PINE FLAT, Calif. — “Forward — and hard.” The seven-person crew can hardly hear the guide’s deep voice above the deafening roar of Kings River as he tries to steer the boat away from a hole — the vortex created when water rushes over a boulder with such force that it first plunges deep down, then surges back up, flipping over boats and sucking in rafters.
John Ira Medlock Jr. is built like a bear, but his paddling couldn’t wrench us from the ripping current that made the raft dance, possessed, toward the deep green swirl.
This is what is called “big water” on the Kings — a swollen, icy ride fed by the melting of this year’s unusually large snowpack on the Sierra Nevadas’ craggy peaks.
Rafters haven’t seen anything like it since the 1990s, when El Nino storms filled California’s rivers and lakes to overflowing.
As temperatures rise, state water officials are trying to stay ahead of the rapidly melting snow by releasing abundant flows from reservoirs that are approaching capacity.
Gorged with cold, fresh snowmelt, some of the Sierra Nevadas’ rivers are running with three or four times their usual volume, and talk of the long rafting season ahead is coursing through the white-water community the way the Kings cuts through its canyon — fast and full of promise.
I’m the least experienced paddler on the raft — the crew includes four river guides with many dozens of trips among them — but the water’s icy hand slaps me in the face, and I dig in with the others as deep and hard as I can, leaning forward and then pulling all the way back in a series of reverse crunches that leaves my muscles burning.
The guides take turns maneuvering the rapids. It was Tanya Agazarian who guided us past Mule Rock — the imposing boulder on the left side of the river that flipped many in this crew just two days earlier.
Danny Wan, also a river guide, was thrown out and then pulled under by the crushing weight of thousands of gallons of rushing river. He was pushed back up, then tugged down again, helpless against the weight of the water pouring over the boulder.
Rafters call this “Maytagging,” because it feels like being put through a complete wash cycle.
Mr. Medlock, who also was thrown overboard, saw when Mr. Wan was finally spit out of Mule Rock’s wake. “He popped like cork,” Mr. Medlock says.
Mr. Medlock had to stay in the water for about a mile — “a lifetime,” he says — bouncing his way through two rapids as the group’s second boat pulled Mr. Wan out and then reached him.
Both men were prepared, in wet suits and life jackets, so they kept calm and weren’t hurt. Two days later, they are ready to do it again.
However, like many experienced rafters, they’re warning that although big-water years such as this one make for great rides, they also increase the risk of accidents, which can be risky for those who don’t take proper precautions.
The water, with temperatures in the low 50s, is pure snowmelt, and it sucks heat out of the body fast, leading to hypothermia and possibly death in less than half an hour if the swimmer is not wearing a wet suit.
“In this kind of water, you lose heat faster than standing naked in an arctic blast,” says David Nesmith, the most experienced guide on the boat.
Just the day before our trip, members of this crew joined another group to help pull out rafters who had flipped and were floating by without wet suits or a second support boat to help them.
Willa Catillon took a couple of strong rowers and crossed the river to pull out a rafter stranded on the other bank.
“With the water this big, the river’s exciting, and its fun, but it’s powerful and cold — and it’s absurd to get in without a wet suit,” says Miss Catillon, who has been rafting for 16 years.
Another risk for rafters who go overboard is strainers — submerged tree trunks and other debris along the river banks. They may seem safe to grab onto when you’re rushing by, but the force of the water against the bulk of your body will pull you under, where you may get stuck, says Bob Ferguson, owner of Zephyr Whitewater Expeditions.
If you fall in, don’t swim to shore, he says. Wait for a boat to pull you out unless you’re sure you can get out without hitting any strainers, he says. Mr. Ferguson has been running rafting trips since 1973 on the Kings; the Merced, which runs through Yosemite National Park; and the Tuolumne, which courses west of the park.
This year’s big water has been “pretty awesome,” Mr. Ferguson says, though safety concerns led him to cancel trips on the Tuolumne between late May and mid-June, when the river swelled to four times its usual size. He also raised age limits temporarily on some of the trips, from 12 to 14 or 16, depending on the person’s swimming ability.
The rivers are still high, but they’re leveling out — perfect for a fast ride, given the proper precautions, Mr. Ferguson says.
At the end of the day, after the other rafters have left, I watch the Kings. The river cuts through the golden foothills like a vein of translucent green glass, connecting my dusty campground to the Sierras’ high country and the pristine creeks where it is born.
In the distance, the snowcapped peaks reflect the setting sun, glowing pink and orange against the deep blue of California’s summer sky.
Packing up my gear, I realize I’m already planning my next trip.
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Here are some Northern California white-water outfitters. Prices range from $99 to $199 for day trips, with higher rates for weekends, harder routes and multiday trips. Some outfitters offer half-day trips and family trips for less; check Web sites or call for rates.
• Zephyr Whitewater: Kings, Merced and Tuolumne rivers; visit www.zrafting.com or call 800/431-3636.
• Whitewater Voyages: Kern, Kaweah, Tuolumne, Merced, American, North Yuba and Klamath rivers, and Cherry Creek (a dam-controlled stretch of the Tuolumne); www.whitewatervoyages.com or 800/400-7238.
• Kings River Expeditions: Kings River; www.kingsriver.com or 800/846-3674.
• Sunshine Rafting Adventures: Stanislaus and Kings rivers; www.raftadventure.com or 800/829-7238.
• Mother Lode River Center: American River; www.malode.com or 800/427-2387.
• Beyond Limits Adventures: American, Kaweah, Stanislaus and Yuba rivers; www.rivertrip.com or 800/234-7238.
• Gold Rush Whitewater Rafting: American River; www.goldrushriver.com or 800/900-7238.
• Sierra Mac River Trips: Cherry Creek,Tuolumne and American rivers; www.sierramac.com or 800/457-2580.
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