Vaibhav Kala, owner of Aquaterra Adventures, Taming the Tons – Tons guides a safety raft through the teeth of the infamous ‘Khunigad’ rapid River, Uttarakhand, India stretch of whitewater. Our eager and inexperienced crew has been lulled into Photo by Stephen Cunli!e Text & photographs by Stephen Cunli!e a false sense of security. One minute our ra" is zipping through the whitewater, “!is is a very rocky one, so I need everyone the next moment it catches on a rock just escapes the rest of us. He reacts quickly, to keep paddling through the rapid,” yells below the surface and grinds to an abrupt shouting, “Grab the line!” Rajat ‘Rookie- Sanjay in an attempt to be heard above halt. We have run aground on one of the Cookie’ Mathur is already airborne and the roaring river. “Speed is essential for many rocks that pepper the river above heading towards the angry river. Luckily, us to steer and to avoid all the rocks; if it and below the frothing surface! “Brace he has the presence of mind to heed looks bad, then I’ll give you the ‘get down’ yourselves,” yells Sanjay. But it’s too late; Sanjay’s timely advice and manages to grab command, so just be ready for anything.” our ra"’s rapid forward momentum and hold of the bowline before disappearing the sudden unexpected stop eject one of overboard. Rookie is immersed in the Sanjay Singh Rana, our highly capable our hapless bow paddlers over the front icy river water but, luckily, he remains river guide, is preparing us for what we tube and into the angry white cauldron connected to the all-important ra". Fellow might expect in the upcoming rapid, of Sticky Sarla. !ere is little margin for bow paddler, Arvind Vermani, moves Sticky Sarla, as our ra" bears down on the error on the Tons and slow reactions are across the ra" and quickly executes a noisy whitewater ahead. the di$erence between the relatively dry textbook rescue of the “short swimmer.” safety of the ra" and the dangers of an A"er much back slapping and a good deal Although the rapid is shallow and steep, ultra-refreshing, rocky river. our enthusiastic team of paddlers is of high #ving, we set o$ again, eager to see what the Tons might dish up around the overcon#dent and dismissive of what Sanjay’s years of river experience help him next corner. appears to be a relatively benign-looking to see things happen in a slow motion that 38 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org November/December 2009 Aside from Sticky Sarla (which certainly ultimately emptying into India’s revered " Bandarpunch Peak. It is a small-medium got the better of us), we successfully Ganges River. volume Class IV river with fast %owing negotiate the remainder of the rapids on water that could be politely described the Upper Tons. With Give Me Mori (a"er Camp Lunagad, Aquaterra’s ra"ing base as bracingly cold. Wetsuits certainly are Mori village), Sharp Horn (one of the rapids camp on the Tons River, is situated barely a welcome barrier against the icy waves on a long section called the ‘Horns of the 100 kilometres from the Tibetan border. that periodically crash over the ra". !e Tons’) and Looking Up Sandhra (called !e camp has an enviable location perched Tons ra"ing season has a small window so as it’s below the bridge at Sandhra) all on a grassy alpine meadow overlooking of opportunity that seldom exceeds 10 under our belts, con#dence returns to our the river surrounded by pine forests and weeks. Operators relocate from Rishikesh eager ra"ing crew. We will need all this abundant wild marijuana. !e campsite in late April and begin running the river self-belief and our newfound experience is at a pleasant 3,600 feet, making it the as soon as snowmelt provides su'cient as we progress onto the big rapids of the perfect escape from the sti%ing heat that water to allow the ra"s to negotiate the 35-kilometre Middle Tons section of our a&icts most of India at this time of year. ra"ing expedition in the days ahead. Sitting on the banks of the idyllic Tons, smelling the pine-scented breeze rustling !e Tons Valley cuts through the Jaunsar through the shady trees, all city stresses Bawar region of Garhwal where the seem a million miles away. Horses wade across the braided river upstream of river marks the boundary between ‘Give me Mori’ rapid, while safety kayaks keep an eye on the rafts progress through a sweeping bend of Uttaranchal and Himachal Pradesh. !e !e Tons River is fed by glacial melt, with its shallow white-water Tons feeds into the Yamuna River before frozen source in the snow#elds of the 20,720 Photo by Stephen Cunli!e www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 39 November/December 2009 boulder-strewn river. !e season draws Aquaterra, con#des in me that the last few !ese obstacles add to the challenge and to a close early in July with all personnel seasons have seen decreased precipitation, thrill of the ra"ing experience, although and equipment needing to be evacuated possibly as a result of global warming or no sane ra"er would willing choose to before the onset of heavy monsoon rains; abnormal El Niño conditions. !e result abandon the safety of the ra". otherwise, clients and equipment might is an incredibly bony river that requires remain stranded inde#nitely in this remote well-honed technical skills and teamwork Extremely low water levels have part of Uttarakhand. to negotiate. Aside from being shallow transformed the Tons into possibly the and rocky, the river boasts a multitude of most technical river that I have ever run. Although we are repeatedly told that the obstructions and challenges, such as half- Vaibhav concurs, “!is is arguably the water levels are particularly low this year, submerged tree trunks and whirlpools most technical ra" trip in the Himalayas Vaibhav Kala, head-guide and owner of in the midst of the churning whitewater. and on a shallow, rocky river, there is no substitute for training, technique, timing and teamwork.” Ra"ing crews need to practise and #ne- tune their skills before venturing into the continuous whitewater trains that dominate long sections of the Middle Tons. !e Tons requires a cohesive ra"ing team that can respond instantly to the rapid-#re paddle commands being issued by the experienced river guides. !is doesn’t mean that you need to be a seasoned ra"ing junkie to visit the Tons. !e guides spend the #rst few days drilling everyone—newbies and old-hands alike— on the use of safety equipment, the di$erent paddle techniques, and the various paddle commands that they will be using. By the end of this intensive and fun training regime, everyone feels more con#dent and ready to tackle the river that ra"ing legend Jack Morison rated as “one of the top ten world-class rivers on the planet.” With some big rapids lying in store for us at Khunigad, as well as the infamous Five Minus Rana rapid near Tiuni Bazaar, our superstitious guides decide that paying a respectful visit to the local Hanol temple (dedicated to Mahasu devta) is a prerequisite for our safe passage downstream. O$erings are made to appease the river gods, a goat is slaughtered and tikkas are issued. At the end of the The Tons River is a small to medium volume Class IV river with fast-!owing glacial-melt water that could most politely be described as bracingly cold Photo by Stephen Cunli!e 40 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org November/December 2009 ceremony we feel spiritually forti#ed and middle of this churning whitewater mêlée. !" # $% ready to embrace the challenges of the Anxiety is building among our wannabe & ''" ($) Middle Tons. ra"ing crew as we ponder what next the %* +*# ,- "( storm might dish up. !is is unpredictable .*$/ +*8+ &0"(1$234$536'"$27- We depart Camp Lunagad in bright ra"ing at its best! sunshine ready to tackle the mighty river Within a matter of minutes the storm moves o$, the sun reappears and we ! T3 Meridian Dry Suit with below. Our sunny day vanishes within relief zipper and socks (TMER) minutes. Gale-force winds come howling #nd ourselves returned unscathed to the Modeled after our GORE­TEX® Meridian dry suit, the TROPOS up the valley, sending heavy rain clouds tranquil Tons Valley. !e friendly smiling T3 Meridian also incorporates an overskirt to layer with your spray racing across the sky. With the approach of faces of inquisitive local villagers greet our skirt and keep water out of your boat. procession of ra"s as we paddle past small Two of our the monsoon, the Tons Valley is prone to most popular sudden weather changes, and the occasional villages. Homesteads cling to the hillside options (relief zipper and storm adds yet another dimension of surrounded by their tiny terraced wheat T3 socks) complete excitement to the ra"ing experience. !e #elds. Along remote stretches of the river the suit. The even the villages disappear, and goats, cows Meridian dry strong winds neutralise the river current suit (TME) is and at times it even appears as if the river and horses become the only spectators to special order only. Our has reversed its course and decided to our progress. !ey stare at us with a mild new TROPOS 3­layer faBric, %ow upstream! We remain warm in our curiosity bordering on indi$erence, as we known as carefully negotiate our way through the T3, adds a wetsuits and splash jackets as big raindrops protective thump on our helmets, smash into the ra" tight lines of rocky rapids.