“Gone Fishing…”

Big Paddle reaches the Murray

“Pushing 40 degrees today, but gorgeous flow for 38km. And now, having met a group of wonderful Barham locals, I’m going fishing,” is Brit Dave Cornthwaite’s latest message on Twitter. While people in Britain are experiencing around 30 degrees less – paddler Cornthwaite is obviously a bit better off down under.

Having once pushed a skateboard from Perth to Brisbane, he is now paddling the length of Australia's longest river, the Murray. Writing from Barham, New South Wales, Cornthwaite has managed to paddle 950km. “The last marker I passed kindly informed me that 1532km of Murray River remain to the mouth,” he tells his followers.

Along the way he has met fishermen, poets, lock keepers, sawmillers, rice farmers, teachers, policemen, politicians, possums, paddlesteamer captains and many more people whose lives are interwoven with the Murray.

“At this stage the river has appeared largely healthy, with the issues peppering the media not yet evident.”

However, despite the fun aspects of his adventures, there are also some issues that he wants to highlight while completing his journey. There are, he says, important decisions that need to be taken to ensure the survival of the Murray and the wellbeing of the people, flora and fauna that depend on it. These he adds: “Are in the hands of people far away, people who depend on votes to survive, not water.”

To highlight not only the beauty of the Murray River, but also the impact of drought, irrigation systems and rising salinity in the water - Cornthwaite is filming a documentary about his journey. He is also raising funds for the AV Foundation's solar and water project in East Africa, and is at the same time “encouraging passion for the environment via sport.” So far he has almost raised £1500 for the AV Foundation solar and water charity project.

To find out more visit his website www.thegreatbigpaddle.com