Overs Murray Canoe Tour November 2015
Many thanks go to Ian for organising a wonderful overnight canoe tour through the wetlands at the junctions of the Ovens and Murray Rivers in North East Victoria – who knew you could do a loop trip on a river!!
Ian & Prue led the way, accompanied by Allison & Bob and two of their children (ages 4 & 5), Linda and her three children (ages 4 to 9) and John and his son (age 17). We had a leisurely start to the day, setting off after lunch from Parolas Bend on the Ovens River, just off the Murray Valley highway. We paddled for a few hours into a secluded area of the billabongs in that area, appreciating the vibrant bird life and peace and quiet. John created a fun game of catch/fetch with a wet sponge which was a great way to fill in time and hone our manoeuvring skills in the boats. We found an excellent river side camp and enjoyed a swim and dinner over a few wines and some chat.
The second day we paddled through the billabongs to the Murray River. We paddled upstream for a short way (you would’t want to do that for long) and then via another small creek back into the billabong system which led eventually back to the Ovens River. We had a few laughs dragging the boats through some shallow sections but the weather was perfect so getting wet wasn’t a problem. Eva (age 5) had a go in a small boat by herself for a while and after a few frustrations ended up paddling well for a while.
We ended up back at the cars in time for lunch and returned all the gear kindly supplied by Ian back to the trailer for our return journey home.
An excellent family adventure.