| A White Water Adventure |
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On The |
Bull Sluice
This particular adventure took us to the Chattooga River in South Carolina and to a rapid called "Bull Sluice." The "Bull Sluice" is the signature rapid at the end of the Section III white water course of the Chattooga River, composed of several Class III and IV rapids. Bull Sluice can be rated either a Class IV or a Class V depending on the river conditions. This day the river was high and it was definitely a Class V. The "Bull Sluice" is actually a double rapid and not an easy one to maneuver. It takes an expert guide to precisely position the raft through the entire course.
Before taking the raft through this rapid, the guide (who does the steering at the rear of the boat) takes us to the river bank to study the rapid, discuss how he plans to traverse "Bull Sluice," and what commands he will be calling as we paddle through. Because this is the signature rapid, there is a photographer stationed on the river bank to take pictures of each raft as it goes through the rapid. Normally, the photographer takes a couple of shots of each raft, but because he saw something unusual happening to ours, he took six rapid-succession pictures. Here are the extraordinary photos taken of our white water adventure and the unbelievable story they tell.