Rivers - Recreation

1. Rivers can provide many recreational activities for people to enjoy.

2. Boat hire, either of rowing boats, motor boats, or narrow boats, is popular along many inland waterways.

3. Fishing is also popular and many people enjoy cycling, walking, horse-riding and bird watching alongside rivers.

4. Rivers and the land around them are very important habitats for wildlife.

5. Fish, plants and animals live in the water and the river banks support a variety of wildlife such as otters, kingfishers and dragonflies.

6. Mute swans can also be found on lakes and slow-moving rivers.

7. Many rivers are navigable by small boats.

8. Moorings are created on river banks to enable boats to tie up easily.

9. Pleasure boats can often be found on major rivers.

10. Some are used as buses, carrying people from one place to another, others provide sightseeing cruises

11. Sometimes people hire small boats to drive themselves.

12. Canoeing is a popular recreational activity on rivers.

13. Canoeists enjoy the fast shallow sections and challenging rapids of a river.

14. They also enjoy the slower, calmer sections where the water is deeper.

15. Punting is a popular form of recreation on some rivers.

16. A punt is a square-ended boat which has a flat bottom and is propelled using a long pole.

17. Punts can be used in areas of shallow water and were developed in medieval times.

18. They are usually about six metres long and one to two metres wide.

19. They are propelled using a five-metre-long pole which is also used to steer.

20. Punts were introduced as pleasure craft in Edwardian times.

21. It became a favourite pastime on certain rivers, where they are hired out.

22. Water may look safe, but it can be extremely dangerous and it is important that people take care when around water.

23. Rivers can be very cold and there may be hidden currents.

24. Often rivers contain hidden rubbish such as shopping trolleys, and many are polluted.

25. It is difficult to tell how deep a river is and there are no lifeguards nearby to rescue people.

26. It is important when participating in any water sports that a life jacket is worn.

27. River banks may be steep or muddy, making it easy to slip in, but difficult to climb out of the water.