White Water Rafting in Tena

I went to Tena with a group of friends last weekend to raft a level 3-4 river. Tena is a town that is an entrance to the Amazon in Ecuador. We showed up Friday night and stayed at a little hostel with a lovely view. Tena is a cute little town that seemed safe. There was one bar/club that the entire city of Tena goes to on the weekends. We jumped up on a platform and danced the night away to reggaeton.

 View from my hostel in Tena

 Dancing at the only club in Tena

The rafting was incredible! We used the tour company ‘River People,’ which has all certified bilingual guides. Our guide kept me feeling totally secure but still encouraged us to do some crazy tricks with the raft. We did a raft wheelie, and paddled backwards into a wave to make the raft go ‘surfing.’ There was some bridge jumping, rafts flipping over, riding rafts like cowboys, and swimming into waterfalls. The worst rapid was called the ‘waffle maker’ because it has been known to fold rafts in half. I almost fell out, but my friend caught me! Total adrenaline rush all the way down.

River People Rafts

Emerging from the river at the end of our trip

It was a wonderful day on the river. We went down the Jondachi-Hollin rivers, and it was $60. The river flows through the rainforest and there are waterfalls spilling over massive boulders. Whenever the river calmed down for a minute so we could sit back and watch the scenery, I was in complete awe of my surroundings. What a kickass life I have!

 Group shot at the end of the day