We rafted the Lower Gauley on the first day. It was a nice warm up for the next day when we rafted the Upper Gauley. The river was gorgeous! Clear water in varying shades of green. The trees had not begun to turn yet, so every place you looked you saw a sea of green trees, and beautiful rock formations running along the river.
The Upper Gauley was a much tougher trip. There were 5 or 6 class V rapids, which is the highest level you are allowed to raft commercially. (Apparently, people raft class VI's on their own--like the guy who made it down Victoria Falls... and lived to tell about it!) The first one was called "Insignificant" and that was a little ironic because it was nothing of the sort! We made it down without flipping the boat. But a few other people weren't as lucky. We plucked one rafter out of the river and he was clearly shaken up. He laid in the floor of the raft, speechless. And we had a hard time getting him back to his own raft. He didn't want to move at all--and he was a big guy. I felt a little sorry for him because we had just started the trip!
Lost Paddle was one of my favorites. It was a series of 3 pretty big drops, the middle of which was called "Hawaii 5-O." When we got to it, it seriously looked like a gigantic wave. It was quite a ride, and we managed to stay in the raft.
However, we didn't stay in the raft on a rapid called "Suckers Go Right." We asked our guide which direction we were headed, and he said, "Right, of course." He flipped the boat (although I don't think he meant to flip himself out of the boat..." and we all went swimming. I was out first because my side flipped first, and Isaac flew over my head next. I was under the raft for a brief time, and then my life jacket sucked me up to the top. I was only under water for about 5 or 6 seconds. I got my feet out in front of me and tried to ride it out. But then I realized I needed to swim. I started getting sucked toward another "hole" and for a brief moment started to panic till I saw another raft coming for me. They plucked me out of the water and I was grateful. I really wasn't that upset... and was a little relieved to get the "out of the boat" experience out of the way so I could see I could handle it if it happened again. It didn't. We stayed in the raft the rest of the time, although I think our guide tried to flip us out at the very end on a rapid called "Fluffy Bunny." It wasn't as benign as it sounded!
We drove back to NC after a long day on the river. We made it back in time to pass out in our bed. It was nice to be home.
Here is a picture of us at our anniversary dinner last night at a place called "Jibarra." The food was pretty good, and we enjoyed celebrating the actual day. We headed home to eat the wedding cake topper we saved from the wedding cake. It actually kept very well--sour cream pound cake with raspberry cream filling. YUM.
Looking forward to many more anniversaries with my sweet husband. Next year I get to pick the trip! : )
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