Whitewater Rafting on the Ottawa River with the GoPro Camera

They might as well call it whitewater swimming because that's pretty much what the 6 person adventure rafts are all about. Since we were basically a boat of the manliest men on the river, our guide took every opportunity to flip our boat as intensely as possible to hammer us out. It also helped that we were with a group of brothers who do the trip yearly and have the same guide each time - they definitely knew what was up.

I've never been rafting before so I wasn't really sure what to expect, but taking in face fulls of water is it. Lots of paddling, flipping, swimming and fun. I didn't think you would flip the boat so much but man was I wrong. Basically every run on a rapid that you come across (which you can surf on) ends up with the guide flipping the boat and everyone swimming for their lives. Ok, maybe not for their lives but back to the boat at least. It's a more violent motion than you would expect as basically everyone falls on each other (and I have the bruises to prove it).

There are two types of rafts on the river: a 12 person boat which is a huge behemoth of a raft that is impossible to flip, and it basically cruises down the river like a dead whale. Then there's also the 6 person, which is highly maneuverable, much less stable and can basically flip on a dime when the guide wants to. The 6 person is definitely not for the faint of heart as there were many people who chose to sit out after the first run.

If you don't know how to swim or aren't a strong swimmer then this is definitely not something for you. Let me tell you that it gets pretty sketchy when you come up under the raft in the rushing water - you just have to remember not to panic and then GTFO.

Anyway, here are a few clips from the first day until I get some more time to throw an edit together.

A look at what we were up against...



Here's Kevin holding on for dear life before he went head first...



This is what it looks like to take a swim in the Ottawa...I lost my shoe here...



A more or less successful surf before the flip...I even managed to pick up an extra paddle...



Us just getting soaked for the heck of it on the first rapid...



After seeing the other companies and boats on the river, I would definitely say that River Run is the premiere choice for rafting on the Ottawa. I think they are one of the only ones that allow you to choose 2 days of consecutive 6 person rafts and they were really a world class crew.