Adventures in Travel

I didn’t have to travel too far from home to experience an adventure I will never forget. My two best friends planned a trip to visit me in North Carolina, and given both of them are adventurous and athletic, I thought a trip to the U.S. National Whitewater Center would be perfect. The Whitewater Center, a playground for people who love the outdoors, includes kayaking, whitewater rafting, zipline tours, adventure hikes, and biking trails. We arrived and as soon as I walked up to the ticket counter to purchase our tickets, my friends started to persuade me to go whitewater rafting. The fear started to set in at that point. The ticket person, sensing my apprehension, told me that we could take the “family rafting tour,” which was an easier course. “Ok,” I said reluctantly as I handed over my debit card. “It will be fine,” my friends said, trying to reassure me.

Prior to getting into the water, we attended a safety lesson. The young guide took attendance and when he called our group name, he glanced at us, looked at his clipboard, then stared at us again. “You’re the ‘family’?” he asked. To him, there was no reason why three adult women would be on the family tour. “It’s because she’s scared,” one of my friends said, pointing at me. Every pair of eyes was on me at that point, and I could feel my face burning with embarrassment. “Really?” I asked her while showing her a look of disbelief. Over a few snickers from the audience, the rafting guide said “Ok” skeptically and returned to his task. After a few minutes of listening to the various precautions, I could only focus on one thing: not falling out of the boat.

I grabbed a helmet and paddle, my hands slightly trembling, and picked a tour guide. “You’re on a family rafting tour?” he asked curiously. “Ok, let’s go.” As the rest of the boats floated towards the Class IV rapids, we turned left and headed towards the easier course. I listened intently as the tour guide called out instructions. As we floated towards the rapids, I closed my eyes for just a moment to hear the increasingly loud sound of the water swirling around me, and then I felt determined. We quickly emerged from the first set of rapids and I let out a loud laugh; it was a feeling of relief and a feeling of sheer happiness. After the first two successful runs through the rapids, our tour guide said, “Should we try the other route?” My friends turned and looked at me, and I said, “Let’s go!”