There is
good news for adventure lovers as the biggest whitewater Kayaking festival
is back after a gap of two years.
The 8th
International Kayaking Competition, which attracts the best talents from around
the globe, will be held next month in the south Indian state of Kerala. It will
be the major of the three-day Malabar River Festival, scheduled from August 12.
The event
lures not just sports enthusiasts but nature lovers too, for the competition is
held at the gushing streams running down the dense misty forest patches of Thusharagiri,
Kozhikode. The Thusharagiri waterfall on Chaliyar river gives one an
amazing experience, and so does the state’s tallest arch bridge lying in close
proximity.
The rowing
boats will speed through the milky-white streams of Chalipuzha, Chaliyar, and
Iruvazhinji, which have all turned into world-class destinations for
whitewater kayaking. The kayaking festival started in 2013, and has grown into a
major tourism event in Kozhikode district over seven seasons.
The event is
held in various categories, including slalom, boater cross, downriver, and super
final extreme races. It used to be the only whitewater kayaking championship in
South India for a long time.
The top
scorers in the male and female categories are given the titles of Rapid Raja
and Rapid Rani, respectively.
The Malabar
River Festival is organized by the Kerala Adventure Tourism Promotion Society
with the help of the District Tourism Promotion Council and the gram
panchayats of Kodenchery and Thiruvambady.
