Winter White Water Rafting Tips

Winter white water rafting has become very popular, especially in the UK and Europe, in particular, as the snow covers the mountains and the rivers become harder to navigate during the winter months. This article gives a few tips that will hopefully help you avoid some problems on the river during the winter months.

If you hire a white water rafting company, you will often be able to access restricted sections of river, these sections are much easier to navigate and therefore you are much less likely to encounter problems down there! They will typically charge below the going rate for a guided trip and if you hire a white water rafting company on a regular basis, you get access to more water, if you decide to hire a white water rafting crew instead of an experienced driver, you can even try and book an entire trip, which is great as you won't have to carry all the equipment yourself!

Choosing the trip duration

It's essential that you consider the duration of your trip when choosing where to go white water rafting. The single biggest mistake you can make when selecting the duration of your holiday, especially when you are travelling through some rugged areas, is to overestimate your ability.

If you overestimate your abilities, you will end up with long and boring trip that is not fun and not safe! To prevent this from happening, you need to seriously consider the duration of your holiday and make sure that you plan your trip down to a minimum of 6 days and ideally a couple of weeks.

If you take an 8-10 hour trip, you will experience the trip through a variety of harsh weather conditions and possibly rough Seas. Such long trips will test your endurance, strength and endurance but the overall experience has so many advantages that it's well worth it!

Plan your equipment needs to allow you to be comfortable with the reasons why you travel

If you need to pack extra equipment with you, there are a few essentials that will help you and keep you warm, comfortable and to the best of my knowledge, make sure you have the necessary equipment.

Underwear - versatile and bold colours like froynd, chic and trousers are excellent for paddling (bathing) in and can be worn for touring or kayaking.

Boots - if you are a serious whitewater kayaker (most of us are!) then you are going to want good quality boots with a strong sole to help you navigate the whitewater through obstacles. First aid and also some light clothing is nice too. Some people even wear extra kayak gear which can give you extra points if you have to portage across the trip.

Safety Gear - in case you do get into trouble or are going to be doing some splashing and diving, extra kit is vital, I would recommend investing in some independent scotwatching equipment like the coma pulse andsverv rated shadow rays long-sleeved tops and shorts.

Food and water - especially if you are doing a longer paddle trip, you are going to have to carry some extra food and a water filtration system, especially if you are going for a lot of leisurely kayak trips.

Boots and Hats - kayak shoes tend to grip on the rocks, so another way to keep feet dry and comfortable is to wear kayak hats that have reflective strips. They are made from tough polypropylene fabric which is extremely tear resistant. Make sure that your hat covers the whole of your ears, just in case the boat gets a little rough.

Hygiene kit - carrying a roll of toilet paper with you is a good idea.aundry bags - also make sure that you have an ample supply of bandaids and ointment available.

Vet Care - a good way to protect yourself against skin infections is to get a roll of skin care cream which you can apply face and body. It will clog up the pores in your skin and help deter bacteria from working their way on to your skin.

Equipment that you should not forget to take

Once you have covered all the equipment needs by your group, you can then start looking at what else you are going to need. The kayak itself needs to come complete with a paddle, kayak controls, a Stanley float, a bailing device and float releases.

Paddles and kayak controls are needed to ensure that you can navigate safely and also perform the many tricky manoeuvres that whitewater kayaking requires. Stanley floats are simply an extra pair of flotation floating devices. They are normally strapped to your feet behind your paddles. float releases are important as they save you from the need to bail water out of your boat.

If you want to go into the water to swim or snorkel, then you are also going to need swim aids such as fins to help you to move through the water.