A whitewater rafting blog for anyone interested in California whitewater rafting, Idaho river rafting, rafting in the Grand Canyon, as well as rafting throughout the U.S. West, national parks vacations, multi-sport vacations, adventure travel, and all things related to the world's waterways.
Have you heard the one aboot the Canadian who migrated to California for the summer? That’s right, our California & Oregon regional manager has come down to foster the camaraderie of a tight California rafting guide crew and wow everyone with his off-the-charts Karaoke renditions of Sinatra. Avoiding the bitter cold each winter, James Rodger escapes to Patagonia to raft the wild Class V whitewater of the Futaleufu River. Having started river guiding in 1996, Rodger has worked for O.A.R.S. now for seven years. He loves to cook a variety of local, organic dishes and enjoys casting a fly rod into a river or stream on his days off. He is known for his friendly personality, can crack a joke in any crowd setting and takes pride in his Canadian heritage – still watching the Canadian news at night. Rodger has the confidence you want on a river trip; he is always happy to share his knowledge about a given area, and goes out of his way to make sure that our guests have a trip of a lifetime.
Those of you who have traveled with O.A.R.S. on previous rafting or multi-sport adventures are undoubtedly familiar with the efforts we take to create a comfortable camping experience for all our travelers. However, for those who have yet to experience the art of camping with O.A.R.S., allow us to share a few examples of what you should expect on a multi-day adventure:
First off, our guides are experts at finding the best camp spots away from other groups. You may often feel as though you are the only ones on the river. Camp may be at a still, sandy alcove on the water’s edge, or a sunny, green clearing among mammoth cedars and towering cliff faces. There are trailheads, fishing hideaways and swimming holes just a few moments away.
Upon arrival at camp, your guides will set up comfortable camp chairs, drinking water, a “loo with a view” (placed at a discrete location away from camp generally with a scenic vista), a hand-wash station, and a full-scale kitchen.
Bula and greetings from Fiji, O yau o James, and over the next couple of months I am going to be reporting on Fiji and the O.A.R.S. experience. My goal is simple; Provide an inside glimpse of the Rivers Fiji daily adventures and the people that support them. Now that is a daunting task, considering the fact that I am a newly arrived visitor to this island nation. But I am sure with help from my friends here and all of you out there that you can help me on my way. So what exactly will I be writing about? Everything that I come across, from kayaking down the Luva, Rafting down the Upper Navua, Visiting our partners like the village of Nakavika, and hopefully any little adventures you want to send me on. That’s right! This is going to be an interactive record that you will help with. Do you want to know how fresh water eels are caught? How about the pounding of Kava, Perhaps how traditional tattoos are given (Please don’t ask me to get one, I hear they are very painful) I have a couple of tools with me to help capture these details of life here, a handy video camera, a still camera and my laptop. So if you want to send me on an adventure, just make a suggestion and we will find out where it leads us. Along the way I will try and give you little tidbits of information, like the fact that Tongans used to visit the islands in order to get feathers from the endemic red-breasted musk parrot. Or the fact that pottery shards dating back to 1290 BC have been found in the Sigatoka valley, just up the coast from our office. Fiji is an island that holds daily discoveries, and I hope you will enjoy the adventure along with me. Au sa liu mada (see you later) James
Nita asked about rating whitewater rafting rapids (say that 3 times). She wants to know what level 7, 8, 9 rapids are like and how often people spill out of rafts when on rapids this size.
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