MOUNTAIN LIFE - Coast Mountains | Winter / Spring 2018

94 MLCM WINTER/SPRING 2018 of the Valbona River are shattered by the blast of dynamite as construction on the hydropower plant continues through the night. Despite the lack of environmental assessments, legal paperwork and a lawsuit filed against the Albanian Government, dam construction on the Valbona River proceeds. Sadly, this booming, echoing sound and the sickening feeling that accompanies it are common in many valleys of the Balkans. Listening to the violent explosions late into the night doesn’t scare Valbona local, Catherine Bohne. An American, she came to Albania as a tourist 12 years ago and never left. This is her home now. She and her husband run an eco- lodge and campground on the water’s edge. Their livelihoods are tied to the river. “They have started bulldozing the banks,” Bohne tells me the following day, cigarette in one hand, red pen in the other as she outlines the tributaries where construction has started. “We are taking the government to court, but it’s easy for them to delay and postpone court dates. That is why we need to stop the construction now, before the lawsuit has a chance to succeed.” Bohne is a true river-defending badass, frightened by neither dynamite nor jail time. Some men in Albania still find it uncomfortably humbling to follow her while she takes charge in the battle to protect their river. But for most, her courage is inspiring and her help appreciated. THE UNDAMMED MORACA AND BOJANA RIVERS, ALBANIA ANDMONTENEGRO While the legal battle for the Valbona continues, the BRT tour continues its way south to taste the fresh, free-flowing water of Montenegro’s Morača River. For now, the Morača runs free to the sea, but twelve dams are planned for this river. The clock is ticking. We launch our boats into steep, technical creeks of the Morača high in the mountains and paddle 200 kilometres to where the fresh water turns salty and meets the Adriatic Sea. We don’t encounter a single dam. The river’s freedom is in stark contrast to the concrete barriers of the Soča. My mind is also full of contrast – at home in Canada I’m a competitive kayaker, always chasing the next chance to train, paddle and compete. Here, sitting on the beach scrolling through social media, I find myself less interested in posts about the newest gear, kayak competition results or first descents – things I drooled over pre-trip. After witnessing the destruction, loss and irreversible damage as a result of dam development, my priorities have shifted. I wonder why it’s taken me so long to engage in river conservation. Why aren’t more kayakers involved in conservation? Without wild rivers, our sport will cease to exist. Until now, kayaking was a completely selfish endeavour. But by combining kayaking and conservation – my favourite sport with a larger purpose – Balkan Rivers Tour has given my paddling a purpose. My previous perception of nature conservation has been smashed. Preserving our wild spaces isn’t just about carrying a banner in a street, protesting and signing petitions. I don’t have to hug trees or stop shaving my legs. It can be about drinking beer, having fun with friends and enjoying the rivers we want to protect. Just as Rozman and his kayak define conventional nature conservation in Europe, the ladies boldly fighting for rivers in the Balkans also defy cultural norms. Many times during this trip I am the only girl on the water, but when it comes to grassroots river conservation, the Balkan women outnumber the men. I think of women like lawyer Aleksandra Bujaroska who defends rivers while wearing red high heels in the courtrooms of Macedonia. Or Slovenia’s Neza Posnjak, the administrative powerhouse behind BRT and an endless source of information on legislation and policy of freshwater conservation. Nataša Crnković puts her life at risk by speaking up in the media and organizing street protests in defence of the Sana River in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Or the committed ladies of the Krušnica River, who formed a four-month- long blockade preventing hydro workers from continuing construction on the hydropower plant. When Balkan Rivers Tour paddles into a village, it’s the kayakers who are thought of as daring and bold. We may take cameras into deep gorges of the Balkans, sharing the wilderness and whitewater through photos and videos, but it’s the women leading the battles on the ground who are the real warriors. It’s the ladies of grassroots conservation who have the balls in the Balkans. They are fiercely determined to keep concrete out of their rivers and maybe this unlikely combination of women leading the paddlers and kayakers is just what is needed to save Europe’s rivers and keep them flowing to the sea. balkanriverstour.com When the river is dammed, we walk. ANDRAŽ FIJAVŽ BA Č OVNIK It’s the ladies of grassroots conservation who have the balls in the Balkans.