White water rafting?

[decapoddiver]

My Mom wants a rafting trip for her birthday and I was wondering if anyone here has any personal experience with any particular company in Maine. I researched and they all do the same rivers/cost about the same so it's a matter of who does the best job. Thanks!

 

[epconti]

Hi there.

My wife and I have rafted the Kenebec with Adventure Bound and the Penobscott with.... Nuts, will have to get back to you on the group we went with. We enjoyed both companies. If you can, try to do a weekday trip. Less rafts in the water.

- eric

 

[MSilvia]

I know a lot of guides up on the Kennebec and Dead rivers, and highly recommend Moxie Outdoor Adventures. Northern Outdoors is good too, but is viewed by most folks up there in the same light most retailers view Wal-Mart. Kind of the evil corporate raft company... if there can be such a thing.

If you can do it, I recommend trying to book for 4th of July weekend, or one of the other dates that Central Maine Power is doing high-flow generator tests. The river on those days may run as high as 8000 cubic feet per second, as opposed to the tamer and more typical 4200 cfps or so.

I don't know if the commercial trips let you do it, but if you get in good with your Kennebec guide, see if he or she will let you try a "mystery move" at Cathedral eddy. There's a spot where a whirlpool appears and disappears quickly and regularly. If you time it right, you can jump off a rock into the whirlpool, and get a hell of an underwater ride for about 25 seconds before the river spits you out into a calm eddy. Don't try this if it's a high water day... I don't know what the dynamics are like there above 5000 cfps.

 

[epconti]

Dec,

Wouldn't you know it? Couldn't remember the name earlier but in this afternoon's mail was a brochure from Northern Outdoors. That's who we were with on the Penobscott this past August. They seemed pretty good to us (in regards to MSilvia's post), but that could have been because it was a weekday and there weren't a ton of rafts on the river. I can't imagine not having fun while rafting, so enjoy!

- eric

 

[decapoddiver]

and looking at doing a "low" release day. I love my 63 y/o Mother and don't want to have to explain the cardiac arrest to my family Sounds like Moxie or Northern. Thanks for the help.

Scott

 

[MSilvia]

I forgot is was a trip with mom.

 

[gmbaker]

wow, blast from the past, I actually did this (with some reserve), but it was a blast. quite the ride with your eyes closed and breath being held and a set of doubles..ok, not with the doubles, but it was a lot of fun.

MSilvia once bubbled...
.....I don't know if the commercial trips let you do it, but if you get in good with your Kennebec guide, see if he or she will let you try a "mystery move" at Cathedral eddy. There's a spot where a whirlpool appears and disappears quickly and regularly. If you time it right, you can jump off a rock into the whirlpool, and get a hell of an underwater ride for about 25 seconds before the river spits you out into a calm eddy. Don't try this if it's a high water day... I don't know what the dynamics are like there above 5000 cfps.

 

[PK]

I think YOU should organize a whitewater rafting trip for us! You sound like you know exactly what to do.

If you do, I'll be the first to sign up.

 

[MSilvia]

I'm going to be rafting the Dead River on May 10th with some friends to celebrate one of the guides (who says he's getting OW certified this summer) turning 30.

I don't know if I'll make it up again after that this year, as rafting and diving seem to be mutually exclusive on a given weekend, and I have priorities. I'd be a guide now myself if I didn't turn the offer down so I could be closer to the ocean.

I'll mention it to some of the guides though, and see what they say about doing a group trip. Personally, I've never gone with a commercial trip... just private trips with guides who have their own (or borrowed) rafts. This'll be my first time paying, and my first time only making one run in a day, so I'll figure out how that works.