Whitewater Rafting – How to Keep Your Rafting Trip Safe
For some people, the idea of going on a white water rafting trip can conjure up images of Meryl Streep in “The River Wild,” Visit here http://mainewhitewater-rafting.blogspot.com
or Burt Reynolds in “Deliverance.” Concerns about a raft flipping over, or the fear of falling out of the raft, can frighten some would-be vacationers, keeping them on dry land while millions of others are flocking to this increasingly popular adventure trip every year. What are the real risks in whitewater rafting? And the real safety statistics? You might just be surprised.
Consider, for example, the Lehigh River in the Pocono Mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania … one of the most popular whitewater vacation destinations in America. Guided whitewater rafting trips were introduced there in 1975, by an outfit named Whitewater Challengers. Today, four professional whitewater outfitters offer daily rafting trips on more than 25 miles of whitewater rapids in the Lehigh Gorge State Park. Over the past three and a half decades, professional whitewater rafting outfitters have hosted over 3 million rafting visitors on more than 25 million miles of guided whitewater rafting trips (the equivalent of going to the moon and back, 52 times!), racking up an impeccable safety record in the process.
In spite the lingering angst have about signing up for what some people still call an “extreme” sport, the truth is, a guided whitewater rafting trip down the Lehigh River is statistically safer than getting into your car and driving there. There are several reasons that whitewater rafting outfitters can compile such remarkable safety records, including:
1. These are guided whitewater rafting trips. Professional whitewater rafting guides are with you all day. They know the river; they know the hazards; they know the best route through the whitewater; they know how to help you avoid mistakes; and they know what to do if it looks like things might start to go wrong. For example, at Whitewater Challengers, guides receive training in swift water rescue, Red Cross first aid (standard and advanced) and CPR. In addition, they accumulate thousands of hours on the river, becoming familiar with every section of whitewater at each of dozens of different water levels. This is important because two trips down the exact same section of river at different water levels can result in dramatically different levels of excitement.
2. You’re in a whitewater raft, not a canoe. If you try this sport in a whitewater canoe or whitewater kayak, and it’s a whole different ball game. Professional whitewater rafts are designed with two things in mind: not tipping over; and not puncturing. A properly constructed commercial-grade whitewater raft will bounce off most boulders, and keep a steady course in remarkably turbulent water. In most places, you can float through the whitewater rapids forwards, backwards or even sideways, and it’s all just part of the fun. If you do that in a canoe, a kayak, or a flimsy swimming pool raft, the results can be disappointing, to say the least.
3. You’re [...]