![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Hobart life
Feb. 5th, 2012 03:17 pmThis afternoon, stopped at a traffic light, I briefly met a 3rd cousin on my father's side.
Feb. 5th, 2012
Rafting the Franklin - Day 4
Feb. 5th, 2012 08:24 pm[Day 1] [Days 2 & 3]
Ok, so where were we? That's right, camped on a beach under the stars after a long 3rd day on the river.
Day 4 started slowly, the combined effects of a late finish on Day 3 and the generous sharing of booze that evening. The morning was a little overcast so we all slept in and got into the water late. By then it was another brilliant sunny day and the water level had dropped noticeably overnight: a portent of the hard work to come later in the day.
Our journey started pleasantly, however, with some fun rapids to travail (with much bouncing up and down to get the raft unstuck in places. The guides keep telling me the raft is not a bouncy castle, but it so clearly is!) and a rest stop at the descriptively-named Blush Rock Falls.
Loading the rafts, preparing to depart for another day.
Beautiful Blush Rock Falls
By now we'd settled into the routine of rafting, with Brett giving very little instruction. Kevin and Niall commandeered the front of the raft, with all the pulling, pushing and leaping in and out that entails, while Jeddah and I were in the rear on bouncing duty, emergency braking and turning, and real-wheel drive. We'd settled into an easy rhythm, paddling together well and letting the conversation ebb and flow. At times our raft was silent as we all absorbed the treacherous beauty of our surrounds.
Although the River was mostly gentle, a couple of times Brett bade us all to disembark while he wrestled the raft alone through a particularly tricky or dangerous section. We'd clamber out onto the rocks and work our way downstream, paddles in hand, to rejoin him.
Navigating the river begins to get tricky
Our leisurely morning soon came to an end, however, as the river narrowed and the cliffs rose up on either side and we entered the Great Ravine. Here we encountered reached the first real portage of the trip: the Churn - a rush of white-water that's not safe to raft through at any water level.
( Wherein a most unusual luncheon is taken and eventually a camp is made ) Happy for the solo time, I wandered out onto a rock in the river to watch the sun slowly slide down into the dark, quiet waters of the Great Ravine, waiting for the others to wake.
Ok, so where were we? That's right, camped on a beach under the stars after a long 3rd day on the river.
Day 4 started slowly, the combined effects of a late finish on Day 3 and the generous sharing of booze that evening. The morning was a little overcast so we all slept in and got into the water late. By then it was another brilliant sunny day and the water level had dropped noticeably overnight: a portent of the hard work to come later in the day.
Our journey started pleasantly, however, with some fun rapids to travail (with much bouncing up and down to get the raft unstuck in places. The guides keep telling me the raft is not a bouncy castle, but it so clearly is!) and a rest stop at the descriptively-named Blush Rock Falls.
Loading the rafts, preparing to depart for another day.
Beautiful Blush Rock Falls
By now we'd settled into the routine of rafting, with Brett giving very little instruction. Kevin and Niall commandeered the front of the raft, with all the pulling, pushing and leaping in and out that entails, while Jeddah and I were in the rear on bouncing duty, emergency braking and turning, and real-wheel drive. We'd settled into an easy rhythm, paddling together well and letting the conversation ebb and flow. At times our raft was silent as we all absorbed the treacherous beauty of our surrounds.
Although the River was mostly gentle, a couple of times Brett bade us all to disembark while he wrestled the raft alone through a particularly tricky or dangerous section. We'd clamber out onto the rocks and work our way downstream, paddles in hand, to rejoin him.
Navigating the river begins to get tricky
Our leisurely morning soon came to an end, however, as the river narrowed and the cliffs rose up on either side and we entered the Great Ravine. Here we encountered reached the first real portage of the trip: the Churn - a rush of white-water that's not safe to raft through at any water level.
( Wherein a most unusual luncheon is taken and eventually a camp is made ) Happy for the solo time, I wandered out onto a rock in the river to watch the sun slowly slide down into the dark, quiet waters of the Great Ravine, waiting for the others to wake.
