For paddlers of the skill level of Louise, Ryan and Joe Morley, this stretch of water would have been a nice, gentle way to ease themselves into their evening paddle, before they hit the relentless rapids in the lower gorges. margin-left: 7px; color: #fff !important; This is the story of her death but it is also a story of renewal, as those closest to her keep her memory alive by celebrating her sense of adventure. The tour companies generally bring along a photographer with them too, to take shots along the river, including when you make the final drop over the adrenaline-inducing Tutea Falls. } With the gorge framed by native bush, fallen logs also pose a major hazard for kayakers. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. In other words, there is one death for every 250,000 to 400,000 "person visits" of whitewater rafting. e.tabhide = e.tabhide===undefined ? } .top-bar { background: #f7e221; A man in his 50s had got into difficulty in the Kaituna River and, despite attempts by medical staff, [was] unable to be revived and died at the scene. } width: 100%; Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. Rotorua Raftings mission is simple. Working in Rotorua had its benefits, however, with Louise able to take up residence with Lucas at Okere Falls. position: relative; .mobile-header-bar{ background-color: #f7e222; @media screen and (min-width:770px) { The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. 0 : parseInt(e.thumbhide); .dt-mobile-menu-icon:not(.floating-btn) .menu-line:before { There was no trace of her. You paddle once again, as hard as you can with your whole body then you quickly jump down holding on to the water-soaked rope as you have the sensation of free-falling. .textwidget p { 16 Kaituna River: 3.5-Hour Whitewater Rafting Experience. Louise never needed much encouragement. } Its as committing as it possibly gets. He is a passionate outdoorsman with loads of energy and a desire to share with you, the wonders of the Kaituna River the place he calls home. Through the depths of the magnificent bush lined gorge, the Kaituna river, Okere awa offers a 45 minute trip over 14 rapids including the 7 metre Tutea falls. " Stephanie - Germany KAITUNA After all, if youre going to throw yourself off a 20m waterfall in a plastic tub, then youre going want to have some skite footage. 0 : parseInt(e.thumbw); } border-radius: 3px; top: 2% !important; Ride the rapids of the Kaituna River in a safe and fun way that's perfect for rafting beginners. The beauty of the Kaituna River is unmatched around the World and its hard to keep your eyes on the rapids as they come up. As far as grade five rivers go, the upper section of the Kaituna is considered the forgiving kind. She wasnt the first of Ryans friends killed in the sport; she hasnt been the last. Kaituna River: 3.5-Hour Whitewater Rafting Experience 4.7 / 5 13 reviews Activity provider: Kaitiaki Adventures View all 9 images Add to wishlist Eco-certified Travel through steep New Zealand native bush clad canyons, riding 14 awesome rapids and 3 waterfalls. Kaituna Cascades Rafting Company is the # 1 rafting company in Rotorua on TripAdvisor! Roy then dragged Ryan from his kayak and revived him. top: 2.3% !important; Start at a spot where wild waters meet subtropical rainforests and canyons engraved in the earth. It was inevitable that their paths would cross here. } Morley would wait in a slow-moving eddy, where he would be able to rescue they still were not considering the possibility of retrieving a body Louise if she tried to swim her way out of it. 7M TUTEA FALLS Experience the adrenaline of white water rafting on Kaituna River! All her friends have a story to tell of her madcap adventures around Europe, where going with the flow landed her in some unlikely situations. But again, youre unlikely to fall out as long as you follow the commands given by your boat leader. right: 5% !important; Just before Christmas, Ryan took some of Louises friends who were visiting from overseas back down the gorges. } If you popped into the local supermarket in Ostrava, youd see Hradileks face adorning Red Bull cans and cookie packets. We offer river rafting trips daily on the Kaituna River(Okere River), and seasonal trips on the Waiora, and Rangitaiki River. top: 5px; Her body was still ensnared on the log when a rescue team was deployed the next morning, after the river level had lowered. } It is also a good place to disappear. He finally reached the point in the river where he thought Louise had been ejected. } With New Zealand native scenery and Maori History lining the gorge of the beautiful Kaituna River, let Rotorua Rafting show you our backyard. fbq('track', 'PageView'); Occasionally, the rafts will flip over when they hit the water at the bottom of the falls. 0 : parseInt(e.tabh); } #floating { Our aim is to be the highlight of your holiday in New Zealand and give you the best rafting experience ever! margin: 0 15% !important; background-color: var(--the7-accent-color); It is also here the person he loved and cared about more than anything in the world drowned. margin: 20px; A big part of the sport is documenting their adventures. No further information is available and the death will be referred to the Coroner., "Eventually the additional tax burden will have to be passed to tenants". This is rare, but if it does happen, then just follow the training you are given at the start and dont worry too much because the worst of the rapids are over and there will be plenty of time to climb back inside the raft. } Those fears were founded. "There was nothing we could do, the ambulance guys told us he had a heart attack. color: #000000; American tourist 23-year-old Alabama man Matthew Stidham died while kayaking on a piece of river known as Awesome Gorge after getting trapped under a fallen branch. .gallery-shortcode img { @media(max-width:1200px) and (min-width:767px){ } catch(e){ .elementor-slideshow__title{ The first of the three gorges is known to paddlers as Awesome. We are the original Kaituna Rafting company & have been operating since 1991. top: 0; .yellow-head .elementor-widget-container{ We were all really fired up, I remember Lou looking at me and giving me the vibe like lets do this, says Ryan. And yes, Lina and I have a naked dog. The Best Whitewater Rafting in Rotorua, and Ranked #1 on Trip Advisor. The water is clear, crisp and really refreshing on a summer day. color: #000 !important; font-family: Roboto; Five minutes later, Louise had talked the woman into allowing her to camp out in the store for the night. max-height: 25px !important; e.tabw = e.tabhide>=pw ? e.thumbh = e.thumbh===undefined ? color: #000 !important; li#field_1_2 { About a 15-minute drive east of Rotorua, along a stretch of highway that hugs the shores of Lake Rotoiti, lies the settlement of Okere Falls. button.mfp-close { A man in his 50s has died after reportedly getting into difficulty in a Bay of Plenty river yesterday. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. The water can spray two rows back flowing over the front two rafters. } Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. } Vavrinec Hradilek, who first met Louise when she bounded up to him on the steps of his home boat club at a canoe slalom event in Prague, has been a regular visitor since 2009. top: 0; margin: 0 10px; She was with her husband and a group of friends. White Water Rafting: Rotorua New Zealand Planning Tips. e.gw = Array.isArray(e.gw) ? The Highest Commercially Rafted Waterfall The Okere (Kaituna) River is situated at Okere Falls, between Rotorua (20 minutes drive) and Tauranga (45 minutes drive). PLACES RAFTED / KAYAKEDNZ, Australia, Indonesia, Thailand, China, Kyrgyzstan, Uganda, Russia, Iceland, USA, Canada, Norway, Italy, India, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Guatemala, Germany, Mexico, Spain, France, England, Nepal. She had this knack to get herself into situations, but to get herself out of them as well. 17 Kaituna River and Tutea Falls Whitewater Rafting. Be sure to make Kaituna river rafting your first stop adventure activity in Rotorua! Ryan would try to climb to higher ground and walk back to the spot he had last seen her. } The grade 5 Kaituna River boasts the highest commercially rafted waterfall in the world at 7 meters and is probably one of the most exciting things you can do in New Zealand. If it is not the place of drifting, then it is the place of drifters. When he looked back for a second time, she wasnt there. text-align:center!important; } If you want to enjoy slightly calmer rapids but great weather, then consider traveling to Rotorua in the spring shoulder season, just before summer, when the rivers will be full and the sun will begin to emerge from the New Zealand clouds. background-color: #f7e222; bottom: auto; .single-tour .page-title { After 20 minutes of increasingly frantic searching, Ryan made his way back downstream to Morley, who, with a shake of his head, heaped terror upon the dread. } Rotorua Rafting: Kaituna River rafting - See 1,518 traveler reviews, 219 candid photos, and great deals for Rotorua, New Zealand, at Tripadvisor. padding: 10px 10px; height: 105px !important; He hangs at a vertical angle, with the nose of his kayak pointing directly into the mist that rises from the foot of the falls. She had navigated this section of the river without incident numerous times that summer, including just four days earlier. Of the 12 deaths reported this year by American Whitewater, four died while rafting with commercial rafting companies. Take on 14 rapids with world class guides and gear. .top-header .main-nav.level-arrows-on>li.has-children>a .menu-text { @media screen and (max-width: 768px) { a.book-btn.fh-button-true-flat-yellow.fh-fixed--bottom.fh-size--small { He was Madhu Shah, a tourist who is understood to be from Mumbai (Bombay) in India. The person he becomes on the river would have called him back. text-align: center; The remote stretch, which carries the outflow of Lakes Rotorua and Rotoiti northwards to Maketu, is isolated by its geography and singular in its sense of destiny for the people that run the rapids. @media screen and (min-width:768px) { 0 : e.tabw; border-radius: 3px; Once you discover this place, its hard to get away from it.. Tutea Falls Experience the adrenaline of white water rafting: Rotorua New Zealand native scenery and Maori History lining gorge! 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