Worlds Most Scenic River Journeys

Journey down the mighty Spanish river that opened a passage to the modern world. Swim in the cold waters of the Sierras de Cazorla, paddle to Andalusia, fish in deep pools, harvest olives like the Romans, and pass through two historic Muslim cities.

Our journey will begin in the mists of time, high on the Devils bit Mountain in county Tipperary . Here local Greyhound trainer Sain O’ Costagan bathes his dogs' feet in the ‘magical’ spring waters of the Suir, convinced it will make them run faster. Further downstream we will meet angler Andrew Ryan who's also chasing myths, like the giant brown trout he always hopes to catch. We will continue by canoe to the town of Caher, With its Norman castle and fairy tale thatched cottage. This was built by the Duke of Norfolk for his wife, and modelled, rather riskily given the politics of the time, on Marie Antoinette’s play farm, a place where she could play at being a peasant. Canoeing further downstream will arrive at the town of Clonmal where we will meet Irland's class divide for the first time. On one side of the river we will meet the Rowing Club, who for 100 years have been providing elite oarsmen for the Irish national teams. On the other bank we will spend time with the workingman's boat club, also founded in the 1880s to provide the working men of the river a place to meet and socialize. As the Irish fiddle pays in the background we find out that once the club was once a front for freedom fighters during the war of independence .

Cruise down the Canadian waterway that connects the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic. Follow cargo vessels through a ship graveyard, learn of towns drowned to make way for trade, surf the eternal wave nicknamed Vague à Guy, and watch whales breach.

Begin a voyage on an untamed river with a blessing from a Maori elder. Tackle a grade-six rapid with a celebrated Yorkshireman, hitch a helicopter ride, freewheel down a ghostly bike trail, and fish for whitebait with a local woman with deep roots.