It was NRE’s 17th birthday and to celebrate they were offering free videos (normally $35) to anyone going rafting or tandem kayaking in August. I was originally planning to do the tandem kayaking for my birthday in early September, but couldn’t pass up the chance of a freebie. It was due to this that I had another really early Saturday morning start to get the free shuttle from Kampala at 7 am.
It was the usual rigmarole getting out of Kampala, but this
one was slightly better than others and I managed to get another hour or more
of sleep on the drive to Jinja. During the trip I managed one person to try the
tandem kayaking instead of the rafting, so I knew I wouldn’t be on my own.
Fortunately there were another two others that were doing the tandem so a good
group of four on the river plus our guides. We had the usual safety briefing,
got acquainted with our kayaks and safety gear, picked up the rolex and fruit
salad breakfast and set off to the put in point.
After my less than stellar performance in a solo kayak a
couple of weeks before, I was feeling less and less confident the closer we got
to the start. Despite my nausea I managed to eat the average brekkie, 2.5 out
of 5. To be honest most of my fear came from having to do more ridiculous
walrus impressions attempting to get back in to the boat after going for a
swim. Latief, my guide and saviour soon helped bolster my confidence as we
practiced rolling the kayak at the start before the first rapid. It went
swimmingly, in that I didn’t swim. Basically I just had to let go of the
paddle, hold the bottom of the boat and he did all the hard work. A few more
practices and we were good to go.
Overtime (grade 5) is the first rapid during the day that
with the right water level can be great fun for the rafts to go over the four
metre waterfall on the right hand side. For those that can’t make it there’s a
slightly longer channel to the left which is a bit of fun. Sadly neither of
these were options for our rather large kayak. So we once we reached the bank
at the top of Overtime we got out and walked around. On the way to getting
there I was a bit concerned by the front of our boat becoming completely
submerged under our bow wave when we picked up a modicum of speed.
At the bottom of overtime we got back in waiting for the
rafters to come down. Since there was a fair bit of water coming over the
waterfall, I ended up going for a nice trip under it. Eventually the volume of
water got a bit too much for me and we tipped over. Not panicking I let go of
the paddle, held on to the bottom of the boat and a few seconds later we were
back the right way round. The rafts came over in short order including two or
three boats that were exclusively crewed by US marines, and one by a bunch of
crazy Dutch girls.
Retrospect (grade 4) was next up, and my first time through
a large rapid in a kayak. Jaws didn’t really count. All was pretty good until I
met the massive wave at the bottom. I tried to brace, but it didn’t matter. The
water was far stronger than me and it gave me a thorough pummelling as we went
through, not over, the wave. Good fun and plenty of smiles from me.
Bubugo (grade 3) is up next and a bit more gentle than
Retrospect. It was more of the same, but a bit smaller and less fierce. After
this it was on to Itanda (grade 6) and The Bad Place (grade 5). Itanda as I’ve
mentioned before is only for the much more skilled and experienced solo
kayakers. Tandems and rafts have to stop, walk around and rejoin the bottom
section. As we were in the kayaks we were motoring along the river much faster
than the rafts, although the marines tried to put in a valiant effort keeping
up with us, we were first back in.
Again for safety we wouldn’t be running The Bad Place, a
massive hole the size of a house, but going on the right hand side of it and aiming
for The Other Place at the end of the set of rapids. Whilst waiting to get back
in the boat, lots of people were shouting ‘Snake’ at me. Apparently it was on
the other side of the rock I was stood on in the water. I never saw it so no
idea what type it was, besides I was poised with my paddle for any sign of
attack.
Panic over with we got back in and set off, all was going
well, until I was battered by a wave coming from my right. This caused us to
tip over, so I assumed the position. Being upside down in white water is
massively different to flat water, but I was managing not to panic. A few
seconds later we started to move, I was just above horizontal when my deck
popped sending water in to the boat and pushing me out. It wasn’t particularly
bad where this happened so I just kept hold of the boat and we set off for
shore to empty it out and get back in. I managed to bang up my left knee
exiting the boat, so I need a new left hand side of my body. We had a bit of
paddle after passing this half way point and had the usual glucose biscuits and
pineapple. 2.5 out of 5.
The second half of the day saw me getting battered by Vengeance
(grade 4), Hair of the Dog (grade 4), Kula Shaker (grade 4) and finally beaten
senseless by Nile Special (grade 4). I was like a rag doll going through these
final waves. We quickly got to the take out point, so after a quick change I
piled in to the excellent buffet washed down with a much more palatable version
of Nile Special. I had jacket potato, spicy beans, salad, some baguette and the
brilliant roast beef that they serve here. It’s a good medium rare cut in to
large slices, juicy and tasty and after an exhilarating and exhausting day
perfect grub. 3 out of 5. Somehow I managed to get through 5 free beers before getting back
to the camp, where I spent the rest of the time drinking and chatting.
Tandem kayaking was awesome. Don’t get me wrong, I love
rafting as well, but they are very different experiences. Rafting is great when
going crazy, flipping and going for a swim. Kayaking is more exciting, I was
shaking a lot due to the sheer amount of adrenaline coursing through me. Unlike
rafting you’ll hopefully stay in the boat all day, but your head is at the same
level as the raft, so you’re getting a raft’s eye view of the rapids. It’s a
much rawer experience, but a solid 5 out of 5. Plus the brilliant pictures and
video means this is one experience I’ll never forget.
Apparently NRE now do an extreme version of rating where
it’s just you and a guide in a raft. I might have to give that a go sometime.
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