Here in the UK at least, canoeing draws up images of sauntering around inlets or weaving down meandering rivers. 

But a new video released today (August 22) by Yeti shows canoeing from a different – and more gruelling – angle. It follows paddler JT as he undertakes a mammoth task of travelling along winding rivers for 270 miles across Texas and into the Gulf of Mexico. 

The Texas Water Safari is billed as ‘the world’s toughest canoe race’ and has been going on since 1963, covering over 1,000,000 miles in the process. It’s made up of two short races – to get things warmed up – before the safari itself which travels from Aquarena Springs in San Marcos, to Seadrift on the Texas coastline. 

The organisers behind the Texas Water Safari say that the main requirement of the event ‘is a boat powered only by human muscle’ and that racers can only receive water, ice and food along the way. Everything else must be packed up and, presumably, kept waterproof. 

Yeti’s video tracks JT as he undertakes this marathon paddle, including the highs and lows experienced along the way. It’s one intense journey, that’s for sure, but how does it end? You’ll have to paddle over to Yeti’s video to check it out.