Out on the river

One of the best things about being a rafting guide is that every day on the river is different. The water is a little higher or lower than yesterday, the best course through each rapid is subtly changed, and if we have customers, the people are of course different, too. But it's a double-edged blade, because just when you think you've got this section or that of the river worked out, it throws you a tricky wave or a rock pops out and suddenly the boat is upside down and you're in the water. Again. That's life as a trainee.

And I've discovered that a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing. I remember when I was just a customer coming along for a fun ride down the Koboke canyon and a delicious home-made bagel lunch, I never really had an idea of what part of the whitewater was nasty and what was not. I just paddled when I was told to paddle, held on when I was told to hold on, and thanks to having a great guide in the boat every time, I never experienced a genuine flip. It was fantastic! Now I've been responsible for more flips than I can remember, have copped a couple of light injuries during training, done an intensive rescue training course, and I know what different sorts of whitewater look like and what can happen when you find your boat in them. When you realise that you're largely in control of where the boat goes and that you have to deal with the aftermath of any flips or customers falling out, it can be a little nervewracking. Sometimes I'd rather not know what's coming!

But it's still a great life and I enjoy just about every day on the job. I've just clocked up 2 months here at Happy Raft, but there's always something new to learn or do. Since rafting is supposed to be the main part of my job, let me take you down the river from top to bottom to show you what a day on the river is like.

On a big day I usually get up at about 6:30, knock back a quick breakfast of banana, yoghurt, stick bread and juice, and get to the base by 7 o'clock to prep for the day. Put some water on to boil for the customers' morning tea. Decide which boats we're taking out for the day, pump them up and put them on the trailer to take to the start point. Prepare the wrap kit and first aid kit, put the right number of paddles in the back, throw in some lunch equipment, and then do the shuttle run with the boats and buses - we have to leave cars at the finish point, too, so we can get back. Back to the base by about 9 o'clock, put on some music to set the mood for the day. :)

Our customers usually turn up from 9:30, so we welcome them, have a quick chat, then start getting them changed into wetsuits to get on the river by about 10. Down by the riverside we have a safety talk, then we split into groups for each boat for a quick paddle talk before getting on the river proper. Most of our customers are Japanese, so naturally, I have to be able to give the safety and paddle talk in both English and Japanese.

There are three basic sections of the Yoshino River that we raft. The upper section for our half-day course starts 4 kilometres upstream from our base at Toyonaga, and we raft back down to the base. The middle section between our base and a road station called Mannaka is 10 clicks long - we raft that only in high water for the long course. Then the lowest section, which is also the best rafting, is the Koboke canyon, about 10 kilometres of tight, big rapids starting at Mannaka and finishing at Kawaguchi. It's our usual one-day course, but can't be safely rafted when there's a lot of water coming down the river. There's also a section of the river upstream from Toyonaga that I rafted for the first time just the other day with a large group of school children, but it's mostly flat water (which is of course why kids can be safely taken down it) and we don't usually go there.

For the moment, let's imagine you're getting the special treatment and will be rafting the whole way from Toyonaga to Kawaguchi, some 25 kilometres of beautiful Yoshino water. We put in just under the bridge at Toyonaga and paddle out onto the flat water there for a bit of practice. Forward paddle, back paddle, hold on, get down, and over left or over right are the five commands we use on the water. Once the crew has got those down and picked up a bit of paddling rhythm, we head straight into the first rapid of the day, Toyonaga Joudan. It's just a little one, but it's a good warm-up.

A short pool before we hit rapid number two, Toyonaga Gedan, the longest rapid of the upper section. It's also relatively straightforward, but there's a big rock in the middle which can get you into difficulty if you're not on the job. Most people go right of the rock, but left is also a neat course. In high water there's also a hole just at the end, which you have to skirt left or right. In low water, though, there's a nice little surfing hole that you can paddle back into for some fun.

After a fast start with those two rapids, there's a long section of relatively flat water that gives us a chance to chat, swim, and jump off rocks before we hit the biggest drop of the upper section, Sandan. The main drop features a big wave curling in from the right which has been the undoing of many a trainee guide. The next rapid, Iwahara, has a couple of safe lines, but also has a hole in the middle which has a nice kick and will flip you if you hit it wrong. Flipping here's not so bad, though, since it's the last rapid of the course and there's a big pool to wash out into. Incidentally, Iwahara is where I had my Riverguide Association of Japan test in late April.

Most companies wrap up their short tour right after Iwahara, but the Happy Raft base is just a little further downstream, so we paddle on through another small rapid before our take out. Recently we've also set up a rope swing, Tarzan style, off the bridge next to the base, so our customers get that little extra.

Carrying on down to the long course section of the river, we have to paddle through a lot of flat water to get to the main action in Koboke canyon, but there are a couple of rapids worth mentioning along the way. Just on the border between Kochi and Tokushima prefectures is Kokyo, a large rocky rapid which changes significantly at different water levels. There's a drop over a big rock right in the middle of the rapid which causes the boat to fold and often kicks the guide out of the back and over the front of the raft - as I found out a couple of weeks ago! Not long after Kokyo is a nasty little overhang that needs to be avoided, and further down, there's a set of three rapids at Shimomyo which are small but feature powerfully swirling water - they can catch you unawares and have you in the drink for a difficult swim, so it's best to hold on tight!

Interesting as they are, though, Kokyo and Shimomyo are just a warm-up for the Class 3 and 4 rapids waiting down in Koboke. We roll by the Mannaka road station and wave to the sightseeing motor boats as we enter the calm upper section of the gorge. At high water we take out just after Mannaka, but at anything less than about 200 tons of water per second coming down the river, it's all systems go for Koboke.

First up is the Tekio rapid as you pass under the train bridge, quickly followed by the dog-leg through Mori-ga-koi, the rapid just beneath the Sun River Onsen. Ever since my boss took us down Mori-ga-koi at really high water, giving us a great look at the huge hole on the right as we shaved by it on the left, I've been a little worried about this rapid, but we had some rescue training on it earlier this week which was a really good chance to look at it properly.

You've got some time to breathe after Mori-ga-koi before you hit Nidan, which was the first Koboke rapid that I ever guided. Well that's not quite true - I had no idea where to go and flipped the boat on a big white water cushion just BEFORE the first drop, and we swam the rest, but it was apparently great to watch from behind. It hasn't flipped me since, but I'm sure it's just a matter of time before my next chance to bounce over the rocks of Nidan.

We take some time out to jump off some more rocks before we take on Otaki. Otaki has a reputation for flipping boats as they wash up the wall on the right, or getting you at the bottom if you can't avoid the big surf hole, or putting a puncture in your boat if you avoid the hole the wrong way - nice rapid! We usually go through Otaki, stop for lunch, enjoy watching other boats flip as we eat our bagels, and then go back for a surf before we carry on. My first guide down Otaki took us right into that hole, which flipped us and ended up sucking my safety rope out of its bag - pretty scary, really, but a good lesson in packing your rope properly!

Just out of sight around the corner from Otaki is the Magarido rapid, which used to be the scene of many boats wrapping around a rock in the middle, but that rock got washed away in a big typhoon a couple of years back. I have to say I'm thankful for that! We did a rescue scenario on this rapid the other day, with a boat wrapped around another rock and people lying unconscious on rocks or stuck in obscure pools - don't want to swim here!

Once you've gotten through Magarido, though, it's easy to relax a little, knowing you've only got one more big rapid to go. But Ado will get you if you're not on the job, so don't relax too much! We flipped at Ado about a month ago because we were too busy posing for the camera. I remember missing the outside rope and promptly being sucked under for about 10 seconds, which was long enough to get a mouthful of the Yoshino and lose my left shoe. I wasn't guiding the boat on that occasion, but it was motivation to always make sure I've had the line right since! Hit the first wave straight, crank it left as you drop into the second set, and then paddle hard to the left to avoid the hole at the bottom right. If you make it, then you really can relax - all that's left is the paddle to the finish point, the drive home, washing your gear, checking out the photos, and a beer at the end of the day. Nice.

Next time I'll take you for a virtual tour of our canyoning courses. For now, I have training at six tomorrow morning, and I also need to work out why the water has stopped running at my house. That's life in the country.

Take care, lots of love,

Dave

p.s. Great soccer game... :)