A Four-River Journey – From the Pedja to the Emajõgi

Having paddled the Põltsamaa river several times before, I started wondering about the rivers nearby. In character, I'd say they're quite similar — mostly calm and unhurried, alike in width and in the nature that surrounds them.

We set off from Puurmani with Palupõhja as our destination, making our way through four rivers along the way. Why four? Because where the Pedja and Põltsamaa meet, the river takes on a new name — the Pede. We also stopped by "London" — an abandoned forest cabin that seasoned paddlers use as an overnight shelter. To reach Palupõhja, we had one final stretch of the Emajõgi still ahead of us.

The first evening was a short one — we paddled from Puurmani down to the Pedja river campfire site and set up camp for the night. The next day was a proper workout: we covered over 30 kilometres. In touring kayaks, that's no small feat, which is why this stretch of the Pedja isn't really suited for a casual group outing. There's no road network and no easy access along the way — if someone runs out of steam, they're well and truly out in the wild, with little choice but to rest and hope for more energy the next morning.

The nature out there is something else — our very own jungle. That's exactly why I'd encourage anyone with even a little strength and spirit to come and see the Lower Pedja for themselves.

The river itself is mostly straightforward to navigate — there were only two tricky spots where some manoeuvring was needed, and at one fallen tree we had to lift the boat clean over.

One lesson learned: always bring a spare paddle. I figured we wouldn't need one on a shorter trip — and naturally, that's exactly when mine snapped clean in half. We managed to limp to the finish somehow. The reward, though, was a premium six-pack we fished out of the Emajõgi — it had apparently been bobbing along for over ten years. Only two cans had survived, but we hooked them out and brought them home to continue ageing.