Riding the river
I discovered the perils of inappropriate footwear when I went tubeing on the Portneuf river in Lava Idaho on July 3rd. My mom volunteered to watch Patches at my brother’s house. This allowed him to have a quiet crowd-free day with a nap and me to not have to watch a 3 year old while riding the river. Kiki was off at camp, so I just had Gleek and Link with me. I was wearing flip flops. Tennis shoes were what I needed to have worn, but even the flip flops were better than going barefoot which was the only other available option without a 40 minute drive.
The Portneuf river was running higher than usual this year since Idaho had more than it’s usual quota of snow last winter. We knew this going in, but none of the crowd expected the result. Apparently this particular ride is fairly leasurly with tubes floating lazily from catch point to catch point. This year all the catch points were underwater. The ride was fast rather than leisurely.
Gleek, Link, and I were together on a three person tube. Gleek in front of me, Link behind, with me in the middle dangling my legs to provide some control surfaces. At first we were all excited and cheered at each swoop over rocks. I realized very quickly that white water meant rocks close to the surface and if I wanted to keep my feet I needed to pull them up onto the tube. Several times I nearly lost my shoes and in between mini falls I spent a lot of time trying to turn the tube around so I could see where we were going. I kept watching for a place to stop so that we could regroup, but I couldn’t plant my feet firmly in those flip flops without losing them. Also the current was strong, it swept us along quickly. I was not frightened, but I had to pay attention every minute to steer us.
About halfway through the 10 minute ride, Link slid from his perch on top of the tube into the middle of the tube hole. This meant that half his body was dangling under the water. A mini fall was coming and I knew those rocks would scrape him unless he could get back on top of the tube. Unfortunately he was behind me and we were moving fast and I could not stop. He got dragged over that fall. I got him back on top of the tube. I could see that it was a minor scrape on one knee, but it was bleeding. Blood always makes my kids panic. Link spent the rest of the ride terrified and crying for a bandaid. Gleek saw the blood and was scared too. I was unable to allay their fears because I couldn’t stop and all of my attention had to be spent steering. We finally reached the exit point. Fortunately some of our crowd was there to help tubes exit the river. We all got out. Link’s knee was bleeding and I discovered some bleeding scrapes on my feet that I’d been too busy to notice earlier. Link and Gleek both vowed they’d never ride a river again. I vowed that the next time I ride a river I’d be wearing tennis shoes. If I’d been wearing proper shoes I might have been able to stop for a moment.
Much of the rest of the group had also had something of a rough ride. One inflatable boat arrived half sunk because a hole had been torn in the bottom. We all discussed the matter and decided that we needed a different section of river. Fortunately several miles down river provided us with a place where the river was wide and shallow without rockfalls. Once we got there Link and Gleek played in the water for awhile. They were reassured enough that they consented to ride with me for a section of this river. That was a pleasant and relaxing ride. Link liked it enough that he wanted to do it several times. Gleek decided that playing with sticks in the shallows was more entertaining.
A group of older kids and adults, did decide to go back and ride the rough section again. Part of me wishes that I’d gone with them. The fast water and short falls were fun. It was the frightened children and improper footwear I’d cheerfully do without. In the end it was a good day. At least for me. Gleek and Link have very vivid memories of that first tube ride. I’m afraid those aren’t so good. But at least they have a story to tell, right?