We drove out to Auburn area on Friday night and camped. We got there and I pretty much passed out. You see, the girls partied like rock stars the night before at Cat Club.
Go time the following day was at 7am. The rafting company drove us out about an hour and fifteen minutes to our launch area. Got to the spot and one of the guide gave us a quick orientation about paddling and other safety precautions. Mostly common sense stuff like don't try to jump on other people's boat or don't touch rafts with other people because that's how babies are made...lol! j/k...
Our guide was this 20 year old kid. He was pure entertainment. This kid is so well traveled that he puts to shame some of the 40 year olds I know that have never even left California let alone know where Auburn, CA is. Shameful, I know :(
We rafted down the Middle Fork of the American River. It was so beautiful. I am kicking myself for not getting one of those water camera...dang it! Oh well...
From the parking lot, we geared up and then carried our raft down the river. There were six of us on the raft plus our guide on the very back, steering.
I initially sat in the middle, right behind Brian, the Gentle Giant (he is about 6'3). Right off the bat, the first rapid that we went through was called the "Good Morning" rapid.
The water temperature was about 56 degrees, it was still fairly early so there was still a cold brisk in the air. As we went through the first rapid, Brian slipped off his seat, almost lost his paddle and tilted far back that he almost knocked me off the raft. "Good Morning" rapid indeed!
Needless to say that as soon as we got to the calmer part of the water, I immediately moved to the very back of the raft :D
We rafted a total of 15 miles down the river on the intermediate level. Which meant that the rapids were faster and the drops higher. We stopped halfway through and had lunch. It was included in our day trip package.
There were parts of the river that they called swimmers rapids, so once in a while we would all jump off the raft and let the current carry us downstream. I was hesitant in the beginning to get in the water but after we went through the "Jungle" rapid, I jumped in the water so fast you think I was swimming for my life!
"Jungle" rapid consisted of ducking really low in the raft and pretty much covering our head to make sure that we didn't get smack in the face with a tree branch. The rapid was fast, the tree branches were low and not to mention spider infested!!!!!
AAAAAHHHHH!!!!! We got through the jungle, I got back on the side of the raft, ready to paddle and I felt something crawling up my leg. I got up and sure enough there was a spider half way up my right leg...........HOLY HELL! I shrieked so loud it must have echoed all the way down Folsom lake where the lake and the river eventually converges.
I looked around the raft and there were creepy crawlies all over! So, I jumped in the water to get all the spiders off of me....UGH!
Other than that, everything else was amazing! I will do it again and again and again in a heartbeat. I will however skip the "Jungle" rapid next time around.
Our day ended at about 4pm and the van was waiting for us with cold soda and chocolate bars. It was the perfect snack after a long day of rafting. The ride back to our campsite was about 45 minutes long. We were wiped out but still sporting the perma-grin.
I got back to town earlier this afternoon and took a nap for 3 hours. It felt so good to lay down on my bed, tucked in my comforter with Classical music lulling me to sleep. I love the outdoors and I love camping but man! I'm sore from paddling and sleeping on the ground and constantly thinking that a spider is about to attack me or a frog is going to jump in my sleeping bag.
It was nice to get away from the City. It's exactly what I needed but it's definitely good to be home.
Whitewater Excitement:
http://www.whitewaterexcitement.com/california-rivers/middle-fork
Found pics online:
http://www.hotshotimaging.com/rafting/dspboats.php?PHPSESSID=8cd558a270c71c1605cb65200af919d6
Happy Camper,
Jakey
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