Day 4 Moab Rafting

Our main activity for today was a supposedly quiet rafting float down the Colorado River, mostly smooth with the possibility of class I and II rapids (Waves that make fun splashes). We had to be there by 8:30 and about 9 am we got the safety briefing and headed out.  We were on a raft with an extended family of 6, and the trip started out quite smooth.

Two of the rafts started a squirt gun fight, but we backed away to stay dry.  But soon we entered what the guide called the heaviest rapids on this section of the river.  Of the 4 boats in our group, only our guide put us on a bad path and we got sucked into what he called a "hole".  Things then got very exciting!  We took several waves over the bow, tipped the boat sideways (at least 30 degrees), and tossed a dad and his 7 year old daughter into the water!  I thought we were going over, but we quickly righted and took a few more waves.  The dad caught his daughter and got her back into the boat and held onto the safety rope until we got into smooth water. 

The result was that we were totally soaked, from our shoes to our hats.  Fortunately nothing washed overboard.  The rest of the trip was uneventful.  When the ride was done and we were back on dry land, I took off my shoes and wrung the water out of my socks and t-shirt.  With the sunshine and the dry climate, our clothes were partially dry by the time we boarded the bus.  

And so ended our unexpectedly exciting day!

Tomorrow we go on a 4 hour jeep trip through the colorful canyons.