Getting a kick out of rafting in the Rockies
by Amanda Follett
“Anybody nervous?”
Our guide, Ian, grins as he casually throws out the question and I snap my head around to eye him suspiciously. Affirmative mutters can be heard throughout the raft. Ahead, the Kicking Horse River gently speeds up before angling away from us. Beyond that, all that can be seen is a bit of spray dancing above the rapids.
We push off into milky-grey water the colour of wet cement, and as the river begins to toss us along Ian yells commands from the back of the boat: “Paddle forward… paddle left…” and we swing into the current “all paddle… all stop…” as it carries us away and over the rapids “paddle forward… all stop — hold on!”
No one needs to tell us twice. Seven willing hands grasp for the centre line just as a wall of water collides with the bow, almost folding the raft in two. The impact tosses bodies around this oversized rubber ducky, bouncing some off the side wall while some (like my own) land on the floor. We recompose ourselves, all smiling and laughing at one another. This is the kind of abuse we signed up for.
Hopi Hole, as it’s known, is our first taste of a serious Class 3 rapid. What I have yet to learn is that this is just a warm up for what lies below.
At first impression, rafting is not a ‘cool’ sport. Earlier this morning, the large group of us stood in matching blue helmets, orange lifejackets and black, sleeveless wetsuits that look like they were designed from 1920s swimming trunks. Looking like a cluster of cloned alien life forms, we all slap, slap, slapped over in our neoprene booties to where Ian was providing our introduction. Sweating in my less-than-chic getup, the Kicking Horse beckoned as it meandered past the row of boats we would soon pile into.
To celebrate the end of a fantastic ride on the Kicking Horse River, these two young women take the plunge to float all the way to the raft pullout.
The Kicking Horse River has become renowned as the most exciting and accessible paddling trip in Western Canada and a handful of rafting companies in Golden, British Columbia sell themselves on its reputation. Named for an early explorer who suffered a near-fatal blow from his packhorse, the high-volume river drains glaciers and peaks west of the Continental Divide, meeting up with the Columbia River beyond Golden and eventually emptying into the Pacific Ocean.
At best, the Kicking Horse sits at four degrees Celsius and, as the midday sun beats down upon us, the occasional stretch of rapids sends shockingly chilly waves across the boat and down my wetsuit. Bears have been spotted on the banks of the river and, as we mildly coast by, a bald eagle sits perched on a tree at the banks, as if maybe it has been trained to sit there especially for us. This 18-kilometre full-day trip, broken up by a halfway-point barbecue lunch stop, offers easy Class 4 rapids intermixed with gently rolling river.
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Rafting the Kicking Horse River in Golden, B.C. is a thrilling, once-in-a-lifetime adventure for those who don’t mind getting a little (or even a lot) wet.
But we have yet to encounter the Lower Canyon.
Today, as the river forces 7,000 cubic feet of water per second through the significantly narrower Lower Canyon, is one of those rare days when the waterline drifts just below the canyon’s safety cutoff level. Recent rain closed the canyon yesterday. Warm temperatures and high snow melt mean the canyon will likely be closed tomorrow. Today we have the option to sign up for this ‘optional extra’ that can be added to the full or half-day rafting trip.
So, with a number of other brave souls, I squoosh in full regalia from the full-day take out to a bus that will shuttle us beyond a sketchy stretch of Class 5 river and drop us at the upper end of the Lower Canyon.
The canyon offers no polite introduction. From the moment we push off, we bounce and splash through its Class 4 rapids without reprieve. On either side, white, crumbling shale cliffs line the river, reflecting the late afternoon sun and providing a dramatic backdrop to the swirling water below. This is the Kicking Horse’s grand finale and for nine kilometres it holds its strength like an orchestra holds its final note.
As our convoy of rafts nears town, the rapids taper off to a mellower Class 3. Not ready for the excitement to end, some take the plunge, throwing themselves overboard and riding out the rest of the trip bobbing next to the boat. Amused bystanders watch from the shore as this happy but peculiar bunch of alien life forms drift into downtown Golden and land on shore, where we slap, slap, slap our way up the bank and onto waiting busses.
If You Go:
Golden sits on the TransCanada Highway, less than two hours west of Canmore. Wet and Wild Adventures offers daily return shuttles from Canmore, Banff and Lake Louise. For more information, go to www.wetnwild.bc.ca.
Minimum age to raft with Wet ‘n Wild is 12, or 16 in the Lower Canyon.
The Kananaskis River east of Canmore offers easy Class 3 rafting appropriate for younger children. Age limit with Canmore-based Mirage Adventures is five. For more information, visit www.canmoreraftingcentre.com.
Disposable cameras can be purchased at the Wet ‘n Wild office and are highly recommended! There will be plenty of photo ops of your friends and loved ones wet and shivering.
All you need to bring on your rafting trip is a swimsuit and towel. Gear is provided, as well as a barbecue lunch on the full-day trip.
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