25 July --Rafting the Nile headwaters (by Caroline)

Wicked Waters

The G-Spot is a sweet place to be unless you are caught in a giant Grade 5 rapid in the Nile River. Our 20 mile white-water rafting trip down the source of the Nile was quite a thrill. We began the day with some quick safety tips and an exercise in what to do when (not if) the raft overturned. Our Ugandan guide, Jeffrey, skillfully tipped our raft over. We found ourselves caught below the raft and had to maneuver to the opposite side. Where is Linda? She was still under but came up with a good taste of the Nile.

Off we went to our first rapid, a Grade 3. We sailed through. “What a breeze”, I thought. “This is going to be easy.” We raised our oars in unison and merrily yelled “Uganda is a nice place.” A Grade 4 came next. The photo shows our raft right before Linda and I suddenly sailed out. It shows Linda lost in the middle, me at the bottom (red helmet) and Roger and David at the top of the raft. When my head surfaced, I was immediately grabbed. This was Linda’s second near death experience. Okay, after this, the boat of six passengers (another American, Blair, and his Melbourne partner, Libby) needed some clarification. Did our guide yell “Get down!” or did he yell “Gay down!” and what were we supposed to do?

Gunga, our first of four Grade 5 rapids was next. We paddled hard toward the giant waves. “Get down and hold!” I grabbed my oar and the rope with heaven’s gate in front of me. We splashed through the water and then we hit the G-Spot. Not so sweet. The raft was lifted to a 45 degree angle and paused before flipping completely over. I could not hold onto the boat and was swept through the rapids, catching a breath every chance that I could. I panicked and felt somebody next to me and grabbed their life jacket. It turned out to be Linda and then she was swept away. I came up at the end and gave the signal that I was okay but my right contact was floating on to Egypt. Linda was rescued by one of the kayaks down the river. I was pulled onto another boat. Here came David. Now where was Roger? He had miraculously held onto the overturned boat through the crashing rapids. “For my dear life” he said.

As frightening as that was, I did not drink much water. Linda, David and Roger got a gallon or two and came up coughing. As David put it “ Oxygen is a good thing.” By this time, Linda had had her third experience seeing the Pearly Gates. She left the raft and boarded the Safe Boat with Tutu at the helm. Two more exhilarating and successful rides through a 4 and 5 and then lunch on an island.

The second half of the day included only four rapids but two monster Grade 5’s including the last one of the day called, Itanda (The Bad Place.) I was relieved to hear that we were going to walk around the first Grade 5 because the water was too low leading up to the rapids. Had we been able to go, the raft would have sailed past a Grade 6 and flown down a ten foot waterfall! This is a Grade 5?!?

The afternoon was easier through a 4 and another 3. We even got in some relaxing down time. We got in bird watching and swimming down the river in calm water. David and I took this opportunity to jump over board in our life jackets. Time to get out! The boat in front of us spotted a lethally poisonous, black Mamba snake in the water.

Now the end of the trip and Itanda loomed in front of us. Time to get out and walk around another Grade 6. We could not believe the sheer power of the water!! It was spectacular. I thought this would be a good time to pour some of Mark and Greg’s ashes into the Nile. What better place than a mighty rapid named “The Bad Place”. Thank goodness I did not lose their vials of ashes in the G-spot.

We took another team picture, our last photo ever, I thought. Mom would be relieved that I did not get eaten by a lion. There was no way a boat could go through that rapid without being flipped over. Now, I know that there are many people who would love the thrill of this kind of adventure, but Roger and I are not one of them. Remember, oxygen is a good thing. We and another passenger joined Linda in the Safe Boat and plunged into Itanda. Hold on! That was enough of a thrill ride for us.

Brave, brave David decided to take on The Bad Place. We saw the raft come down and in a split second it overturned. Where is David? Where is David? Come on, Come on! Our eyes searched the crashing water. I wish I could have taken his picture when his head finally popped up. Sheer horror. What a stud. He made it! Would he ever do it again? Nope.

The source of the Nile is one of the most spectacular white-water destinations in the world. It is fierce, exotic and historic. We are all glad that we experienced it. We are all tired and sore and still feel like we are bobbing in water. What an adventure!