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 | | Adventure in the Alps | | |
Whitewater rafting in Switzerland and Austria
Once the snow melts from the slopes of the steep mountains in the Alps, the fun and adventure is just getting started. Fresh air and warm yet comfortable temperatures in combination with the spectacular scenery bring people young and old in droves to the Alps of Austria and Switzerland. Still, there is no reason that people have to sit around the hotel pool, turning over every half hour for that complete tan. More and more people are coming to the Alps in the summer for a shot of adrenaline from adventure sports. In the Austrian and Swiss Alps there is no shortage of places for awesome whitewater rafting or, for that matter, adventure guide companies willing to share their insider knowledge and experience. While there are trips for experts and adrenaline junkies, there are also plenty of more subdued tours that are appropriate for the entire family or for company outings. The rivers range between class I, comparable to your bathtub, to class V, heart-pounding technically challenging water for experts. Any reasonably fit youth or adult can enjoy the thrill of crashing through standing waves on a class III
river in Switzerland or Austria. The heavy winter snows in the Alps turn to run-off in April. The rafting season typically kicks off in May as the rivers fill and the temperatures climb. |
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The Imster Schluck
On a clear morning in mid-June with temperatures in the teens, Martin Arndt looked anxiously out the window of the van carrying the rafts to the rushing river below. Attired head to toe in a blue neoprene wet-suit, the 50-year-old philosophy and English teacher from northern Germany, an enthusiastic scuba diver, and his wife
Rubbina were on their way to the start of the Imster Schluck rafting tour, some 50 kilometres west of Innsbruck. A step up from
a leisurely float tour, it is considered an excellent tour for a first whitewater rafting experience. The tour is also a prerequisite for the region’s more challenging class IV whitewater tours. For this trip, the only prerequisite is the ability to swim. This was no comfort for Martin. While the 40-year-old Rubbina spoke enthusiastically about the coming trip, Martin was clearly uneasy. The husband and wife got talked into rafting by another couple with more experience in the sport. |
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Teamwork counts
Once the rafts were unloaded from the trailer, Martin listened attentively to the instructions from the raft guide, Dizzy, a British transplant to the Austrian valley who came to the region for the deep snow, but stayed because of the amazing rivers. The group was told how to hold their paddles, react to commands, and how to pull someone out of the water in the rare event that someone falls out of the raft.
From the start, the group was forced to work together, carrying the raft across the scree to the water’s edge. On a count of three, the group jumped in the raft and pushed off shore. The self-bailing raft fits six passengers plus the guide comfortably. The boat was quickly caught up in the fast moving water. Dizzy got the group working in concert with some practice 360° turns in both directions. The rafters quickly learned to work rhythmically, following Dizzy’s commands for paddling: “all forward” to power the boat forwards, “left forward, right back” to turn left, and “right forward, left back” to turn right. By the time, the first rapids appeared on the horizon, the group had been underway for just a few minutes. With the group working together, the raft effortlessly glided past a few boulders on the outer edge and ploughed through the first of many standing waves. Once he realised that the worst that could happen was that he would get wet from the rapids, Martin was breathing easier and clearly getting into the spirit of the adventure. After the next series of rapids, Dizzy gave the group a scare in calm waters, when he suddenly leaped from the side of the boat. A few minutes later, most of the group, including Martin, was in the cool rushing water alongside the boat.
The 14.5 kilometre tour came to an end after just two and half hours. The group was clearly invigorated and eager for more. Martin confessed that he was ready for more challenging waters. |
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Ready for the big water
The next morning the group headed up the Ötz valley to the start of the Ötztaler Ache, one of Europe’s most famous stretches of whitewater. The rafting company requires that all participants have some experience rafting class III rivers, are good swimmers, and in good physical condition. At the drop-in, the
‘Brandach’ footbridge fords the rushing river. Martin and the rest of the group looked nervously down at the rushing water from the bridge, contemplating what they had got themselves into and wondering if it was too late to back out. The group was comforted that Matthias, the brawny tanned son of the owner of the guide company, would steer the boat down the river. Another comforting sign was that every boat had a second guide along for safety reasons.
Within minutes, the group was soaking wet from standing waves and hearts were racing. While the previous day’s tour on the Ims required that the group paddle around one-third of the time, on the Ache the group rarely had time for a break before the next stretch of rapids. The high point of the Ötztaler Ache is the ‘Waldschlucht bei Sautens’, a tight gorge through an Alpine forest. The ominous sounding ‘Boa-Constrictor is enough to challenge even the most experienced guides. Before the group knew it, the toughest part of the tour was behind it as the Ache flowed into the fast moving, but smooth water of the lower Ims. One drawback is that the Ache tour is short, lasting less than two hours. Nevertheless, the effect is long-lasting. Martin lamented that the group was already leaving the next day. “If we were staying an extra day, I would be willing to do the Sanna,” he said speaking of the Sanna, a 35-minute seven kilometre heart-pumping class IV+ tour through narrow winding canyons.
Martin’s experience on the Ims and Ache is actually quite common on rivers throughout Austria and Switzerland, as people with no experience learn to push their own boundaries, discovering courage and enthusiasm that they either never knew they had or long forgotten. “This trip has been something I’ll never forget,” added Martin. “We will definitely be back next year for more rafting and adventure.” |
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© September 2010 - European Publications GmbH
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