Rafting Down the Mata Ganga

Rafters coming down the river
Rafters close up!
Lynne and Priscilla with Red Chili Adventures' owner.
He was so happy to be on the water again after several months of working in the office. These guys are really good at what they do.

Today we took a rafting trip in the Ganges River. This looks like the raft we were in. We didn't bring our camera because the guy where we booked said to only bring sunscreen and water. So we did! These guys were walking down the dirt street by our hotel so I thought I could at least show you the kind of raft we clung to for our three hour journey down the holy Mata Ganga.

We arrived at the shop at 8:45am sharp. The guys behind the counter were no longer in dress shirts but now had on their tight fast drying clothes. Priscilla and I wore what we had. We all piled into the truck and headed up the river to the place where we would launch from. When we arrived Priscilla and I both started looking for a private place as we knew it would be several hours before we would see land again. Our guide, Bheem, like beam of light, fitted out helmets and vests and began our training in rafting safety. We jumped into the big raft with Bheem while the others launched into the water in safety kayaks that would follow us down the river and be there in case of any mishaps. Bheem kept having us repeat the commands he taught us that would help navigate us through the rapids. "RRRRRAPIDS!", shouted Priscilla. No, that's not a typo. She actually stuttered there. She made it clear that she was afraid of water and did not want to tip over. He tells us that some people actually do. I was under the assumption that not tipping over was the whole point. I believe these guys are so skilled at reading the currents of the river that it is actually a choice to tip or not. That doesn't stop Bheem from contantly harassing Priscilla. She thinks it's funny and knows he is just trying to take her mind off being afraid. The rapids seem to increase in difficulty as we go down the river which gives us time to adjust and gather our senses. In the end, it was a blast! We were laughing and screaming through every dip and turn. At one point I looked over at Priscilla to see why she wasn't screaming, and saw that she was concentrating so hard that she looked like she was in the operating room.(she is a surgical nurse, by the way)We got drenched and I got chilled but I wanted to come back the next day and do it all over again. Highly recommended in my book. Namaste~