Canoeing With Teenagers......on the Wanganui River

Terri V's Page

	Terri V aged 13

First Night on the Wanganui

I looked around me. On either side were steep, cliff-like banks. In the growing darkness I could just make out the shapes of a few grazing wild goats.

There was hardly any current at all, and my arms felt like they were about to drop off; we'd been paddling for six hours.

There were four canoes in all, but two had fallen back beyond calling distance as the crew of my canoe and of the other front canoe had started paddling hard out to make it to the hut before dark.

Dad (my paddling partner) called out to the other front canoe "We'll have to pull over". We landed our canoes on a small bank of rocks. By the time all four people were out of the canoes it was really dark, and we felt around for torches.

We discussed what to do: spend the night on the wet bank, or go on to find the hut. We decided to go on, but to wait for the other canoes to catch up first. Once they caught up they pulled over for a rest. About half an hour later we pushed off.

I was in the front of the first canoe, holding the torch. Dad paddled slowly, searching the banks. After about fifty seconds we came to a small rapid. As we were getting pulled into it a shout came from behind, they had found the hut. After unloading our stuff we set about cooking dinner.

It turned out that if we had kept paddling thirty seconds longer we would have reached the hut an hour earlier!

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