Clutha River Boat Cruises
You’ve heard the saying, don’t leave town till you’ve seen the country (or variants to that effect). Well, we took the opportunity to do a Clutha river cruise with Steve and what an eye opener that was. It left me thinking how ignorant I was to have overlooked such a rich adventure right here on our doorstep. As I told Steve, when I’d seen the signs for the cruise I’d classified it along the lines of other general cruises when in fact it’s an incredible historical journey and a perfect compliment to an Otago Central Rail Trail adventure.
The format is simple:
- Meet Steve at the boat ramp in Alexandra and take a seat on one of his super comfy launches.
- Cruise down the Clutha and be entertained as Steve starts to talk about the Clutha back in the 1860′s while pointing out the miners dwellings alongside the Clutha. His historical account is both entertaining and rich in content, far better than all of the books that I’ve read about this period.
- View some of the massive slip zones that have dammed the Clutha through the ages.
- Pull ashore at Doctors Point and explore the old mining town. You’ll get a real appreciation of just how hard they worked and also how innovative they were.
- Have a cup of tea or coffee on-site.
- Head for home.
Did you know that the Clutha is the 2nd longest river in New Zealand and has the highest volume and is also the swiftest.
This is a highly recommend activity taking about 2 to 2.5 hours and can work in nicely whether you’re starting in Clyde in the morning or finishing up in Clyde in the afternoon. For more information see Clutha River Cruises
Heading down the the gorge on the mighty Clutha
A major problem with the roof
Sit and ponder the effort and skill that went in to constructing these water races in the 1800's
Where you might have lived before you could afford to build a schist house
Even the smallest of our tribe found this an exciting adventure