Rafting is an adventurous sport that tests your courage, reaction speed, but also the ability to work as a team. If you want to try it this year, you must hurry, because soon, due to the cold, it will no longer be possible.
White Water's Komaromi Istvan, rafting is usually practiced from April to October. The period can be extended as long as it does not fall below 10 degrees. Until this temperature, special suits manage to keep the body at a level of comfort, somewhere above 20 degrees, so that the clients do not cool down or get into hypothermia.
Also, to be possible this sport, there must be enough water in the riverbeds (not to be drought), not to be floods, floating logs and other objects that could endanger the participants' lives.
Places for rafting
Rafting can be practiced on several rivers in the country. It depends on the water flow. The melted snow from the mountains provides flow rates corresponding to rafting on many rivers such as Cerna, Nera, Aries, Mures, Lapus. On Jiu, Crisul Repede and Buzau can be rafted almost all year. It also depends on the type of boat used. A 2-person rafting boat can cross very small waters, where an 8-person boat would crash.
Necessary equipment and costs
In addition to the rafting boat, each participant needs a paddle, a protective helmet, a life jacket with reflective tape, preferred neoprene shoes, and a neoprene suit. Guides also have other equipment, such as throwing bag, knife, carabiners, pulleys, first aid kit, whistle, etc. They are used in rescue situations.
The price of the rafting boats varies between 600 and 3,000 euros, depending on the size of the boat and the quality of the material from which it is made. The cost of personal equipment is between 250 and 500 euros.
"Customers can come to sports or mountain clothing, but in fact, they receive from us all the necessary equipment for rafting. It is enough if they have a bathing suit to wear under neoprene," says Komaromi Istvan.
Depending on the degree of difficulty of the river, a rafting tour costs between 25 and 45 euros. A weekend with 2 descents costs 79 euros.
A rafting tour can last between 1.5 and 5 hours, depending on the distance traveled, the flow rate and the degree of difficulty. Most of the tours take about 2.5 hours, during which time they travel for a distance of 10-15 kilometers.
Are there dangerous situations?
There are also dangerous situations. For example, how many people can fall off the boat? This is why special rafting equipment must be used. The helmet protects people's head from blows. Neoprene protects them from heat shock and strikes if they hit rocks, and the life jacket holds them to the surface and at the same time protects their spine.
Equally important are good shoes, which protect their feet and have a very good grip on wet stones. Guides are trained to bring them to safety as soon as possible.
"So far we have not had any major accidents, the people who have fallen off the boat have chosen the maximum with the hunters. It must be known, however, that most accidents happen on the shore, and not on the water. People can slip and hit. while waiting to board the boat or when the tour has already been completed. Experienced and experienced rafting guides can largely prevent accidents," explains White Water.
What people are not allowed to do rafting
First of all, there is no restriction for people who do not know how to swim. They can also experience rafting but on rivers of easy difficulty and only with the acceptance of the guide.
"The age limit depends on the difficulty of the river and the weather conditions. We also had 7-year-olds rafting on light rivers such as Mures. The oldest was 65 years old," adds the specialist.
It is indicated, however, that people know how to swim and have a normal physical condition.
What kind of people come to rafting
Most people who dare to enter this adventure are between 25 and 40 years old, equally men and women, from the middle classes and above.
What preparations exist before the meeting
Before each shift, training is provided. Clients learn how to paddle, how to stay in the boat, how to react to the guide's commands and what to do and how to protect themselves in emergencies, such as tipping or falling water.
Personal feeling of rafting
Komaromi Istvan says that "a client could answer the best. I feel very good about the speed. Apart from the adrenaline I give, rafting helps me forget about the worries of my daily life and offers me and satisfaction, if we manage to sail a good line on a difficult river sector, or when I see the clients face like they are exalted after the rafting tour".
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