Top 5 Extreme Adventures – #3 – Whitewater Rafting/Riverboarding

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In the last few years, I’ve participated in the most extreme adventures that I could imagine. Even my wedding day included a little bit of rock climbing and a trip up the trapeze ladder to swing my way into married life. You may have a different opinion of what constitutes an extreme adventure, but I’ve narrowed it down to my top 5 extreme adventures based on sheer fear, nervousness, excitement, and potential to crap my own pants.

Flowing into the number three spot is whitewater rafting/riverboarding in class five rapids. 

What do you get when you combine the extreme adventure sports of whitewater rafting and riverboarding? It’s called the ultimate adrenaline rush and Millinocket, Maine is the only place in North America where you can do them both in the same day.

Gone are the days of relaxing on a river or paddling quietly in a canoe. New trends in travel include adrenaline, extreme adventure sports, and pushing the limits. At the base of Mount Katahdin, Maine’s highest peak, I found Maine Whitewater River Surfing and the experience of a lifetime!

Rafting the Class V Penobscot River and riverboarding the whitewater rapids was an action-packed day with two of the friendliest adrenaline junkies that I met in my lifetime. Whitewater rafting is an ultimate experience by anyone’s standards, but the tough Class V Penobscot River has chutes, drops, and large holes that challenge both guide and guest alike. In exciting rapids like Exterminator, Cribworks, and the Nesowdnehunk Falls, I quickly learned that I could easily be in over my head, but the guides are experts and carefully selected to make the ride both safe and exciting. It is 13 miles of pure adrenaline, yet I still found the time to look up and enjoy the breath-taking scenery that surrounded me.

Before we even left the training waters, one guest paddled himself out of the raft, and we realized that rafting is not all about muscles or size. The white water was in my face and I was soaked to the bone, but I managed to stay in the raft. During the very little down time that the Penobscot has to offer, I took the opportunity to go for swim in the white waters. I left my reservations about fish and other marine life at home and splashed around like a child. After the liberating experience of controlling the waters, there was no time for fear of a few fish.


The Penobscot River has long been a popular spot for whitewater rafting, but now Maine Whitewater River Surfing is kicking it up a notch and giving people a chance to run the rapids without the boat. It’s called riverboarding and Maine Whitewater River Surfing is one of the only outdoor adventure company in New England that does it.

After a day of rafting, my arms were tired and my back was tight, but we set out to reach the shore of the Penobscot and get our first look at the rapids from a boarder’s perspective. There were wetsuits, life jackets, helmets, and even fins to go with the boards, but the view was still intimidating. I didn’t know what to expect. Seeing the water rushing and the white caps foaming looked dangerous; that’s why the trip started with a safety lesson. We learned about currents, and the all-important signals; including the panic signal of waving your arms frantically in the air, which seemed rather straightforward. With the help of guides, Karl and Mike, we finally began to tackle the whitewater.

The first step was to swim across the river against a powerful current, which was not easy; it was more work than fun. The ride down the rapids was intense; as the water smashed against my face and I missed the surf, I became more and more comfortable with the frightening situation. However, there’s really nothing that can prepare you for a wall of whitewater rushing at your head, and while it’s intense; I did it over and over again. Riverboarding is relatively new in North America and I am now a member of an exclusive club.

Karl and Mike catered to our extreme needs and and took the time to play in the rapids, utilizing swimming holes and waterfalls. It was their extensive knowledge of the river and willingness to bring us over the edge that made Whitewater Rafting/Riverboarding my #3 extreme adventure.

57 thoughts on “Top 5 Extreme Adventures – #3 – Whitewater Rafting/Riverboarding”

  2. After going down one of our local rivers on a tube, I have great respect for companies who operate white water experiences. Your day looked like a blast!-Martin, Comox, Canada.

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  10. I’ve always wanted to white-water rafting… thanks for bringing this place to my attention! Sounds like a great day!

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  12. Hi Lesley,

    Thanks for the “like” on my “Fame…” post on the arnnarn.com blog. I continue to enjoy your postings and one of these days I’ll figure what to put on my bucket list.

    Come back again to arnnarn.com – it’ll be entering a new phase filled with tenacity, hope, frustration, and all the good things that make our lives rich.

    Thanks again,

    Bruce

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  13. WOW that looks like fun!!! I’ve always wanted to try that myself (still on my bucketlist to-do 😉 )

    The DC

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  14. I’ve always wanted to try whitewater rafting! I haven’t ever gotten te chance, but your post makes it look well worth the wait. The pictures are amazing! You look like you had so much fun. Great post 🙂

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  15. Wow I’ve always wanted to try whitewater rafting, but I haven’t had the chance! Your post makes the wait seem worth it. The pictures are amazing and you look like you had so much fun!

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  21. WOW! Adventure and challenge must be in your GENES which would now have been passed onto the next generation. Keep doing the great work of reading and writing………….

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  22. I’ve been on several white water rafting trips, but it was great to read this post because the west branch of the Penobscot River was my very first white water rafting experience, and shooting the Cribworks felt like a near death experience! But, being an adrenalin junkie, I LOVED it!!!

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  27. Pingback: Top 5 Extreme Adventures – #3 – Whitewater Rafting/Riverboarding « Technospunky blah blah blogging on wordpress

  29. Pingback: Top 5 Extreme Adventures – #3 – Whitewater Rafting/Riverboarding … | The White Water Rafting Adventure Blog

  32. It’s been a while since the last time I went whitewater rafting. I remember that I was the only girl on the boat. So I went to sit in the back and peddled half the speed the men in my boat did. Still had a lot of myalgia the next day.
    Anyways, now that I read your post I can’t wait to do some rafting again!

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  33. Great post. You now live in the World’s Whitewater Capital: California!
    We have rivers from Class 3 to Class 5 less than 2 hrs from major cities like San Francisco! I am the president of W.E.T. River Trips (since ’78) http://www.raftwet.com We just did five different rivers in Northern California this past weekend. Here are pics from one of our favorites: the Middle Fork of the American River: https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/104445714950587017401/albums/5732096076362665617

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  38. My only whitewater rafting trip was on the New River in West Virginia and it was one of the most exciting things I’ve ever done. My dream is to raft the Colorado River on a 3-4 day trip!

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  40. Did our first little river rafting trip last year. I was a nervous wreck and they were only baby rapids. Husband and I both loved it though. We won’t be ready for the Penobscot for a couple of seasons.
    Looks like it was a great time.

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  41. You’re so brave. Aren’t the waters off the coast of Maine freezing cold? We were there on our honeymoon 52 3/4 years ago and if I remember right, we turned blue, the water was so cold!

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  44. Wow! What a wild and crazy adventure. Thanks to you, I have to add white water rafting as the things to do before I turn 30 years old. lol

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  48. Many of you have commented that you’ve done something equally adventurous or thrilling and I’d love to hear about it. Please feel free to send your stories to: http://www.bucketlistpublications.com/submissions/. I’ll happily review them and publish the ones that fit with the goals of Bucket List Publications, including a link to your site.

    We have about 33,000 views a day and 21,000 followers.

    Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment; it’s appreciated.

    🙂

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  49. Pingback: Weekend Trip Idea: Millinocket Maine « PA Weekend Fun

  50. My Dad used to be a whitewater rafting guide in Maine. He has always said that women usually make better guides because they have to rely more on their brains than their brawn to get their people and their rafts through the whitewater safely.

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