Ben’s big rafting trip

By Ben Westcott, Chronicle Staff Writer

In my continuing pursuit of outdoor activities in the region, I went whitewater rafting on the Hudson River.

With 10 companies operating on the stretch of river I was looking to explore, I certainly had my pick of options.

I ended up booking a trip with Wild Waters Outdoor Center, a family owned and operated business that has whitewater rafted the Hudson and Sacandaga Rivers since 1983.

I signed up for the 17-mile Hudson River Gorge trip. It starts at the Indian River near the base of the Lake Abanakee Dam and concludes on the Hudson in North River.

It took about five hours, with three swim breaks and a lunch break on the shoreline sprinkled in.

Wild Waters owner Doug Azaert told me the trip can take just two and a half to three hours in the springtime “when the water is really high and flying.”

I had rafted a river with a guide before on calm waters, but this was my first time experiencing the whitewater variety.

The rafting experience featured a little bit of everything, ranging from intense moments with Class 4 rapids creating serious splashes into the boat to periods of calm drifting down the water.

I felt confident throughout in my guide’s abilities and experience.

Despite temperatures peaking in the high 80s, I never felt hot, with the breeze over the water and frequent splashes. Refreshing swim breaks also helped.

My boat included a family of five from Connecticut, a woman from Rochester, and a man here for the summer working a local summer camp.

Our guide Maddy Carre, in her sixth season at Wild Waters, pointed out interesting facts about the surroundings and kept things lighthearted with jokes.

Adding to the fun was a series of splash battles with surrounding rafts and Ms. Carre “accidentally” bumping us into a large rock in the middle of the river.

There were also robust singalongs of “YMCA” and the Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way” with neighboring crews.

Another fun twist was the option to climb a rope up a large rock and jump into the river from its peak, which I took full advantage of.

Wild Waters runs this trip on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays from mid April to Columbus Day weekend.

The company provides wet suits and splash jackets during colder times of year.

“The fall is spectacular,” Mr. Azaert said, adding, “May is nice because you get some bigger water, but it’s not as cold as April.”

Summer is Wild Water’s busiest season, with folks coming from all over.

“It’s surprising how many internationals we get in the summertime,” Mr. Azaert said. “Today we had folks from Finland and Germany.” He said the past two weeks had featured visitors from the Netherlands, China, Japan and Russia.

Mr. Azaert said this year started off a little slow because it was cool and wet in April and May, but as soon as the sun came out in June it’s been very busy.

“I think we get more locals in the spring, and then in the fall.”

Our guide Ms. Carre said her favorite part of the job is the community aspect.

“We have a great group of people working here, and even other companies on the river, we’re all pretty tight with each other,” she said. “We’re all good friends.”

For the clients, “I just try to give them as fun of an experience as possible. If they seem a little hesitant and timid, I might hold back on some of those big hits, but if they seem gung-ho about it I will not hold back at all.”

Overall, I had a great time whitewater rafting. It’s definitely something I would like to experience again!

Prices for the 17-mile Hudson River Gorge Rafting Trip on a shared raft are $108 per adult, $85 for teens ages 13 to 17 and $75 for children 8 to 12.

Shorter, calmer Sacandaga trip

For those looking for less intensity and a shorter time commitment, Wild Waters offers a 3.5-mile trip taking about an hour on the Sacandaga River seven days a week at 10 a.m., noon and 2 p.m.

It starts a Stewart’s Dam in Hadley and ends where the Sacandaga and Hudson Rivers converge. “That’s a much shorter trip,” Mr. Azaert said. “It’s great for families. We take kids as young as five. Or for folks that just don’t have a whole day to experience whitewater rafting.”

He said it features “two nice waves, two nice rapids. Big waves, the boats fill up with water, people get soaking wet. It’s a big bang for its buck. There’s a lot of fun and excitement in that hour. You can even go swimming if you want to.”

That trip has a shorter season, from the end of June through Labor Day.

Checked in with other rafting firms

The Chronicle’s Ben Westcott writes: We contacted several other whitewater rafting companies to see how the season is going and their view of things.

“Overall our season is going quite well,” Tubby Tubes River Co. Operations Manager Jaime Rozell replied.

“To start off it was certainly challenging with rain occurring almost every weekend, but we’ve had a good stretch of weather so far in July, so the sunny skies and warm temps have been welcome and appreciated.” (Rozell added they could go for fewer misleading weather forecasts, saying “‘forecast fatigue’ is the summer 2025 phrase I came up with recently.”)

Adirondack Adventure Center owner Dane Morton said, “So far, the season has been about average for us. We do all of our rafting on the Sacandaga River, which is dam controlled, so the lack of rain in July hasn’t hurt us at all. The river is warm, the rapids are good and we’re looking forward to having a strong August!”

Pete Burns of Beaver Brook Outfitters said, “Overall our season is going well. Rafting has been pretty even with last season…Our overnight trips where we camp on the river are up over last season.” He said they also offer partner with Rev Rail on a railbike/tube combo, as well as canoe and kayak rentals. The company has three glamping tents on site. “A new trip we are offering this year is a scenic/interpretive trip from North River to North Creek,” Mr. Burns said.

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