Venice and the Vogalonga
After a few years of delay due to Covid restrictions, Pool of Life finally made it to the Venice International Dragonboat Festival for a day of racing and the challenge of completing the Vogalonga.
It was an exciting weekend from the start.
Saturday, May 27th
Race day.
It was so hot on the water as we sat in our boat waiting for the race to start with the full sunshine beating down on us.
Competition was tough, but we secured third place in the Breast Cancer Survivors’ category
Sunday, May 28th
The big day we had been waiting for!
Time to give it our all, participating in the 47th Vogalonga. It was amazing to paddle over 30 kilometres around the islands of the Venetian lagoon up to the island of Burano and back to the Grand Canal.
We collected our boat from the watersports centre bright and early and made our way to the Giudecca Canal, paddling past Banksy’s artwork along the way.
All crafts gathered in anticipation of the regatta. It was incredible to be a part of this event.
We hadn’t paddled far when we encountered a bottleneck. This could have been a problem, but we had hired a local helm who was very experienced at navigating the Voglalonga route, and he got us through the mayhem quickly and safely.
After paddling for 3 hours and 50 minutes (we had a 20-minute lunch break on Murano), the Vogalonga was completed and we made our way back along the Grand Canal, where we were greeted by cheering onlookers.
It had been a tiring day and a celebratory meal seemed a fitting way to end it.
Pool of Life had a wonderful time in Venice, making memories along the way.
