Six Mile River Rafting

We had a really exciting afternoon! But first we woke to sunshine and evidence that a bear had visited our site this morning -- bear poo on the driveway! Maybe it's a good thing we didn't know one was that close!

We broke camp and drove on down the road about 50 miles to Cooper Landing which is the gateway to Kenai fishing. But along the way we decided to take our friend's advice and signed up for white-water rafting on Six Mile Creek and Canyon Creek. John also made a few calls concerning guided trout fishing in this area.

But one of the most exciting things we have done on this trip was the white-water rafting. We had the option of paying for two canyons of class 3 and 4 rapids and then getting off the river or if Pam decided she wanted to experience the class 5 rapids we could continue on thru the third canyon and pay for it at the end. Everyone wore dry suits over layers of warm clothes and wool socks. The outfitters also provided river shoes, life jackets and helmets. We were prepared for cold water! After receiving river safety instructions, all participants had to walk into the river and swim down about 300 yards to the rafts so we could experience the cold, swift water and practice self rescue so if we fell out of the raft we wouldn't panic and could get ourselves out of the water.

Each raft held 4-5 rafters and one guide. Our guide looked a lot like Patrick Swazy, had been rafting for 7 years in Alaskan summers and heads back to the lower 48 to be a ski bum in the winter. And we were off down the river, the fastest river I've ever been on. But it was so pretty. We saw a bald eagle right off the bat then later a few King salmon. Then we didn't really have time to look around, we had to concentrate on paddling and staying in the boat. The first canyon was relatively easy but gave us a feel for what was coming. The second canyon was a little more exciting, some big dips, some technical turns and one or two falls -- one which threw John into the boat. By the time we got to the third canyon, I was having so much fun I didn't want to get off, so on we went to the class 5 rapids. Each one had a name like Merry-Go-Round, Sharks Teeth, and Let's Make A Deal where we went thru doors number 1, 2, and 3! We were hit with a lot of water, made several 4-5 foot drops, had to paddle really hard and fast, and there was no letting up, it was one rapid on top of another! I fell into the boat a couple of times, but you just jump back up and start paddling again. It was so exciting and fun that, of course, I laughed all the way thru it and whooped it up at the end!

Sad to say, we have no pictures just the memories and stories to tell.