Cruising on the River Murray

Captain Proud at Swanport Reserve Murray Bridge

A major focus for visitors to my home town of Murray Bridge is the River Murray. As it is Australia’s largest river most tourists inevitably head for the the river for a significant part of their holiday in the region. There are so many ways to have a really relaxing time near or on the river, including:

• picnics
• fishing
• canoeing
• boating
• water skiing
• sailing (yes -there is a sailing club here)
• restaurant boats
• cruise boats
• house boat cruises
• birdwatching
• photography
• walking trails

Picnics

Even though I live in Murray Bridge, I have enjoyed many of the above activities. My wife and I often take a picnic lunch, or buy lunch from our favourite local bakery to take down to the river reserve to enjoy the peaceful river environment. It has been many years since we last tried to catch fish, but many people do enjoy this relaxing pastime. Our favourite canoeing spot is near the Swanport Reserve. Birdwatching and photography have also been a favourite activity for me (see my birding blog here).

Sailing and Canoeing
I have only tried sailing on the river once. This was near Swanport Reserve just south of the town where the river has a long straight stretch of water over 100 metres wide. It was on a two person, twin-hulled catamaran. This proved to be an exhilarating experience heightened somewhat by the timidity of my sailing partner for the afternoon. Both of us were first-timers yet we managed to keep the craft upright and did not suffer the indignity of a dunking. Years ago we also canoed several times in this part of the river.

River Cruises

These days one has a choice of several different ways to cruise the river in larger boats. House boating is very popular with visitors but I have only ever been on one, and only then for an hour or so, not to sleep on board. I have been on several cruise boats. These cruises can extend from an hour or two to a whole day and several even have weekend or week long cruises. I’ve been on several of the shorter trips and these are always very relaxing with great food and a wonderful platform to experience a different perspective of the river environs, including the bird life.

Noisy Miner at Swanport Reserve

Related articles:

• The Bunyip

• Swanport Reserve

• Sturt Reserve

• The Lavender Federation Walking Trail

• Picnic at Swanport Reserve

Related web sites:

• The Murraylands South Australia