My legs were pretty smoked in the days following our summit of Mt. Katahdin. Even with several weeks of conditioning under my belt, that hike was still a demanding endeavor.
I didn’t feel too beat up the day we climbed the mountain. My knees were just a bit tired. Perhaps it was just the adrenaline masking the fatigue.
My quads and claves were definitely a bit more achy when I woke up the following morning.
But two days after Katahdin, now THAT was when the soreness kicked in. All my muscles were screaming and tender by then.
What my legs really needed was a good, long soak. But, when you live in a 300 square foot RV, you don’t exactly have a bathtub to stretch out in.
So the best alternative, in my opinion, was to head over to the river to cool them down. And since we were already there, why not go whitewater rafting too?
Ah yes. Nice cool water for the legs!
Rafting on the Penobscot
There are a number of river outfitters on the the Penobscot River that cater to the summer crowd.
Some trips are family-friendly and focus on the lower river – which ranges from flat water to a few Class IV rapids. Others are geared for the more adventurous and take you to the upper river where there’s lots of Class IV and V rapids to navigate.
Given our need for rest and relaxation, we opted for the less arduous trip. We booked a half day rafting trip for the three of us on the lower Penobscot.
A word of warning to prospective rafters. Many of the river outfitters have similar names. We thought Keith booked us with one outfitter online, and we showed up just before 8am. After standing in line for 15 minutes to sign the liability waiver, we discovered we were really booked at another outfitter down the road.
And were now running super late! Whoops!
Never fear, we made it to the real location in time to get our paddles and life vests. And soon thereafter, we were on the shuttle bus and on our way!
Ready to raft, baby!
The trip downriver
We’ve been whitewater rafting several times out West. Most recently, Finn and I took a trip down the Snake River in Wyoming while Keith was recovering from a concussion. (It was his 3rd TBI in recent years, so the doctor said he had to sit that particular trip out).
We had a great time on each prior rafting trip, and were definitely looking forward to seeing what thrills Maine could throw at us.
Let me tell you, it was AWESOME!
We put the raft in at a flat spot so we could practice our paddling commands and start working as a team. But, almost as soon as we got going downriver, we hit a big waterfall and the rapids below it.
Our guide only had five of us in his boat, so he spent time making the trip extra memorable for Finn. After going through each of the major rapids, he turned the raft back around and “surfed” in them to make sure Finn got soaked from his seat up in front.
About halfway through our trip downriver, we came to a section with a small waterfall in a cove. This wasn’t your run of the mill waterfall though. Instead, it was one that could be used as a waterslide. All of the boats pulled out into the cove so we could experience the sheer exhilaration of being swept down a waterfall (in the safest possible way imaginable, of course!).
Waterslide!
Once we were done with that excitement, we had some nice flat water where we could swim alongside the raft and cool those sore muscles off.
A satisfying end
We ended our trip with a number of smaller rapids to keep us on our toes with giddy delight. After one final set of Class IV rapids, our 3 hours on the river had come to a close. All that was left was carrying the raft to the truck and eating lunch.
It was certainly an enjoyable way to spend a day. And who knows… I may climb Katahdin again soon, just to get the R&R in the river afterwards!