Sunday, June 28, 2015

Riding the Rapids - A Harpers Ferry Rafting Adventure

Today's big adventure: riding the rapids in Harpers Ferry, WV. Shira arranged a rafting trip through Harpers Ferry Adventure Center. I'd been rafting a couple of times and had high hopes for the trip. For Shira and the rest of the group, this was their first time on whitewater.

My hunch is that the success of these trips are driven by two factors: how much water is on the river and how good your guide is. Without enough water volume, the rapids just don't exist. We lucked out on both accounts. Yesterday's full day of rain meant that today there was plenty of water. In fact, our guide judged that the Potomac was at around 8 feet, instead of its usual 2 feet, and that they won't run the trips when it hits 10 feet. In other words, we couldn't have asked for better conditions.

And our guide, Ian, was awesome. He kept things interesting, all while being in 100% full control. It's exactly what you want in a whitewater guide. He tell us he's been riding this river since he was 9 years old, and I believe it.

This was definitely my kind of adventure. I was only bummed that we couldn't explore Harpers Ferry more. The area was overflowing with Civil War history. Still, to have an activity that pleased everyone from a 5 year old to a sophomore in High School is no minor feat and one I'm thankful for.

All the photos of this trip were snapped with my Polaroid XS 100 Action Camera. It was the perfect camera for the trip, as I didn't need to worry about it getting wet or even losing it.

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