If you’ve never been on the river, it’s hard to know what to expect from a whitewater rafting trip. Your friends will try to convince you to go telling you that it’s super fun or “tough,” but they will rarely explain why they feel that way.
Whitewater rafting may seem like a terrifying experience at first to some, but beyond the fear and exaggeration of adrenaline, it is a truly exciting experience. Next, we will explain some points that you can expect from your first rafting descent:
Connect with those around you
As you cannot use the mobile, it is the ideal time to connect with those around you. Rafting prevents the possibility of being surrounded by technology and returns us to our roots as humans.
As a guide, I once raped a group of 3 generations on a 2-day trip. One of the younger children admitted to me that he really didn’t know his grandfather, and thought he was an old stranger. Later that night, around the fire, Grandpa was telling his stories of hitchhiking through Europe and the Middle East after the Korean War. None of his family knew that he had been to Europe. The next day her grandson said, “Grandpa is great.”
Rafting is a team sport that requires everyone to participate so that it ends up being a successful descent. They all row, they all carry boats, they all eat together, and they all happen to succeed or fail together. It is the perfect adventure of teamwork and family union.
Usually your boat also turns out to be a small group of people, so it increases the intimate feeling during the descent, even if you are in a boat with unknown people.
Get outdoors regardless of your physical condition
You don’t need to be ready for a marathon to enjoy the fresh air and sun on a rafting trip. Class III dropouts are perfect for anyone ages 8 and up.
The oldest navigator I have ever taken was the grandfather, mentioned above, at 83 years old and had a lot of fun. This level of river descent is considered low-medium level for good reason: Class III descents often have fun rapids throughout the descent with a minimum level of fitness required. This type of descent would be, for example, the 14km descent from Llavorsí to Rialp, but in RocRoi we have lower and easier descents such as, for example, the 14km descent from Arboló to Collegats, which also has less rapids and the river is calmer.
Also, there’s an experienced guide behind the stick to take care of all your needs and get you down the river safely. Experienced guides know how to read the water so well that they can get down without their crew even having to paddle, but then where would the fun be?
Guides also train for maximum river fun with minimal effort. On hot summer days, nothing is more welcome than a big wave crashing into the boat. Rivers are dynamic places with time to relax and time for pure excitement.
Learn from the environment around us
The rafting descents are full of interesting interpretive data, and the guides are there to share the history of the medium.
Boat guides are more than just expert navigators: they are naturalists, hydrologists, geologists, botanists, and more. Guides study the natural world and share that wisdom with those around them. They love nothing more than to share how the river is the soul of the mountains and how the dynamic world of white water shapes everything around it.
If you have children and are thinking of taking them to a natural history museum, try a rafting trip as an alternative to give them a practical view of nature in action. Fun and learning together!
Enjoy the moment
Put yourself in your shoes with all the distractions you have in your day to day: your phone, television, social networks, work, deliveries, vacations and family: how much time do we have for us?
Living in the moment is difficult, but in the river that is all that matters. The river gives us a feeling of absolute freedom to experience the world around us without anything to distract us or stop us. From pure adrenaline through a fast, to contemplate for hours the immensity of the river. Rafting is full of moments that draw attention to a singular approach.
All this allows you to lose yourself in a moment of happiness like seeing your first sunset when you were a child.
You’ll repeat for sure
Almost everyone who tries rafting repeats. For many reasons: for adrenaline, for fun, because it reminds you of an amazing moment with your friends or family or simply because you loved feeling the river and jumping between the waves.
Throughout the journey, your guide will indicate the most amazing paddles and jumps of the Noguera Pallaresa and when you have tried it once, you will not want to wait until next year to repeat.
In addition, in RocRoi, we have the experience of more than 10 years doing this sport at any level and we are sure that a very high percentage of clients leave with a smile on their lips asking us for the season dates in case they come again.
Now what’s stopping you? The river is a wonderland of wonder and inspiration, all you need to do is take the journey. We invite you to try it with us, book your rafting descent here.
