Can I just tell you how AMAZING whitewater rafting is?
Why the heck did I wait so long? I went for the first time this summer (2019), a day after my 40-(ahem-ahem) birthday. It was an incredible adventure that took my breath away, and probably the best Oregon river experience I’ve had.
I decided to pop my whitewater cherry by taking an easy ½ day afternoon guided trip. It was a gorgeous sunny day in central Oregon and driving into the tiny town of Maupin, my husband and I stopped by the shop of Deschutes River Adventures to check in for our trip.
An Adventures Awaits
There are about eight whitewater rafting companies in Maupin, all with experienced guides that will take you safely down the river for a ton of fun. A group of us piled into one of their vans and we took off for the 10-minute drive to the river.
Then we donned our life vests and were given a quick run-down of what to expect, and safety precautions to take. The first rule of the river is to “look good.” This means many things! Like if you get thrown out of the boat, put your feet first and lay back floating until a river guide can pick you up. Do this and you will look good!
Listen to your guide and follow their lead at all times. This means row when you’re told to row, stop when you’re told to stop and help each other out when navigating the waters. Do this and you will look good!
If the boat capsizes and you find yourself underneath the boat in the water, find the perimeter of the boat and hang on until your guide can turn the boat back over or get help. Guess what happens when you do this? That’s right….
You will LOOK GOOD
We climbed into our huge sturdy red rubber river raft (say THAT fast five times) and set off down the river. There were six of us all sitting on the edges of the raft with our one paddle apiece. We were the engines of the raft, ready to row. Our guide sat at the back with her paddle, ready to steer.
It was a calm beginning to the trip, but things were about to get exciting. Our first Class III rapid came up quickly, and we all got a refreshing huge splash of water in our faces. Not long after that, Erin, our guide, told us to quickly row, row ROW as another rapid came upon us!!! The raft started tipping to and fro, but I held firm and kept paddling.
That’s when I saw my husband fall in.
I didn’t see him come up for air at first, but then a few seconds later he was a couple of yards ahead of us in the water. The neighboring raft in our group quickly pulled him into their boat, and we rowed up alongside to get him back. That was exciting.
He was a little shell-shocked but it quickly wore off, and he was back paddling again with us in no time.
During the calm moments of the journey, we got to know our rafting buddies. We told each other stories, we told each other jokes. We kind of bonded. You tend to do that when you are facing the daunting task of the river.
And there was scenery! We floated by old pioneer silos, passed lumbering freight trains and got to watch ospreys dance in the air. We saw an osprey nest, with a couple of babies trying their best to fly out of it for probably the first time. It was high desert nature at it’s most awe-inspiring.
And then there were more rapids to tackle. During the course of our 3 hours on the river, we floated backward, rode a wave standing up on the raft (THAT was cool) and even got stuck on a rock.
It was a fantastic introduction to whitewater rafting, and now I’m hooked.
The folks at Deschutes River Adventures were so nice, and our guide Erin knew the Deschutes like the back of her hand. She was awesome. All of the guides in our trip were seasoned professionals who took our safety seriously while also being incredibly easy-going, funny and FUN.
I had the time of my life. It is now my mission to conquer all of the whitewater rivers in Oregon and Washington. Stay tuned.
