White Water Kayaking Craziness

This past Sunday Zak and I were planning to go to Yosemite National Park, woke up early prepared for our 3 hour drive and then we decided it would be too far to do in one day, and since Zak has already been... I was ok with missing out. Not to mention I was up an hour before the alarm went off wondering if I would come across a bear while we were hiking and what the hell I would do? Since we were already up we began looking for something fun/adventurous to do in closer proximity to Sacramento. Zak came across this white water rafting place about an hour and fifteen minutes north of here on the Cache Canyon River. The family owned company, Cache Canyon River Trips, welcomed last minute guests so we decided it would be an exciting thing to do since I am a newbie to river kayaking and Zak loves the thrill of the rapids. We arrived, signed up, got a safety tutorial (which later came in handy!), put our life jackets on.. grabbed an inflatable kayak and off we went!

Right off the bat we hit some good rapids and since I was up front I got soaked! It was so much fun to take them head on, and when we got a break we pulled over to enjoy the scenery.

About 2 miles past our start point there is a pull out where we could get our BBQ lunch. We weren't really hungry but we paid for it so we got out and ate anyways! :) By this point, every inch of us was soaking wet! Here is a photo of me heading to our lunch:

Ok back on the river we go! One of the river guides (who were strategically placed along the river) was nice enough to snap a photo of us as we headed back down the Cache Canyon River. 

Here is a video of us taking on a small rapid! (Sorry if it makes you dizzy!)

The next series of photos depict Zak and I taking on the largest rapid on the river called "The Mother" and after we were done with it I decided "The Mother #$*@^$" would be a better name. In these photos you will notice that our faces go from shear excitement to... oh sh*t we aren't in the kayak anymore! ("The Mother" Photos courtesy of Cache Canyon River Trips.. we paid $25 just to re-live this moment) (click to enlarge)

It happened in a split second and before I knew it I was being drug underwater by a class 3 rapid, reciting in my head "Do I have my hat? Wheres my hat? Oh crap can't let go of the paddle!" Then I remembered what we learned in the safety course to put your feet in front of you if you happen to fall into a rapid to avoid hitting your head on a rock. Ok check.

 "Wheres my husband?! Ok I see him..hes ok.. now how the hell do I keep from drowning? Sweet a big burly man is jumping in after me, he will rescue me!" (Thanks to the river guides strategically placed on the river, or else I don't know how badly beat up I might have gotten!) So after what seemed like at least a 5 minute struggle to get me out of the current (in reality probably only a minute) I was pulled up onto a rock and reunited with my husband who proceeds to say "Nikki don't freak out, you are ok". Semi-freakout in 3-2-1... after regaining my thoughts and coming out of a shock like state, I realized that I had successfully rescued my hat and kept a hold of the paddle the whole time! Mission accomplished! Now if only I had put not swallowing water first on the list..

After a river guide told us where to find the paddle that Zak let go of we hopped back in the Kayak and headed back down the river...this is my scared face..

So long Mother Rapid... until we meet again..

So thats it for our adventure, bruised and banged up we traveled a few more miles down the Cache Canyon River, and hit a few more rapids. In all it was a great experience and would do it again if I had the chance! 

To see more photos of our white water experience click here.