By Mytle Ryan

The hippo came surging out of the water, snorting and grunting his displeasure. Paddles flew and every muscle was given an instant workout. After all, self-preservation dictates when confronted by a disgruntled hippo.

The weaker party gives way without delay - and there was no doubt who the underdogs were in this encounter. Our small group had, up until then, been gliding gently and indolently across the surface of the Muzi Pan as a fine drizzle cooled the air. Now we cracked up speeds that would have done an Olympic rower credit.

We had joined Themba Mazibuko and Nkosi Gumede, of Muzi Pan Adventures, for a canoe trip. Muzi Pan is situated in northern KwaZulu-Natal on the road to Sodwana Bay, not far from Mkuze Game Reserve.

In a good rainy season, the pan can stretch a length of 15km. The eastern shore is the most wild and beautiful part of the pan, with trees lining the shoreline. Any moment one expects an animal to glide out of the undergrowth and head for the water to slake its thirst.

Crocodiles bask, hippos peer with beady eyes, an array of waterbirds preen and stalk the shallows looking for fish or survey their surrounds from treetops. Bird calls fill the air.

"We make sure we keep a respectful distance from the hippos," say Gumede and Mazibuko, who have both done all the specialist training required to ensure the safety of those who accompany them.

It's not just the men who accompany tourists out on the water. Local women guides Qondeni and Lindiwe Jobe are ready to prove that what the men can do, they are equally capable of.

Paddling the pan makes for an encounter of a different kind, for those taking a holiday in St Lucia or the nearby game reserves. Canoe safaris are tailor-made and one can choose a short half-hour or a real work-out over three hours.
Phone 073 161 8189, 084 808 4046 or 035 550 407.

• This article was originally published on page 20 of Tribune on January 14, 2005