With California’s historic snowpack beginning to melt, whitewater rafting companies are preparing for the best season they’ve seen in years.
On a recent day, an OARS guide barked instructions over the roaring waters for each side to row forward or backward. Then he suddenly yelled “Stop!” Rafters in life jackets and helmets pulled up their paddles and gripped the raft’s ropes, holding on before barreling down Satan’s Cesspool, a Class III+ rapids. The chilly water splashed as they whooped and cheered.
But more water also means more risks. Rafting companies say their guides have undergone additional safety training and swift water rescue courses, and they have navigated areas to know which spots to avoid while monitoring the changing flows.“There’s a lot more trees in the water along the sides of the river, especially after four years of drought,” she said.
OARS guide Garret Thomason said he'll use an eddy to “check in with my team, check in with my crew, maybe watch the rest of the boats go down the ramp and make sure they’re OK. Then we can pull back out, get in the current and continue downriver.”
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