This had been my first time rafting down the American River so I had no idea what to expect and certainly no idea what I was getting myself into. I did not come prepared at all, in fact the only thing I brought with me was my bathing suit, a skirt, one towel, and a little bit of alcohol.
I decided to go rafting with one of my best friends, Derek, it was just the two of us a 6 person raft. He was even less prepared than I was; the only thing he brought was a lot of beer. No towel, no change of clothes. Nothing. So as soon as we get there he says, “So yeah, I just got a tattoo a few days ago and they told me I shouldn’t be in the sun right now. I mean I don’t care, but you’ve got sun block right?” I didn’t, I didn’t even bring that with me, which was a really bad idea as well considering we would be out on the river for six hours.
Oh, and now might be a good time to mention that neither one of us brought water. I would later depend on this simple pleasure to save my life. Literally.
Nonetheless, we think this will be the best experience ever and figure we’ll be fine being completely unprepared for what was about to come. We finally get the raft and the woman handling our paperwork says, “Okay now you have to carry your raft about a half mile to were all the rafts are starting.” The raft weighed about 200 pounds and it was just the two of us. Already I was getting the feeling that this was going to be a bad idea.
We finally get out on the water and everything is going great. The weather is perfect, not too hot, and not too cold. We’re just hanging out having a good time, talking, drinking, just like everyone else out on the river is doing as well. We even make stops periodically along the way to make friends and enjoy the scenery.
So we continue floating, having a blast, when all of a sudden we float down some pretty fast, rapid water. I didn’t see the water coming until we are already going over them and apparently I could not react fast enough to hold on to anything so I fall in headfirst. I was wearing sunglasses at the time and holding a beer and as soon as I hit the water my sunglasses broke and I lost what was left of the beer.
I’m in the water and I look up and see Derek hysterically laughing at me. I could not believe that actually happened, I was so embarrassed.
Anyways, we get finally get to the end of the American River where we are all supposed to get off and head down to the bus area. Derek and I are pretty drunk at the time and really just wanted to go to sleep.
The workers at the rafting place told us that is would be 30 minutes until the next shuttle came to take us home and that we would have to stand and wait. The designated spot for us to wait at was right underneath the scorching sun that we had been floating under for the last six hours.
We’re standing there waiting for what seems like forever and all of a sudden I start feeling really weird. I feel like I have to throw up but not really, then everything around me starts spinning, including Derek. So I told him I didn’t feel good and that I needed to go sit down. As I walk from the line to go sit under a tree the feeling gets worse, I felt like I was going to black out or something.
From what happened her on is kind of a blur all I remember was sitting under a tree with my eyes open and not being able to see a thing. Nothing at all! It is the scariest feeling in the world to open your eyes and not see anything around you. So of course I start freaking out, screaming, “I can’t see anything what’s wrong with me? Help me!” Right about this time I can hear the bus pull up and people getting on but I can’t see the bus or the people at all. I felt like I was blind for a few moments, which is a scary feeling to say the least. Derek thinks fast, goes and grabs water from one of the guys working on the bus and gives it to me. As soon as I start drinking the water my vision comes back and I stop freaking out. It was by far the scariest thing I had ever experienced in my life.
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2 comments:
I was on the river that day too and boy was it fun. But, like you said if you don't bring sunscreen and a few water bottles then bad things happen. My brother turned into a tomato because he didn't put sunscreen on. And those rapids are harsh sometimes. I nearly broke my ankle in them. You're lucky you didn't hit a rock when you fell in! Good job surviving!
The writer has an interesting chronicle here, starting out by setting the scene.
Right out of the box, however, stylistically I think it would be better to say "I only brought a little bit of alcohol, a bathing suit...." and so one, and put the balance of the information at the end.
Second paragraph, same idea.
"My rafting parter Derek was even less prepared with..."
The column writer had a pretty traumatic experience and could have used that at the beginning to get the reader more interested.
Had the lead said, "The first time I rafted down the American River, I went blind. But just for a few minutes..." I would have been riveted in my chair.
One question: I thought alcohol was illegal on the American River on holiday weekends?
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