Brahmaputra River Expedition

Crossing a bamboo bridge to Tuting village

I just finished a river trip on the Brahmaputra river in northeast India. Wow. It was an epic trip. the river and the rapids were great. I've never seen waves that big. You could feel the power of the river.

Running center line on Ponging

The quality and skill of the crew made for a fun and safe journey threw the rapids. The camps were pretty neat, mostly big sand beaches. Every morning and night the cooks made us great food which we ate by a warm fire. It was good to be on an expedition trip and not eat expedition food. I love Indian eats!

Dave barbecuing the days catch

I think my favorite part of the trip was the part of the world we were in. I don't think that many tourists go there. We really got to see the culture of the area. We got to see local dances and drumming as well as a village only twenty kilometers from the border of Tibet. We were really up there.

Local tribeswomen performing traditional dance

In Tooting we got to eat beetles and roasted jungle squirrel. They were tasty. The crew really showed us as much as they could. We even got blessed by tribal priests before we put in.

Adi tribesman with bamboo snares

I've been on a lot of river trips and this one was a great all around experience. When we were in Pasighat on the last night of the trip I really felt we had accomplished something big. I know I'll miss the crew and all of the friends I made on the trip. I can't wait for my next India experience with "IntoIndia". Thanks for the great experience.

Eli

Sanjay breaking through a huge wave

Kali River Trip

Going Good in My Duckie

The trip began as one of the most scenic road trips I’ve ever done. Winding our way up through the Panchuli region we got a fly-by glimpse at many aspects of rural Indian living, from fashion and farming to innovative road construction methods. We traversed low lying Himalayan hills and rivers, taking in spectacular views of Nada Devi to climb high in the valley to our river put on, all the while taking our chances with the hectic local traffic which often included homemade richshaws.

Local School Kids at the Put On

With our paddle and gear rafts, safety kayaks and my lonely little duckie loaded with enough tents, clothes, booze, food, games and gear to keep our party of 21 safe, happy and fed we launched our 6 day adventure on the Kali River in a heat that was beautifully bearable from the conflunence of the Gori Gunga and Kali Rivers.

The Chennai Boys Going Big on Chooka Rapid

Getting to grips with navigating my own craft on the water provided most of the entertainment for everyone else on the river. In fact I was having such a hilarious time getting thrown out of the duckie in every possible direction at most available opportunities, some of the brave rafters decided to join me in the 2 man raft to tackle the bigger rapids that got progressively more frequent as the days went on.

Breaking over the Top of a Large Wave with Nikki in My Duckie

A highlight of the trip though was successfully breaking over the peak of a massive mid river wave (without flipping) while the others waited close to the banks, cameras at the ready, all set to clear up the carnage for what we all thought was going to be an inevitable BIG flip. Shamefully I was no better at staying in the thing on the last day than I was on the first, I think my swims totalled somewhere close to 25 for the whole trip. That said, with the sun toasting my pale Irish skin, the odd swim was refreshingly chilling!

Relaxing around the fire. This photo was achived using a slow shutter and a head lamp.

Every meal time I was amazed as to how our two cooks managed to emerge with a huge spread of tasty Indian cuisine. In fact it seemed as though, if we weren’t paddling on the river or enjoying beach life at our night time camp spots we were eating! Snacks, soup, 3 course meals, bigger breakfasts than my mother ever made me… it was endless and it was all good! Night time around the camp fire with rum and coke in one hand and toasting marshmallows with the others, there was no shortage of messing and music under the full moon sky.

Eli on the cataraft, Dimberghat rapid.

Knackered as I was after a week negotiating big bouncy wave trains cutting there path through a remote jungle, afternoons of cricket and Frisbee and nights by the fire I was sorry to leave and board the train for my return trip to Delhi.

All the team