White-Water Rafting - An Adrenalin Rush like none other.

I'm not sure if you're had the opportunity to take on a raging river, which is coming at you with all its got, and coming out on top. Well those of you who havent, have missed something seriously spectacular. The thrill of being on a small rubber raft, with 5 or 7 other people, and looking a wave about 10 feet above you about to crash down on you is something worth talking about.

I'll start from the basics however, white-water rafting is a sport in which a rubber boat (commonly known as a raft) containing 6 or 8 people (depending on the boat size) travel down a white-water river. They are known as white waters for simple reason that they contain rapids (small sized waterfalls) and stones which cause the river to foam (ergo the "white").

White water can also be differentiated between on the basis of the depth of the river. The Ganges for example is very deep, certain stretches near Rishikesh (where rafting primarily carried out) are upto 30 feet deep. So there is absolutely no issue with a raft capsizing and the occupants being thrown out of the boat. The sheer depth of the river ensures that noone gets hurt. It has its share of fun though, since the rapids are also much bigger, though only grade 2+. Some of the most famous rapids on this stretch are the Rollercoaster, 3 Blind Mice and the Golf Course. This is a fun river to raft on if you're on a weekend break from Delhi/Chandigarh or thereabouts. Great Indian Outdoors, an adventure sports outfit based out of Delhi, provides a professional rafting experience for those interested.

My favourite river however, is the Tons, which is in Garhwal, just a few hours north of Mussoorie. The Tons is formed out of two tributaries, the rivers Rupin and Supin, which flow west from Himachal. The waters are glacial and the water temperature ranges from 2 to 5 degrees centigrade (thats really cold). At max, the tons is about 10 feet deep and the usual stretches where rafting is carried out is usually in the range of 3 - 5 feet, with really sharp boulders close to the waters surface. This is what creates the excitement however!!

The Tons truly defines the term white-water. It is raging beyond belief and every time a wave hits you, it knocks the breath out of your lungs, its that cold). A river has various oddities caused by the presence of rocks near the surface, like Holes, whirlpools, etc, and the Tons has the entire lot of them. It is a thrill to look a wave coming at you and having your paddle ready to slice through the wave to give your raft momentum and stop it from turning turtle.

There is great measure of team-work involved in rafting as well, which makes the experience all the more meaningful. Each person with a paddle has a crucial role to play, since we need to take the boat any direction the guide asks. You can hear this guy at the back, the guide, screaming "Hard Forward", "Hard Back", "Right Forward" or "left back" and so on and the respective person better comply, or there goes your boat. Its very strenuous, but then who said taking on the might of the river would be easy.

I have 2 aspirations where rafting is concerned, one raft on the Zanskar River (otherwise known as the Indus) and other is to raft on the Brahmaputra. I hope to accomplish both within the next couple of years! Anyone interested in rafting can email bhaskar@greatindianoutdoors.com or me, and we'll be sure to help you out.

Cheers,

Rahul.