White water rafting in Gopeng

white water rafting

I had dinner with Jazz just now and recalled our white water rafting experience in Gopeng, Perak. The stretch of Kampar River that we went on is rated as Grade 2, which is very basic compared to the Class 4 in Pelagus Rapids, Kapit (about an hour from my hometown) and sea kayaking in Australia that I experienced last year.

talk to my paddle

However, it’s always fun to go white water rafting regardless of the skill level. I’ve even gone tandem white water rafting with no raft, Jackass style. Heh. I’m amazed at how skinny I was back then.

safety briefing

The white water rafting experience in Gopeng started with a safety briefing which goes through all the basics for beginners…

white water rafting training

…an introduction to the feeling of being swept away by the rapids – all of us went off the first churning stretch feet first without a raft.

You basically let the current take you down for about 100 meters while a guy at the end throws you a line with a flotation device to rope you back in. I thought that was a great idea to introduce new people to how being in the rapids feel like.

white water rafts

I was sitting in front and it’s a rush to go over the rapids by not holding on to the side raft rope (not recommended for beginners – look ma, no hands) while swinging the paddle ala Darth Maul in Star Wars – learned this trick from one of the instructors. πŸ˜‰

white water rafting us

I fell out of the raft once but managed to get back in without any help. It’s a fun experience for all ages – you don’t even need to know how to swim (although that would be a plus) and if you go during the evening, I hear the rapids gets more intense.

instructor

Anyway, halfway through the course, me and the instructor got out heads together to throw Jazz into the water coz she was holding on to the rope the entire time. This effort was the reason I fell out of the raft myself as mentioned above – the plan called for him to signal me and we’ll both lean right to shift the center of gravity and flip the boat.

white water rafting capsize

Unfortunately, I confused right with left. I leaned left while the weight was to the right and promptly fell into the water. Haha!

white water rafting safe

We did save someone who fell in and got swept away, but we did not get Jazz into the water except during two planned capsizes in totally calm waters so we can learn to set the raft upright and get back in.

white water rafting team

Lina of Kosmo interviewed me about the experience so if you can read BM, here’s the link – it translates to Challenging the Rapids at Kampar River. I think. My BM is quite rusty.

bath

I love white water rafting in Kampar River, Gopeng. It was fun for me since I didn’t hunker down or hold on to the rope when we went over the rapids. Instead, I swung the paddle overhead while making appropriate whooping noises. smirk

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18 thoughts on “White water rafting in Gopeng”

  1. This certainly looks like a whole lotta fun. Did you do that in NZ? They should have something like this in the Upper Rejang – the Pelagus…but I hear they’ve plans to tame the rapids… That’s like killing the golden goose.

    Reply
    • Nope, I did it in Malaysia – this was in Gopeng, Perak. πŸ™‚

      What? They’re going to tame the Pelagus rapids? Why? It’s such a great place for eco-tourism! The first time I went white water rafting was in Pelagus. 😑

      Reply
  2. this is pretty close to klang valley too. i usually go to sungai selangor with my rafting buddies. gopeng would be a new change. where exactly is this place? thanks in advance hb.
    p.s. you’re welcome to join us πŸ™‚

    Reply
    • Hello Joanna! πŸ™‚

      This is at My Gopeng Resort, you can start the white water rafting journey from there. I’ll love to, let me know when you guys are going!

      Reply
    • Heh! No, that is the view of the digicam as I swam towards the throw bag – see the line I was holding on to and when I surfaced again?

      Thanks man! πŸ™‚

      Reply
    • Yeah, white water rafting in Gopeng is not too bad – Kampar River is pretty decent, although a more challenging course would be more fun. πŸ˜€

      Reply
    • Yeah, I remember winning the drifting lessons. Heh.

      It’s a nice river for beginners, smooth ride with practically zero effort. You don’t have to actively avoid rocks or jump towards large waves and rocks to avoid capsizing – this is just a Class 2 rapid, compared to the Class 4 in Pelagus.

      Perfect for people new to white water rafting. πŸ˜€

      Reply
    • Well, I wouldn’t call white water rafting in Gopeng extreme by any definition.

      Kampar River is just a Class 2 rapid, very tame, very calm, perfect for beginners. It’s more like a leisure cruise with the occasional paddling.

      I don’t know, maybe it just seems like a leisure cruise to me coz I had to constantly paddle into huge waves and do complicated maneuvers like jumping into an oncoming wave (to avoid the raft capsizing) and intense runs with little letup at the Class 4 rapids in Pelagus where I learned white water rafting. πŸ˜€

      Reply
    • It’s fun!

      Trust me, you’ll be fine, it’s perfectly safe for beginners and the captains (instructors) are quite good at what they do.

      Kampar River is also very tame compared to some other intense white water rafting runs in Malaysia. πŸ™‚

      Reply
  3. Hi, I’m hoping to organise white water rafting for a team of 15 in Gopeng (just outside Ipoh) and this would need to be 24th July 2013. I was wondering if you pre-booked and if so how, or did you just turn up on the day?

    Reply
  4. Hi, I’m hoping to organise white water rafting for a team of 15 in Gopeng (just outside Ipoh) and this would need to be 24th July 2013. I was wondering if you pre-booked and if so how, or did you just turn up on the day?

    Reply

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