Drama: the (near-)drowned woman

I’ve never been on an artificial river like this before and its construction is interesting. The grey blocks simulating rocks that create the rapids are like big lego bricks and can be assembled in different ways to change the flow. The water is let into the top of the course through three large sluices which can be opened different amounts, so there’s potential for great variation in the water, just as on a river.

After practising falling overboard, hauling each other back into our ten-person raft, capsizing, jumping into the water and floating feet first to a place where we could swim to shore, we were allowed to attempt the white water. I have no pictures of us battling the rapids since I was soaked to the skin and my camera was locked away in a dry place but it was great fun trying to control the bouncing raft and finding the pockets of air in the water that slammed up into our faces.

Well, it was great fun until the fourth time round the course when suddenly as we were about to go down the biggest drop, we saw a kayaker immediately beneath us. I discovered afterwards that he’d had the presence of mind to capsize himself so that our raft hit his boat not his head but in the process of trying to avoid him we all ended up in the water. I was under the raft and just as I got out for air it flipped and landed on top of me again. I forgot the instruction just to float to calmer water (fine on a circular course like this) but remembered what I was told the first time I went rafting – on a river years ago – which was to hold onto the raft. So, along with my daughter, I ended up spluttering my way down to the calmer water while the rest of our group were calmly pulled to the edge by rope. It’s hard work swimming in water like this and by the end I was as tired physically as I’ve been mentally for the last few weeks. But exhilarated.

Would we go again? Oh yes!