“Cristina is going to be mad at me if I drown.” It’s funny the things that float through your head while in the middle of a stressful situation.
Cristina Serrano, who is my sweetheart, cautioned me to be careful before I left for the Amazon Rainforest.
It became clear, very quickly, why I was the first person from North America to float this section of the Capahuari River in Ecuador.
A little over a year ago, Ecuador had a powerful earthquake along the Pacific Coast that killed over 1,500 people. It was hard to know what the impact was on places where people rarely go, like the Capahuari River.
My kayak jammed against a thick tree branch and filled with brown water in the middle of the river. The swollen river was filled with debris and piles of trees from a landslide most likely caused by the earthquake. My companion, Juan Carlos Garcia had escaped to safety, which left me alone with the craft trapped by the swift current.
As I jumped out of the kayak, I discovered the branch was connected to a large trunk 4 feet below the surface. It gave me a platform on which to stand and cling to the kayak. Additionally, it offered time, to figure out, what a guy who swims poorly, what to do.
No one was going to help me; they couldn’t, my companions were downstream and stood on a debris pile of trees. From there, they watched to see what I was going to do.
“Stay calm,” I said to myself, I’ll figure this out.
First thing, I decided, not to leave the kayak trapped on the tree in the middle of the river.
After I repositioned my feet below the water, on the tree, I pushed with all my might to lift the kayak over the branch. It progressed but remained pinned. I made a random mental note to spend more time in the weight room of the Fremont YMCA, if I made it home.
I pushed again. Still stuck.
With a little more determination, I pushed the kayak over the branch, and it floated downstream to be rescued by my travel companions who waited for it.
This left me clinging to the branch. What was once my nemesis, now transformed into my lifeline. I did feel a sense of relief, knowing the kayak was safe. Now it was time to put me into that same category.
Since I wasn’t wearing my lifejacket, it was time to put my limited swimming skills to a test.
After a deep breath, I let go of my tiny safe space and plunged into the river. The swift brown current quickly carried me away. A little panic passed through my body, as it always does, when I can’t touch bottom.
My arms stroked, my legs kicked and my body headed towards Garcia who waited on the pile of trees. It was going well, until I started to run out of energy.
“Just a little farther,” I said to myself.
As I approached, I saw a look of worry, on the face of Garcia.
My body started to sink in the water.
“Just a little farther,” I repeated to myself.
A hand from Garcia reached down and grabbed my arm.
“I made it,” I said with a smile. Followed by: “That was interesting.”
“Are you OK?” Asked Garcia, as he pulled me up onto the debris pile.
“I’m good.”
We gathered up the paddles, emptied the kayak and continued down river. My mind wandered back to a statement often made to students in my writing workshops, “every good adventure has a little element of tension or danger in it.” I hoped this was it for this journey.
Once again, our kayak moved down river.
“I don’t think I’ll tell Cristina about this part of the trip, not until later on,” I said to Garcia.
“Probably a good idea,” replied Garcia.
Thanks for posting! Real pleasure to follow your adventures.
Posted by: Lina | February 19, 2019 at 02:44 PM