Ngaruroro River – Cristina Sanders' blog

Wear a helmet. You will fall in. There will be rocks.
Not all dry bags are equal. Pay for quality.
When a water-tight barrel explodes open in a rapid, dry things get wet.
Securely tied items can do a Houdini and wave goodbye as you’re clinging to the upside-down raft.
If you lose your heavy camp stove at the bottom of a river and a waif dives for it, it will miraculously light first click.
Chilly bins need to be tied shut.
Waterlogged bagels are inedible.
Sunnies should be tied on. What did I tell them?
A cairn piled on a rock on the side of the river may indicate a ledge wide enough to pitch camp. Stop!
Memories of past trips are rose tinted. Add an extra few hours and serious amounts of fear to any memory. I would argue (and did) that a rafting trip is nothing at all like giving birth, but it is true you soon forget the pain and turn around and do it all over again.