I've lived, worked, played, camped, hunted and fished all over Oregon for the past 38 years (since 1970). While Oregon's rivers have beautiful scenery, and an abundance of natural resources, they simply do not have the pure blue rivers that are depicted in this movie. Which is okay, I'd just hate to have someone watch the movie and say, "Cool, let's go there on vacation and enjoy those blue rivers." Or worse yet, "Cool, let's sell the place and move to Oregon where we can buy a house on the banks of one of those pure blue rivers."
I would be interested, though, in knowing why Oregon's rivers have an Army green color, and are not clear at all, while New Zealand's rivers are clear and blue like in the tropics. Both are about the same latitude in distance from the equator (albeit in opposite directions). So they should have about the same amount of sunlight/seasonal changes.
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Razzbar
17 years ago
Oregon may not have a river like the one in the movie, but it has some clear running water in places. Not as big as the one in the movie, but I didn't notice anything really different about that river. The appearance of water is mostly a factor of viewing angles, time of day, where the sun is, the sky, etc.
The tropics? C'mon, tropical rivers are full of tea. Decaying plant matter.
It's mostly a matter of viewing angle. Bet you could see the Willamette as blue as the sky right in Portland, IF the sky is blue, and you're lined up right with the river and the sun.
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will7370
17 years ago
The Willamette in Portland is one of the most polluted rivers in Oregon. It has industrial sites on either side running for miles, and the mercury content makes the fish totally unsafe to eat. I should know. I worked at the Blue Heron Paper Company on the banks of the Willamette. Their industrial sludge dumped in there late at night when no one was looking. Industrial waste has been dumped in there for over 100 years. That river was ALWAYS brown, regardless of the season, time of day or weather.
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Razzbar
17 years ago
Sure, I know it's polluted. I lived nearby in the early sixties. I remember one time walking across the Burnside bridge toward the west, on the north side, and looking down and seeing the reflection of a big puffy cloud. Only it wasn't a cloud. It was effluent coming from the White Stag factory.
What I'm saying is that the "color" of water us often the reflection of the sky. I sure wouldn't touch any river where the water was actually blue in color. Water's supposed to be clear! BTW, I tossed a penny in the ocean one time from a boat, and watched it get too small to see. It didn't fade into the murk, it just got too far away. That's how it's supposed to be.
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thiago_bagua
16 years ago
On the Wikipedia page of the movie it says "Although the the film details an ill-prepared camping and canoe trip into the Oregon wilds, Without A Paddle was filmed in New Zealand to take advantage of tax rebates." Not sure where they got that from but it's easy to believe, the government here wanted to attract movies to be made here.
I believe the rivers around where the movie was made are snow fed and have a rock/gravel bottom hence the clearness of the water.
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dirtbunny199
12 years ago
I can't believe it was cheaper to film in New Zealand than in Oregon! Oregon needs to offer more incentives to filmmakers 'cuz you know the international flights, lodging & transportation for all the gear, etc, cost a pretty penny. If it was still cheaper than filming it in Oregon after all those costs were factored in, Oregon needs to make it more lucrative to stay in the states.
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