WOF 2016#30: Dusi Canoe Marathon 2016 - South Africa

River Marathon

Dusi Canoe Marathon 2016

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa



Founded in 1951 the Dusi Canoe Marathon covers roughly 120km between the cities of Pietermaritzburg and Durban in KwaZulu-Natal and itis unique as it includes numerous portages where the paddlers carry their craft over land, either to cut out unrunnable rapids and cataracts, or to eliminate long loops in the river. Most of these portages are through thick bush on steep and undulating terrain, and several of them are around 4km in length.
It is the biggest canoeing event on the African continent, and one of the world's most popular river marathons, attracting between 1600 and 2000 paddlers each year.