ASC spent their last full day with
Borderlands rafting down the Kelani River. Following their safety briefing, the
class split into groups of 6 to 8 to go with the Borderlands rafting guides. The six rafts in total were accompanied
by 3 safety kayakers as well as guides in each boat. The river was high this
day, making it an exciting rafting experience while still being safe because of
the water flowing higher over the rocks.
For the first couple of minutes the
students had fun learning how to paddle backwards, forwards, the importance of
the foot strap, and how to work as a team in the raft. The rafts then
approached the first rapids, to much excitement from the students! All of the
rafts showed great teamwork and courage with the rapids. Continuing down the river, the students’ confidence grew and
their skills began to show.
Approaching the last class III
rapid before lunch, the river was high and fast, and the students were excited
to tackle the challenge. The first five boats made it through the rapids, while
the sixth flipped over. The Borderlands crew quickly managed the situation and
the students came to shore for lunch, telling stories to one another of their
day and the boat flipping that had just happened.
After lunch and exchanging stories,
the ACS students hiked up to do a final trip down the canyon. The high rainfall
made the experience very different from the previous canyoning the ACS students
had done. We were unable to complete the whole stretch of canyoning, but the
students had a blast, showing true support for their teammates by cheering them
on. The collaboration between the Borderlands guides and the teachers of ACS
allowed the students to quickly descend the canyon and the quick hike back to
the rafts made sure everyone was ready to go again!
The afternoon rafting was gentle
and the experience of the students from morning meant everyone knew what they
were doing. The exciting day ended with a relaxing float down the last part of
the river and swimming to the camp.
The evening was spent exchanging
stories of thrilling rafting adventures and hanging out together in the long
house.
No comments:
Post a Comment