Day 8: Monday, 23 December 1996

Everybody was really nervous for this big day …the rafting day. We were laughing and at the same time very quit. So we all met each other in Frontiers, the organization of the rafting. First a coffee, and than the hard introduction, the guide was really hard, explained what could be happen. The most important things during the tour, were the life jackets and the helm … so your first best friend is your life jacket, your second best friend is your helm, your third best friend are the guides in the canoes, who help you out of the water, they are following you the whole time. And keep attention of the crocodiles the moment you are in more calm water. After a rough movie, we could pass our life jackets and helms. We had split us up in 2 groups, but Ben the major guide rearranged the group. So we were sitting in a boat with Sharyn, Rob, Annelise,  Delphine , Helena and I. Our guide was Nat. So once we were after a very difficult descent down, we waited to enter in our boat. This descent was really dangerous … very slippery and very steep. Sometimes some baboons were following us, they had more experience in this than we had. So we entered in our boat , we with our 6 and Nat. First we had to perform some exercises , left , right , in front … kind of simulations of the actions we had to perform the moment we sail towards a raft. So in front we had Annelise, Rob and I. The exercises where very funny … the water was still calm. 

Exercising in the calm water was still very funny

The first Raft number 4 ‘ Morning Glory’, we passed without any problem also number 5 ‘Stairway to heaven’ we passed. My adrenaline was rising very high, the moment we went through those huge water masses. Each time we passed a raft without problem , we screamed … high five ! Number 6 ‘ The devils Toilet Bowl’ was frightful. The moment we went in the hole, we couldn’t get the boat under control , so we flipped. 

Before the first flip !

I knew I had to keep the rope in my hand, the life rope … I didn’t let the life rope … but I felt my hand almost slipping away. My head went under, I felt the water in my mouth, and I didn’t know whether the sky was above or under me. I didn’t had a lot of breath . Fortunately I felt the air again, I saw the other trying to jump into the boat, they help me into the boat. Delphine was not up yet, nobody saw her, a few seconds later, we saw her head, she tried to take breath. She was really shocked . So I really was scared, and that already after half an hour. So we went slowly to the next raft , number 7 ‘Gulliver’s travels’ . That was the worst thing I ever felt in my life. The feeling to die. The moment we entered in the big hole, all the water came to us and Nat didn’t had at all control over the boat. 

I kept the rope very strong, but due to the power of the water, I was swept away out of the boat. I couldn’t keep the rope. So I was an alone swimmer .I went under and turned in the wild water, I felt the water was playing with me again I didn’t know if the ground was above or under me. The only thing I saw went I opened my eyes where bubbles and waves, I was swinging with my arms in all directions to feel air … without result . It really kept turning and turning in that whirlpool. Fortunately after a while I came up and was searching for the boat, which was really far away from me, still closer to the raft, but I went much more faster than them … so fortunately another boat sailed towards me and brought me into their boat. I was silent , afraid , but happy they could catch me before we approached the next raft. It was an experience I never wanted to feel again. After that raft, Nat was coming towards the boat I was sitting in, so we all came again in one boat. Once we were all together again I heard the stories of the other, all of us had a bad time during that raft. It became really silent. So we approached number 8 ‘ The Muncher’ . Nat had a proposal, we could enter this hole at the difficult side or at the more easy side. Rob wanted as only to enter it via the difficult one, I was not a fan to do this. So we could persuade Nat to enter via the easy part. So we entered the wild water , and we almost were flipped again, due to our good power into the front … we succeeded. Rob’s nose was really hurt, during the number 7 raft, he got the peddle on its nose , he thought it was broken. We were happy to pass once a raft without problems. The number 9 ‘ The commercial suicide ‘ was passed also without problems. Number 10 ‘ Gnashing Jaws’ was the last for that morning, were we almost flipped again, but fortunately it didn’t came so far. I was screaming, ‘no not again’. So after this last raft, there was the well deserved lunch, a barbecue. It was clear which boats were flipped that morning and which weren’t. During the lunch, Helena and Liz decided to stop, they were too afraid. So then went back by feet, up to the hill and with the bus back to the aquarium. I was really afraid too, but Rob could convince me to stay and to try out the other boats, those with peddles. So we asked to move from boat and finally after the lunch we entered in the boats with the peddles. Our new guide was Kris a much more better guide than Nat. He told us each time we wanted to enter in a raft perfectly what to do. Rob was sitting in front, I and Charlotte were sitting in the middle, Ann and Kris were sitting backwards. The trick was to peddle as hard as possible to get more speed than the water, to cut the water. Our first raft from that afternoon was number 11 ‘The overland truck ‘ … Jesus, when I saw that amount of water , the only thing I thought was , no , that is not possible. 

Rob was screaming … yes, yes, harder , faster, and in fact we went through, now we really had influence on the position of the boat because we were peddling our self. I felt my body in each part of the boat , but I stead inside, we really took it perfect! Very proud we smashed our peddles to each other and screamed ‘High five’ and then smashed the peddles into the water. The period between 11 and 12 was longer, so we took our life jacket out and rested on the border of the boat , lying very relaxed on the boat enjoying the sun. We were not allowed to put our feet into the water … the crocodiles and also the tiger fish. When approaching number 12 ‘The three sisters’ we had already more self confidence. We had the trick, peddling very very fast. I was at least much more happier than that morning. The peddles at least gave us more confidence, you feel you can influence the power, you are screaming, willing to pass the raft. Number 13 ‘The mother’, I was screaming again, but again without problems, we passed it. Also number 14 ‘The narrows ‘ we passed without trouble. So now and then we could leave our life jacket , for half an our. I was listing to the birds , beautiful .Then I tried to observe some crocodiles, but without result, well maybe fortunately. Chris told us, they were present, but most of the time you couldn’t see them, but before you could do something they have your leg. The geology was also very fascinating. I was really enjoying this rest between all the tension. Number 15 ‘ The big washing machine’ a very dangerous raft, once you take him wrong you really raft on one big wave, which is stronger than all the power you can give from in the boat, he throws you out of the boat, even if you get the rope very strong. The power of water is unbelievable. When Chris was explaining to us this story, I really was scared a lot. I didn’t want to be thrown away out of the boat. Chris really scared me so much that I asked to get out of the boat and enter again after the raft, but no way I had to stay in the boat. My bully hurt a lot, just from the stress. So we prepared our self and started already to scream much more earlier than was needed … ‘Dig, deeper, dig , harder , yes ….right, right , faster, … ‘ we all screamed and dig as hard as we could to survive. I was trembling very hard. But we passed him, we did it again !

Number 16 ‘ The terminator’ and number 17 ‘The Double Trouble’ were possible. Only during the big trouble Henning was thrown out of the boat. Charlotte was screaming , we didn’t see Henning in a first instance. That was clear because he was picked by another group. So Charlotte was really in panic. But Ben’s group caught him. Number 18 ‘The oblivion’ . That seemed to be the most difficult from all the rafts, so I was really afraid. Chris told us perfect what to do. It was a raft with a lot of strong waves, and again if you staid on one of those waves, the waves shake the boat in such a way that you get thrown out of the boat. So the first 2 waves we passed without problems. My adrenaline was rising, I thought we had him, but at the last instance , we flipped , I didn’t had the life rope, the only thing I had in my hand was the peddle, so I flew through the sky and came down somewhere deep in the water. I was turning and turning without knowing were I was. Sometimes my head came up, I took some breath and then again, the water pull me down and that for a few times. The waves , power of the water was amazing. Fortunately I saw during one of my moments I came up a canoe, I tried to go to that direction. But the water turned me only those directions I didn’t want to go, and the canoe was coming towards me and I could catch him. I was happy to get him, so he sailed with me hanging backwards at the boat, towards more calm water.

 The others came to there and pull me into the boat. I was so tiered of all the exertion I performed to keep my head above. I was exhausted . Number 19 went without problems. At number 20 and 21, I saw there was something wrong, I screamed to get the boat straight, but the boat flipped, it was Chris’s idea to flip the boat , well at the end it was funny we all were hanging out of the boat during the last two rafts. That was the end , I didn’t felt my arms anymore, but I was so happy we survived it. I was happy I did it, but I shall never do this again. I thought it was finished, but we still had to climb up the hill, to reach the bus. It was a climb of a 20 minutes, on a very steep , slippery path. Our peddles and life jackets and helm as company. The sweat was streaming of my face and back. But once on top, the biggest surprise was waiting for us … Fresh lemon juice … followed by an amount of Zambezi's. So once everyone was on top, we entered in the bus, which brought us back to Victoria Falls city. During that drive a lot of beer was running, laughing all kind of stories were told, … we were singing it was a kind of reaction of all the emotions we went through during that hole day. Daddy was waiting for us, and we couldn’t stop to tell our stories. First we received our certificate of the Raft of the wildest river of the world. Later we bought the rafting T-shirt. Dylan found it a good idea , we first all came together at the aquarium , to have our shower, before having a look to the video, they made of us during that day. Dylan gave us our t-shirts I designed. All of us were satisfied with the result. Although we were so tiered , a lot of fun was made and we went together to the hall were the movie was presented. Amazing if you see your own in the boat, making strange faces , screaming, flipping. Everybody was silent again. But after a while the jokes started. I bought the video and the pictures. We finished this perfect day to celebrate our survival with a perfect dinner in the ‘ The Cattle men’. A nice restaurant in the center of Victoria Falls City. We drunk and drunk, because it took a time before the dinner arrived. So our stomach was plenty of Zambezi (water) and Zambezi (beer) . I chose for a baby chicken, because I was not hungry at all, I think I had already to much water in. It was a pleasant evening. But after the dinner I really wanted to phone to Belgium to tell I was still alive. Together with Catherine , Sharyn , Rob and I we went to telephone cells. I tried and asked for a reverse call for Belgium, but in the telephone station they told me they didn’t had any contract with the telephone station of Belgium. So I didn’t had the possibility to call to home. I felt sad. I helped Catherine to phone to Australia. I had contact with Telstra and the connection was good, Catherine and Rob had the possibility to phone … I didn’t. Rob was even joking with the event, ‘you see Belgium is not small, it is even not existing at all. I was laughing with their jokes, but for once I really wanted to hear mama and papa, I didn’t succeed in this, I wanted to say merry Christmas . We walked back to the camping and tried to be silent, in which we didn’t succeed. I still needed some stuff out of the aquarium, when coming down from the ladder I slid down and my toe of my foot broke totally. A lot of bled was flowing. I woke Annelise immediately and she took care of my toe. Afterwards a felt asleep and nothing could wake me up after such a day.

Next day: Day 9: 24 December 1996
Previous day: Day 7: 22 December 1996