Salt River Tubing in Arizona?

Question

Me and my friends are going on Saturday. We are all good swimmers, all of us having taken it in highschool racing and stuff.

But I, however, have always been afraid of water sports. Are the waters very rapid? Especially now with all of the monsoon raining we've been having? How often do the tubes get separated from eachother? And if someone falls out, are the waters hard to fight?

I'm just such a worrier when it comes to water rapids...

Answer 1

You guys will be fine and have a lot of fun. Rapids are scored on a scale of 1-6 and about 90% (or more) of the portion you guys will be tubing down is a class 1 (the remaining is class 2). There will be about 2 spots where the water will get a little bit choppier, but nothing to be afraid of.

here are the definitions of class 1 and class 2 rapids from wikipedia

Class 1: Very small rough areas, requires no maneuvering. (Skill Level: None)

Class 2: Some rough water, maybe some rocks, might require maneuvering.(Skill Level: Basic Paddling Skill)

You will have plenty of time to see where the river starts to pick up a bit. Just hold on to your tube and try to make sure you don't scrape your bum on a rock.

Your biggest danger will probably be the sun lol. Lots of sunscreen needed or you will get totally fried.

As far as tubes separating, most people just tie their tubes together in small groups. I wouldn't recommend more than about 5 or 6 though. And if anyone falls out there isn't really anything to worry about. You should be able to stand up in most parts and if not you can catch up to your tube if you're going with the current. Against the current would be hard, but you should never have to swim that way.

One more thing, I would recommend having some sandals or flip flops with you for when you have to get off of the river. The rocks on the bottom will eat up your feet.

Good luck, Have fun