White Water Nepal – The Karnali River

With the onset of so much development and roads on the Sun Kosi River, we have decided to set our focus more on sending clients to the Karnali and Tamur rivers, allowing our guests to get remote and disconnect, in a familiar theme with many of our other destinations such as the Grand Canyon and the Zambezi. The Karnali River is in the “wild west” of Nepal and offers some of the best rapids in the world, stunning beaches and the opportunity to view wildlife at close range. Mugger crocodiles and even leopards have been spotted on previous trips. It is world class rapids such as “Godshouse” Flip and Strip, Juicer, Freight Train and Sweetness & Light most people go for. BIG WARM WATER! No, it is not cold Himalayas. At the same latitude as Florida, experience sun drenched beaches and gorgeous waterfalls on your journey. Many guests take the opportunity after the trip for a few days exploring Bardia National Park, Nepal, premier wildlife sanctuary with it’s elephants, rhino’s and the rare Bengal tiger. Slip away for a few days relaxation at this stunning park before traveling back to Kathmandu and the vibrancy that engulfs this special city.

The lower Karnali. How gorgeous is this?

Ant Hoard From Cape Town Off To The Grand Canyon

We wanted to say thanks so much to all those folks out there who entered our Facebook Grand Canyon rafting trip competition. Our eventual winner was Ant Hoard from Cape Town and a river guide for Gravity Adventures in Cape Town. Ant received a phenomenal number of shares in the competition, eventually becoming a runaway winner to raft the Grand Canyon. Ant will be keeping a bit of the video diary on his trip down the Colorado and you’ll be able to see that on his return at the end of May. We have set up our tracker, so that guests and friends can follow progress of the trip down river and on the many hikes.

Ant, our winner of 2 weeks in the Grand Canyon

A Cultural And White Water Wonder – The Tamur River, Nepal

With so many trips vying for our attention, adventure travel can pose a major dilemma on which destination to choose to travel to a destination, just that little bit different. Nepal is that destination and the Tamur is that trip. The Tamur is one of the tributaries of the famed Sun Kosi river that is fed from Mt Kangchenjunga, the third highest peak in the world. The adventure of any trip to Nepal, begins in Kathmandu, that most fascinating of cities, with its sacred cows sleeping in the middle of roads, rickshaws transporting people around this vibrant town and the bright lights and great restaurants of Thamel. Boarding our aircraft, we fly to the east of Nepal where you’ll get stunning views of the world’s highest peak. Our adventure takes on a whole new meaning as we hike for 4 days with our team of 100 porters, who carry everything for our expedition through traditional villages overlooking stunning Himalayan Peaks. At Dobhan, where we start the river portion of the journey, we are met by some of the most challenging whitewater in this Himalayan country. With more than 130 Grade 3-4+ rapids over the 120 kilometre duration of this trip, … Continue reading →

A Sadhu (holy Man) in the heart of Kathmandu

Types Of Craft On A White Water Rafting Vacation

There are many varying craft on offer on white water rafting trips to enhance your adventure. Each offer a different means to run rapids on a river, giving you safe options to challenge some of the biggest whitewater in the world, such as on the Zambezi or in Nepal. Other craft are there for your safety. Safety kayaks and safety catarafts primarily run rapids first and wait at the bottom of rapids in strategic locations in case you should pop out of the raft. Paddle raft: This raft will have 6-8 paddlers plus a guide, who will give commands from the rear of the raft. An extremely manuvreable craft which involves excellent teamwork. A common boat used on the steep creeks of California. Stern Raft/Paddle Assist: This is an adaptation of the above craft, however the guide will sit at the back with a set of oars which allows extra power and stability in big water rapids such as in Chile and the Zambezi. Oar Raft: A boat that is traditionally used for equipment such as food, coolers, but on occasion, these craft can be used to take passengers too. This is common on the Grand Canyon although traditionally most … Continue reading →

Paddle rafting at it's best on the steep creeks in California.

Ten Of The Best Hikes On A Grand Canyon Rafting Trip

The Grand Canyon. Possibly the most famous of all river trips, but for many people who have done this trip, as much as the rapids are excellent fun, many people love the access that the river gives us to stunning hikes, some short, others longer. The diversity of the Grand Canyon allows us to sample so many varied hikes every time we do the trip. Here is a sample of some of the hikes we love. Havasu Creek: Deer Creek Patio Thunder River Blacktain Canyon Hilltop ruins above Unkar Rapid Shinomo Creek Nankoweap Granaries North Canyon Elves Chasm Little Colorado As you progress further downstream and past Lava, most of the great hikes are over and it tends to get fairly warm down there. Don’t forget also to pop into Phantom Ranch on your way down to sample and ICE COLD lemonade and post some of your Water By Nature postcards back home. We also can’t really class it as a “hike” but the magnificent Redwall Cavern is well worth a stop on your trip. Do you agree with our choices? What hikes do YOU love? The best part of all this, is you could win a trip for FREE … Continue reading →

A Stunning Insight Into Moroccan Rafting

Rafting is perhaps not the first thing that people associate with the Kingdom of Morocco. Most people will associate it with the vast Sahara Desert, camels and the vibrant and fascinating cities like Marrakech. Around 5 hours north east of Marrakech lies the picturesque and fun Ahansel River. It has many of the qualities of a European Alps style river, but without the crowds. Starting beneath the imposing La Cathedrale and traveling via a series of stunning campsites littered with cedar trees and rhododendrons down to the lake of Bin El Ouidane offers those wanting to explore this wonderful region, time to walk to ancient Kasbahs, meet people and sample wonderful food prepared along the way by our guides. A recent group visiting from the USA, many of whom had done the Grand Canyon, felt this trip was even more impressive in it’s beauty. Advertising agency executive Duncan Shaw, celebrating his 25th wedding anniversary with wife Marybeth, was blown away by the food on the trip. Canapes, wine and cheese, cake made on the river and pizzas made from scratch individually for all guests was something that was unique for them all. On the Deserts & Rivers option of this … Continue reading →

The REAL Zambezi Legends

So many stories come out about the Zambezi River, the flips, the swims, the campsites the helicopter flight back to town, but there are some hidden gems in this place that make the trip unique and above all, possible. Mukuma and our team of legendary porters carry all our equipment into and out of the river before and after your trip. The rafts are rolled into a “sausage” and the lads run the 750 feet into the gorge as if it were flat. Once the rafts, lunch, stern frames and safety equipment are in, the crew dash back to our vehicles and are transported to Rapid number 10 (our first overnight camp at Songwe Point) and carry in all the camping equipment for our expedition. Many people have trouble walking this steep trail with wooden steps down to the river as we saw with some of the Comic Relief participants, but Mukuma and his team do an average of 6 trips each to get all the gear into the camp by the time the guests have finished rafting their first day. If guests are doing one of our 4 day river trips, the Zambezi Blast and Ultimate Adventure, the porters … Continue reading →

Dr David Livingstone’s Bicentenary 2013

Agreed by many as one of the most influential explorers of the Victorian era, Dr David Livingstone holds a special place in the history of Africa and in particular his memorable words when he first laid eyes on what he named Victoria Falls (Mosi Oa Tunya in the local Bemba language) “A sight so lovely must have been gazed upon by angels in their flight.” March 19th 2013 is the Bicentenary of Dr David Livingstone’s birth in Blantyre and what an opportunity to explore one of the rivers at the forefront of his travels as the Mighty Zambezi. Livingstone was the first European Explorer to travel across trans continental Africa from Luanda to Mozambique. He was a light traveller and this gave him extra kudos with local Chiefs, as well as his reassurances that he was not a threat. The British backed his second expedition to the Zambezi, however he was unable to safely navigate the Cabora Bassa rapids in Mozambique, which he had not seen on his first trip to the region. Despite being viewed as a “failure” by many back in the UK, the trip was a very worthwhile project for the scientists working with Livingstone to collect … Continue reading →

13 “Wet Dreams” For 2013

Like many of us, we all make resolutions at New Year to “do something new” or try something different this year. With January almost gone, how is your adventure planning going for 2013? We hope that this list of the world’s greatest river based adventures will stir you into action. 1: The Big One – The Mighty Zambezi: Simply the most fun, big water river trip in the world. The season to run the multi-day section of the Zambezi is from late July until November. The Zambezi, has the best and warmest whitewater on the planet. Trips range from 4-7 days and start under the magnificent Victoria Falls and conclude with a flight over them by helicopter before you are dropped at your hotel. Add a multitude of activities from luxury safari to relaxing in the Devils Pool. Stunning beaches to camp on, great weather… 2: The Classic – The Grand Canyon: It IS the most famous river trip in the world. And with good reason. Our rafts allow us access to this stunning place, where time feels like it stands still and you float beneath the canyon walls, with it’s shadows and “moods”. A trip down the Colorado River … Continue reading →

Motivating Kids To “Get Out There”

In this digital age in which we live in on Facebook and Twitter, is it little wonder our kids get dragged into that indoor world of playing on the X Box or the PS3 and not getting out into nature as we did when we were kids? The outdoors is the world’s biggest Playstation and X Box. Real life experiences that can change lives for the better. Not only does travel open our minds, it allows us to meet other great people and challenge perceptions we form about people, places and activities. We love to share river trips with families. No matter what age the kids are, we have seen and been told by parents what incredible changes children go through after experiencing a river trip. But how can this be so? Are these the same kids who ignore us, grunt, need to shop, text their friends in the playground? How can a river trip and adventure holiday change these habits (at least for a while!) The kids enjoy hanging out with the guides. These inspiration characters making cooking cool, helping load the rafts, pack up your gear (noting a theme here?) and tell funny stories and jokes around the … Continue reading →