So the Kayak was relegated to the cupboard under the sink, figuratively speaking that is, as its so big it only just fits in the garage.
Well, 4 years on we decided to try the kayak out on the river. Much more sedate, peaceful, no rip tides, no waves and no container ships.
Getting the thing on the roof of the car was an event but we managed with only a few bruises, trapped arms and pulled muscles. Launching on the river was easy - just hop in and push off. So far so good! We paddled up stream for an hour enjoying the peace and quiet then moored on a handy floating jetty on the bank side where we had a little picnic. We went on a bit further but as rain clouds were starting to gather we decided to turn back and head back to the car. We let the rivers gentle current do most of the work while we lay back and enjoyed the scenery.
The best thing about being on a river is you get a different view of the scenery from being on the bank side. Lovely.
