White Water Rafting & Hells Gate

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October 15th 2007

Published: November 7th 2007

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Jaseandrach

The victims!

White Water Rafting
We had booked our white water rafting trip with Raftabout in Rotorua, because we got a 2-4-1 voucher off with the Sl-ezy van that actually hadn't expired for once and also because the Kaituna River rafting boasted the World's Highest Raftable Waterfall and Grade 5 rapids. Oooooo!!!! Rach hadn't been rafting before and Jase had just been to the artificial raft centre in Nottingham on a team building day, so we were both really excited. We got geared up and were allocated to the first boat, which was also the inappropriately named safety boat, because it had two guides which were there to assist the other boats if they got in trouble. Our guides Lee and Peanut were typical friendly Kiwi nutters and got everyone hyped up with the dramatic safety briefing, telling us what to do in all these scary scenerios. We had an experienced English couple with us and a funny, but scaredycat Aussie bloke in our boat. The other two boats were all screaming girls, so they got an easier ride.

We carried the raft down to the river and the Aussie guy panicked just looking at the river, which was relatively sedate compared

The practice falls!!

to the Grade 5s, and we started laughing because Jase tried to reassure him by pointing out a duck happily swimming against the current. We negiotated the first few easy rapids and then prepared ourselves for the first of two waterfalls, with adrenaline pumping through the old veins, we high fived our paddles and went for it. We survived the first two waterfalls and sat laughing at the screaming girls descend after us. No one was swimming yet! We bounced and paddled our way through a series of rapids until we reached the highest 7m waterfall. No one chickened out although the Aussie guy confessed he was practically pooing himself. Paddles to the ready, we steamed up to the edge and ducked down in time, Rach doing a turtle impression as we disappeared over the edge. Boom! We hit the bottom and totally subbed out, the river completely covering our heads, and almost folded in two. We were clinging on for dear life as we popped up from the depths. With the folding action, Jase head butted the guy in front (whose nose immediately started bleeding) and was rudely ejected from the raft along with our guide Lee, who quickly

Well survived that one!

tried to get back in the raft before anyone, particularly Peanut noticed. Too late! Peanut and I spotted Lee scrambling back in, so he didn't escape a ribbing from us. Meanwhile, Jase was swimming for his life back to the raft and quickly got hauled back in. Much laughter all round. We watched the girly boats follow us, but they all made the waterfall safe and sound. Boring!!! The fun wasn't over yet as we faced more rapids in the Lower Kaituna river, and there was no room for complacency, which the nosebleeder realised, when Jase shouted "impact!" as we hit the cliff face and the guy replied "huh!" before going overboard. We surfed a few rapids head on and then it was time to get back on dry land. Back at the office we laughed at the great action shots of Jase disappearing out the raft and Rach taking the "tuck your chin in" instruction to the extreme with her turtle impressions over the waterfalls. We hope you like the pics too!

Hell's Gate
After all that excitment, we visited Hell's Gate thermal reserve in the afternoon. We skipped the mud bath experience as we were worried it

Practice number 2!

Getting good at this!

might be too smelly, and had a wander around the geysers and mud pools. It was all very impressive and you can understand why George Bernard Shaw was inspired to call the fumuroles and plopping pools biblical names such as Sodom & Gomorrah and the Devil's Bath. After marvelling at lots of boiling mud bubbling away, we headed back to camp to shower away the sulphur smell.

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