If you were to ask me what I did on the Danube River during my day solo paddle from Ingolstadt, Germany to Belgrade, Serbia, my answer is simple. I fought crime, outran bad guys in speedboats with machine guns, almost died a few times from river monsters and foot waves⦠oh yeah, it was just like the movies, I tell ya. You eat, you sleep, you take epic poos and you paddle. When I first began the Danube I had that excited nervous energy.
Oh look, water, lets film it. You are too excited, too clean and the gear too new, a little river poser you are. I remember it feeling very slow at the beginning. Like wow, this is damn slow, this is going to take a while. Through all kinds of weather, I moved slowly. Rain, hot sun, cloudy days, headwind, tailwind: I could feel my emotions changing with each turn of the weather. I really enjoyed the rainy and cloudy days; the cool air gave me energy.
Though after too many cloudy days in a row, I could feel myself missing the happiness of the sun and its ability to uplift my mood. I had my doubts on day five. This is a normal phase of distance traveling, the doubt phase. Adventure Resources About Us Sustainability.
Men's Women's. Chairs Tables Backpacking Car Camping. Ultralight Backpacking Car Camping Mountaineering. I was never in danger from man-eating snakes or fish. I did get scared a couple times by beavers. Soon I became dirtier, worn in and tired, submerging myself in the trip. Every day I figured out how to organize my gear more efficiently, how to best attach it to the board, how to improve my paddling technique, what items to bring in my tent and how to construct the activities of each day.
Eventually, everything became easier and time just naturally floated by. I was not an overexcited traveler anymore, I was a dirty river rat β everyday getting more stoked on my progress, every day getting better at what I was doing. You notice things on the river because you move so darn slow, sometimes so slow it can drive you insane.
