DESTINATION CAPE TOWN SOUTH AFRICA

Often overshadowed by classics like the Nile or the Zambezi, Cape Town, South Africa, is better known for its picturesque beaches and craggy cliffs than for its whitewater. Forget the hippos, crocodiles, elephants and zebras, and imagine instead some of Europe’s iconic runs set against a ruggedly different backdrop. Brought into the public eye for its natural beauty, nightlife, and delicacies, the Western Cape is also home to world-class rivers ranging from scenic grade 2 to formidable class 5, all an hour’s drive from a diverse and vibrant urban environment. Add a warm and welcoming paddling community, and you will be wondering not if you should go to Cape Town, but why you haven’t paddled there already.

WORDS BY ANDREW KELLETT - PHOTOGRAPHY: ANDREW KELLETT & ALAN VAN GYSEN

Following the end of Apartheid in the early 1990s, a new democratic era under prime minister Nelson Mandela opened up South Africa to tourism. In the two decades since, many areas have become top international travel destinations. Tourists are lured to game reserves and cities, to surf and mountains--and increasingly, to rivers. Some of the industry’s best kayakers and early pioneers originate in South Africa, with names like Steve Fisher, explorer Hendri Coetzee and Riot Kayaks designer Corran Addison coming to mind.These men are whitewater legends, shaped in part by their environment. Harsh and often unforgiving, in the 1980s when South Africa’s rivers were first being explored,Corran explains that“there was no such thing as going kayaking for the afternoon, it was all expedition paddling.” Kayaking in South Africa boomed with…

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Kayak Session (Digital) - 1 Issue, spring 2017

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