While others are Rafting

Driving the shuttle bus for Otter Rafting Adventures and preparing the lunches is not near as exciting and glamorous as being a raft guide. But it has its rewards too. I get to spend time out in the foothills and see so many different interesting things.

While driving we see lots of deer, sometimes too close to the vehicles. Usually they are ahead of the vehicle crossing the road or grazing in the ditches. These last few trips, I’ve see a doe and fawns – always makes me feel good.

Something very unusual I saw the other day was a very large owl. Compare it to the size of the fence post it is resting on. It is a Great Gray Owl. It is the largest owl often measuring 24 to 33 inches ( 60 to 83 cms). When it took off in flight it was immense. It is considered rare and often hunts by day – glad I got to see it.

Making a river trip a safe and enjoyable experience.

Everyone who comes out on our rafting trip must wear a lifejacket or Personal Floatation Device (PFD). It is the most important piece of safety equipment we have. Another piece of safety gear, which we have but is rarely used, is the throw rope.

Our lifejackets are rated for 50-90 lbs and 90 lbs or more. More accurately, they are rated for persons with a chest size of 24” to 29” for the junior lifejacket and 30” to 52” for the adult. Since we come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes the chest measurement is the better measurement. Like most people I have a better idea of my weight than my chest measurement and so weight is commonly used.

Otter Rafting Adventures uses lifejackets that are U.S. Coast Guard approved, commercially rated, type V PFD that is suitable for whitewater conditions. Within the year we will switch to a Canadian approved lifejacket complying with the new Canadian regulations that are being introduced.

The lifejackets are designed such that being able to swim or not doesn’t matter much. A person floats laying on there back and there is a head rest on the neck of the jacket which floats lifting the head out of the water. Such a design makes a lifejacket difficult to swim in but perfect for river use where it is best to “Assume the position”. This position is laying on your back, with your legs pointing downstream from you, with a bend in them forming shock absorbers. Keep just the tip of your toes above water – that way your heels can feel any rocks under the surface of the water before your tailbone does. (grimace)

Most people rarely put on a lifejacket and wouldn’t know if it was adjusted properly for them. Always get the experienced guide to check your lifejacket’s fit for you. Once wet, it will loosen a bit, so make sure it fits snug.

Something else we carry is a throw rope. This is a 50 to 60 foot length of rope attached to a bag and then stuffed into it. When someone is floating along in the river and they can’t be reached by hand or by extending a paddle, the throw rope comes into action. The guide will yell your name and toss the bag at you while holding on to an end of the rope. Grab the rope which will tighten right away and let the guide pull you to the raft. Don’t grab the bag since all the rope would have to come out of the bag before the rope would tighten and then you could be pulled in. Remember to lie on your back, face up, and let them pull you in that way.

These two pieces of equipment should reassure you and help make your day on the river as much fun as possible.

The rewards of Rafting?

There are many reasons for people coming out on one of our tours. They expect the expertise we have will ensure that they will get the most out of the experience in a manner with safety and convenience in mind.

I have been in the rafting business with Otter Rafting Adventures for 30 or so years and have plenty of years of experience to teach from. But there is a reason I have stuck with it through all that time. I have found I enjoy making other people have fun and watching them having it. There are not many businesses that are all about fun and adventure. This one is the best there is!!

With many years of experience, I have seen the river at nearly every level from barely enough to float the raft, to the river was about to start floating the lodged trees on the waters edge and in log jambs (un-nerving). This is the knowledge I have and train staff for.

The staff consists of your trusted guides as well as the unseen ground support staff that is following your trip providing the equipment, the shuttle service and maybe a meal too.

Here are some ideas expressed from staff that are in their first year of guiding or being involved. From the guide applicants I found the talented potentials, hired them and then the real training began. You can read between the lines to see what makes them tick.

Katryna Says

"WHITE WATER RAFTING
Many people I ask to come out rafting for the day shudder and their eyes widen in fear as they shake their head saying, 'Oh no, no I don't think I would do THAT.' The fact is the fear you feel is natural because of the unfamiliarity with what you may be exposed to. You may even visualize yourself being put into an uncomfortable place and setting. This is understandable but that is exactly where many people miss out on an adventure in their life they wish they experienced sooner. As a guide, I see it in every single trip. There are some that not quite sure of their decision but, without fail, by the end of the day they are the wettest, most energized and most relieved of the group. How interesting! I hope everyone chooses to come out and have a grand adventure, one that YOU can make your own with lots of laughter."

And check out Devon’s thoughts at his blog:

A day on / in the water with Devon

Getting ready to be on the river.

Today, I was taking a group out rafting; I was the shuttle bus driver. After the heavy rain the roads kicked up little dust and it was a pleasure to drive through the foothills out to the base of the Rockies. There is always so much to see, the winding river below or the front range of the Rockies ahead. I wasn’t lucky enough to be going on the river while the water was higher and the skies were clear, but someone has to drive shuttle bus. For the bus ride to the raft launching site, the rafter’s excitement and anticipation becomes infectious. It makes me wish I was going too.

At the put-in point they listened to my safety talk and paddling instructions as well as they could, trying not to fidget, as their thoughts raced off into the dangerous situations I was describing for them. I know when I’m nervous I’m not a good listener, but who is when facing imminent, certain death? It’s hard to see the reality of the adventure when bombarded by the sensationalism that TV presents to you. No, we don’t carry guns on the river like shown on TV.

Thirty years of paddling has rewarded me with few battle scars to show for the dangerous life I’ve chosen. An injury I had, I blush to describe it, was I fell on some rocks and hurt my hip. I was not even on a raft yet. How can you brag about that? Another time I got hit with a paddle in the face requiring two stitches in the nose. At least that one I can attribute to my life of adventure and tell with some swagger.

But, at the end of the talk when I summarize my safety talk to my attentive listeners I remind them of the main three dangers that everyone is exposed to. The sun’s rays giving a bad sunburn or the opposite, a much more serious Hypothermia. Second - falling on the wet, round, river rocks as I know well. And thirdly, when you fall into the bottom of the boat, get up right away. You never know what the raft might run into that’s hidden under the waters surface or if others will unceremoniously fall and land on you. It’s not everyday that you might have a total stranger fall on you and laugh about it. It’s one of the ways to meet new people when you go rafting.

So you see, there is so much happening even before pushing the raft out into the raging river. In fact, it’s a day you’ll always remember just getting ready for the adventure.

The river is not a static thing

The Red Deer River is estimated to be about 10,000 years old. In the relatively few short years that Otter Rafting Adventures has been around - 30 years - one can see it is nothing compared to the life span of a river. When travelling down the river we can see the marks of wear on rocks that are easily 10 meters above the present river floor. One wonders how long it's taken to erode the river bottom down to its present level from up there. On the left side, half way up of the top picture, you can see how at one time the river was scouring the rock, eating in and down.

Erosion, while something that happens in a gradual manner, can also take place quite quickly over a matter of days. I have seen the river move 100 meters across the valley floor in 5 days. The new channel contained all the water flow while the old channel, not recognizable, was filled in with gravel that was 3 meters higher than what it had been only days before.

When we look at the river we only see that the water is flowing down hill. But there is also another flow that is happening. This is the movement of the solid materials down hill that are being swept along with the water. It is like sand blasting but using water as the carrier rather than air. Unlike sandblasting, it is made up of many different sizes of particles and different materials, from fine dust to boulders.

The amount of wearing down of the valley floor that is occurring can be seen by the color of the river water. There is the rushing, murky, chocolate colored water in the spring, flushing out the materials that have accumulated by the freeze and thaw of winter, to the clear water of mid summer when only the finest particles are being carried by the moving water. When I have been rafting in the spring, I have heard the sound of sand and grit, suspended in the water, striking the bottom of the raft. You also hear the clacking of rocks beneath the raft as they are rolling downstream, propelled by the water. All this moving material is breaking down into smaller pieces as well as chipping away at the river bottom.

And to where does all this lead? A lot of this erosion ends up being clay. Check out www.otterpottery.com for the results.