Extreme Whitewater Rafting: Interlacken, Part I

We all decide that having sampled most of what Geneva has to offer, we should probably get going and see more of Switzerland. Our next destination is Interlocken. Interlocken is well known in the backpacker’s community and has always been a definite destination for me. It is known as the outdoor/extreme sport capital of Europe. From Geneva we train to Bern and then to Interlocken. The entire journey takes roughly 4 hours. The last 45minutes of the train ride is full of picturesque green scenery.



The air is crisp and fresh as we all exit the train. The walk to the hostel is full of sights of both the mountains surrounding the Interlocken. After dropping our packs off at Funny Farm hostel, Anh Hyunh and I sign up for some extreme sports. There was much debate about what we could actually do as a group. I suggest canyoning, however a certain person whose name starts with an A and ends with nh was too scared of the idea of jumping off 20m waterfalls. Thus we all signed up for white water rafting. Later that day Anh’s friend Klash joins us in exploring Interlocken.



Interlocken really is a busy place. Anytime you look towards the mountains you can see numerous paragliders floating from the tops of the mountains. Their multi-colored parachutes almost permanently decorate the skies above. The traffic through town is not heavy and exploring the city on foot is quite feasible. The sun is shining, the skies are blue, there is no traffic noise, the skies are blue, and water is crystal clear, drinkable and world renowned.



Early in the morning we wake up at 8am to go rafting. Its feels a bit cool in the morning and the rapids are glacial. After forcing our wet suits on we pile into a van. There is no one else that has signed up four our trip so it just me, Anh, Hyunh and Klash along with our two guides. After reaching our departure point our guide goes over the hazards and safety procedures. The first bit he talks about the various ways you can get hurt and describes the type of injures in this sport. He ends the lecture with “and if you fall in before to lean back and float feet first down the rapid and always point your toes up. If you don’t you can catch your foot on a raft which will pull you over and the force of the river will keep you under the water and we all know what happens when we’re underwater too long.” I look over at Anh and her face is pale and the look of utter fear is quite apparent.



Hyunh and I take positions in the front of the raft. One of our guides is on the rudder in the rear and the other guide is in a rescue/show-off kayak. We all splash ourselves with water to get a feel of the temperatures. It is quite cold. I use to think that night diving off California with a 7mil was cold, this shattered that feeling. I would describe the coldness as a bunch of little tiny needles poking you. However the numbness soon sets in and it’s not too bad after that. The constant rowing helps get the blood flowing and the only uncomfortable part are my hands.




Towards the end of the rafting trip the waters are much calmer and our guide lets us jump in and float alongside the raft. It was extremely cold, but I thought to myself, “When’s the next time I’ll have an opportunity like this”. I jump in and immediately assume of the floating position of feet first. The ice cold water knocks the wind out of me and just breathing alone feels exhausting. I try to keep my head above water because of how cold it is. Hyunh follows suite and we float down for what felt like 20minutes but was probably no more than 5minutes before we ask to be pulled back in. We paddle some more to get some blood flowing and heat back in our bodies.