The Citarik River which is located in Sukabumi is one of the most well-know rivers for exciting rafting in Indonesia. I was blessed to be there for my first experience in rafting.
I happened to be in a conference for my company in Jakarta. So, my experience started from there. Since it was going to take 3 hours driving from Jakarta to Sukabumi, my friends and I, a total of 12 people, woke up at 4:00 a.m and left the hotel at 5:00 a.m. Even though we were still heavy-eyed we were very excited! On the way there we stopped by at the traditional chicken porridge eatery on the street and had our breakfast there. The taste was so good, I guess because the taste was mixed with dust and exhaust-polluted air from the cars passing by. Huhehehe. Then the journey continued on.
When we arrived in Sukabumi, particularly our rafting agent’s base of ARUSLIAR, we got our rafting equipment, like life jackets, paddles and helmets. Then, we went to the starting point, another 4 km by TRUCK!! We were like cows being taken to market in the truck! The road was very steep and with many curves; we screamed the whole trip!! And, we hadn’t even started the rafting yet!!!
Once we got to the starting point, we were divided into 3 groups. My team was named Matahari (Sun) the other teams were Bintang (Star) and Bulan (Moon). The length of the rafting trip was 8 km, but every 2 km we stopped for various games and rest.
The first game was flipping our rafts over. So, as a team we had to flip over the boat with a provided wire. Once it was flipped over, we then needed to flip it back in the right position. It sounds easy but when you have to pull yourself up to the boat, it was really hard! One of my friends first pushed my butt so that I could climb into the boat and then I help pull the rest of my team in. Even though this was a game, it was also a safety procedure as sometime the river rafts can overturn when we don’t expect it.
Then the second game was called “slaloms”. This was the hardest one. We had to paddle our raft against the current and touch a particular thing that was placed on the other side. It was really hard. We paddled and paddled and paddled. I was so exhausted but my team did it!
The third game was “head to head”. It was racing between 3 teams and my group was the loser!! hahahha!! But our group ended the race by flipping our raft over by accident!! It was a great ending of my rafting trip.
Of course, we always had “splash war” using our paddles with other teams along the way of our rafting trip. We also had countless falls down from standing in our rafts when we go through strong current and rapids and bump into big rocks. However, it was still so much fun even though at the end of the day I got several bruises all over my body.
Afterward we soaked ourselves in the river and the water was very fresh! Oh, and I was able to see so many different kinds of wonderful flowers, beautiful birds and biawak along the river. It was awesome. And to get back to our base, we had to ride the TRUCK back again!!! Another screaming session!!
Soon we arrived at the ARUSLIAR base, we took a shower. The agent provided us a great lunch. We had famous West Java food like Sayur Asam (Sour Veggie), Karedok (raw vegetable mix with peanut sauce), Tempe Goreng (fried soy cake), Tahu Goreng (Fried Tofu) and Ikan Asin (Salted fish).
I would recommend this rafting trip to anyone traveling in this part of Indonesia, it is easy to do, the cost is low and the fun and excitement are high. Take my advice, and get wet!
I happened to be in a conference for my company in Jakarta. So, my experience started from there. Since it was going to take 3 hours driving from Jakarta to Sukabumi, my friends and I, a total of 12 people, woke up at 4:00 a.m and left the hotel at 5:00 a.m. Even though we were still heavy-eyed we were very excited! On the way there we stopped by at the traditional chicken porridge eatery on the street and had our breakfast there. The taste was so good, I guess because the taste was mixed with dust and exhaust-polluted air from the cars passing by. Huhehehe. Then the journey continued on.
When we arrived in Sukabumi, particularly our rafting agent’s base of ARUSLIAR, we got our rafting equipment, like life jackets, paddles and helmets. Then, we went to the starting point, another 4 km by TRUCK!! We were like cows being taken to market in the truck! The road was very steep and with many curves; we screamed the whole trip!! And, we hadn’t even started the rafting yet!!!
Once we got to the starting point, we were divided into 3 groups. My team was named Matahari (Sun) the other teams were Bintang (Star) and Bulan (Moon). The length of the rafting trip was 8 km, but every 2 km we stopped for various games and rest.
The first game was flipping our rafts over. So, as a team we had to flip over the boat with a provided wire. Once it was flipped over, we then needed to flip it back in the right position. It sounds easy but when you have to pull yourself up to the boat, it was really hard! One of my friends first pushed my butt so that I could climb into the boat and then I help pull the rest of my team in. Even though this was a game, it was also a safety procedure as sometime the river rafts can overturn when we don’t expect it.
Then the second game was called “slaloms”. This was the hardest one. We had to paddle our raft against the current and touch a particular thing that was placed on the other side. It was really hard. We paddled and paddled and paddled. I was so exhausted but my team did it!
The third game was “head to head”. It was racing between 3 teams and my group was the loser!! hahahha!! But our group ended the race by flipping our raft over by accident!! It was a great ending of my rafting trip.
Of course, we always had “splash war” using our paddles with other teams along the way of our rafting trip. We also had countless falls down from standing in our rafts when we go through strong current and rapids and bump into big rocks. However, it was still so much fun even though at the end of the day I got several bruises all over my body.
Afterward we soaked ourselves in the river and the water was very fresh! Oh, and I was able to see so many different kinds of wonderful flowers, beautiful birds and biawak along the river. It was awesome. And to get back to our base, we had to ride the TRUCK back again!!! Another screaming session!!
Soon we arrived at the ARUSLIAR base, we took a shower. The agent provided us a great lunch. We had famous West Java food like Sayur Asam (Sour Veggie), Karedok (raw vegetable mix with peanut sauce), Tempe Goreng (fried soy cake), Tahu Goreng (Fried Tofu) and Ikan Asin (Salted fish).
I would recommend this rafting trip to anyone traveling in this part of Indonesia, it is easy to do, the cost is low and the fun and excitement are high. Take my advice, and get wet!
17 comments:
that is one activity i have not yet dared try. maybe one of these days. thanks for sharing your adventure.
i've tried water rafting too on a basic course. it was veryyyyy nice.. but i don't think i have the guts to take the advance course. aahahhah..
MONNYOOOOOOOOOOONG, beberapa hari gak posting, begitu posting langsung bikin deg-deg plas. Hahaha istilah gw mampus ya nyeeet. Gw itu pengen banget arung jeram, dan lu sudah duluaaan aaaaaaaaH!!! btw bo, ada bobot maksimal gak sih buat yang arung jeram itu?
I love water rafting just by looking at it. I probably won't be able to try this one of a kind experience. I'm not a great swimmer. :(
phew...!
i'm not a good swimmer :(
gak mau coba deh... =)
Rafting seruuuu!! Pasti cekakak cekikik...:D
Dah lama gak rafting...
# Lawstude:
You should try :) Loads of fun!!!
# Carlota:
I'm glad you enjoyed it!! Why don't you try? More challenging and fun!!
# brokolisehat:
hahaha, maaf saya mendahului dirimu berarung jeram sista!! Ga ada bobot maksimal kok! Salah satu temen gw lebih gede dari elu asoy geboy aja :)
# Asian Traveler:
You will wear life jacket as a safety procedure :) You won't be drowning..try the basic one would be fine for you :)
# highaltitude:
yaaa..jerry kok ga mo coba sih? sekali-sekali coba olahraga air dunk..jangan lari melulu..hihihi...
# turisgembel:
hahaha, iya yang pasti ketawa dan teriak-teriak melulu..
biasa rafting dimana say?
I will try this extreme sport for the first time next month here in southern Philippines. I hope it can be as enjoyable as your experience :)
huaaa... seruw bener... jadi pengen rafting lagi neh...
hati-hati air bah tiba-tiba datang.Berapa biayanya tuh.Kepingin ngeliat foto yang lagi jungkir baliknya,ada gak?
ikutan donk !
mampir ke blogku ya .... pindah soalnya dr elyswelt ke dunia ely, thanks
what an adventurous moments...anyway,care 2 xchange link with my Travel Accesories blog? I have added ur blog.Thx
# Ar-wee-der-yet:
Aw aw aw aw..let me know how your experience goes! I bet it would be better than mine :)
# Caroline Sutrisno:
Ayyoo mbak rafting sekeluarga pasti seru :)
# mencobahidup:
foto jungkir baliknya ga ada..abis ga ada yang punya U/W camera sih saat itu :)
# ely:
yuukk aku ajakin kalo mo rafting lagi :)
aku mampir deh di blog yang baru :)
# travel accessories:
it was adventurous indeed!
Sure we can exchange link :)
Dyuhhh, serunya... terutama bagian teriak2x di truk, biawak di pinggir kali and...my favorite: bagian makan2x :D.
Gw ngebayangin sayur asem, sambel plus ikan asin aja udah ngeces secara di Oslo itu termasuk makanan langka. Ditunggu makanan, eh postingan selanjutnya. Yuks, mariii...
gilingan, gw mau ke sana gak jadi2... dan susah banget nyari orang yang mau pergi ama gw. Kalo pas ketemu, duitnya yang ga ada... duuh kapan yah bisa jodoh ke sana
kepengen banget rafting...seru g ya..???
pengen baget nyobaaaaaaaaa!!!huhuhuhuhu
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