Let me start out by saying it isn't hard and you'll be fine. I assume the trip will be on the Kennebec, which gets easier as it goes along, so even though you get tired from paddling it ends up not mattering.
I went rafting for the first time a few years ago when I moved to Maine. Being the flatlander that I am, I really had no idea what it would entail. All I knew is that a good friend of mine gave me one line of advice: Whatever you do, hang onto your paddle. My reply was, " I have to paddle? What do I hang on with?" The answer is you hang on with a combination of your feet hooked under part of the raft and your ass gripping the seat - a skill that I didn't know I had, and I'm not sure I'm trained to use
Anyway, the guides vary from place to place, and within a place. Some are more "wild" than others, and will actually ask the people in your raft if they want to flip the raft or not. Some will "surf" in "holes" created by fast moving water over rocks, which sort of turns the raft into a hot tub. This is fun, but you have to hang onto both the raft (hands, feet and ass) and your paddle while it is happening, creating more work than anticipated. Some play "raft games", which range from a tug of war with a fellow raftmate at the front of the raft, and, well, a range of things. However, all will take your group's opinions seriously and will give you the kind of trip that you are looking for and that you feel comfortable with.
Advice:
1) Don't drop your paddle.
2) Bring a waterproof camera and secure it to your vest with a big rubber band so you can take pictures without disconnecting it.
3) Don't wear cotton or any other fabric that doesn't dry easily, like jeans. The Kennebec gets slow in the second half, and you just kind of float and paddle. YOu'll get really cold with no good way to warm up.
4) Bring something fun to eat that's small. We used to bring grapes, and when we got to the floating part, we would throw them around the raft and try to catch them in our mouths. It's fun, really!
5) Dont' bring it unless you don't mind donating it to the river.
6) If you don't want to get knocked out of the raft accidentally, don't be a "bow shark". If you want to have a good view of others getting knocked out and minimize the amount of splashing, sit in the back next to the guide.
7) Bring extra money so you can buy pictures that the rafting company takes at Magic Falls. Plus there are some unexpected things, like having to pay for a wetsuit top rental (sometimes this is free), something cool at the giftshop, etc.
8) TIP YOUR GUIDES!!!
You are all going to have so much fun - I miss rafting, haven't been since rotations started and can't go this summer since I am "expecting".
If anyone has any questions about UNECOM, feel free to email me anytime. Wish I could help with the insurance questions, but I had private insurance through my husband's work and didn't have to deal with it. Good luck to you all and congrats on getting into UNE!!
bigpinesman said:
Don't worry about rafting, the guides are excellent and will make sure that no one gets too roughed up. The rivers are really powerful though, so it makes for a fantastic trip! It should be a great time, we're going to do the Allagash in mid July, otherwise we'd be in for the rafting trip too.
We'll see. Anyway, hope you all are as stoked as I am and that none of you are dealing with the "Hi, I need all my immunizations again, because my records are MIA". Yes, my arms have been continually sore for the last week and a half because I have every receipt and piece of useless paper I've ever obtained... except my immunization records. What a joy! But I know the pain and suffering will all be worth it.
