on rafting, kayaking and boredom..

The work was kind of getting boring. I would wake up listlessly in the morning. I would go to the office and go through the motions of work. The overtime would come, and I would go home late.

The work is starting to appear less and less interesting. I am starting to stop caring about the work. The energy is starting to bottom out.

When I found myself asking a doctor friend for ecstasy so I can enjoy the parties better, I was like, shit, has it become this bad?

You see, the company I am starting to lose interest in is the one I started. I shouldn’t be losing interest in something I started. I shouldn’t stop caring in something I know I really care about.

Baka naman tipong lo-bat lang to. Maybe, mag-recharge lang ng battery, ayos na.

It was in this frame of mind that when some friends decided to go rafting in the Chico River in Kalinga, I jumped at the chance to join them.

We took the Victory bus in Kamias to Tugegarao, Cagayan. Our host there would be Anton; he owns a rafting outfit that got featured in some of the local travel/tv shows.

First day activities included exploring the Callao caves. We got ourselves all muddy, crawled in between tight rocks, climbed up a steep rock formation using ropes with knots that can be grabbed to pull yourself up, climbed down a sturdy tree using ropes tied around your waist and butt, and for lunch, had some inihaw sa tabi nung river. It was fun and I was loving it.

After lunch, came the formal instructions on the basics of kayaking. We were paddling like crazy as Anton showed the various techniques of paddling, navigation and such. And nuggets of information like, “The bottom of the river is not your friend. Do not fall.” We then spent some 4-5 hours kayaking in the Pinakanawan River. Anton says it is a government-protected site and it seems the Cagayan government did a good job protecting as the water was crystal clear and the riverbanks were unspoiled.

By nightfall, we drank beer and dried ourselves in the riverbanks while waiting for our ride home. Ang galing. Nakaka-relax.

We started the second day with a 3-hour jeepney ride to Kalinga for the Chico River. This river is quite a character in itself – it was the heart of the protest movement against Marcos at its heydays. This is where Macliing Dulag came from (he is supposed to be the first hero martyrred for environmental reasons, not political). Not only that, the Chico River is very beautiful, virginal even.

Chico River is perfect for white water rafting. You could see the white foams created by the water slamming violently all over the river. Anton says it makes for good world-class rafting.

There were about five teams who started, one team per raft. It was not yet one hour after starting that one team over-turned. And then another. Pretty soon, every one of us has rolled-over. And it was fun! As Anton says, you do not fully enjoy rafting unless you have capsized.

It was also difficult. There are points where we had to bring our rafts to the riverbanks and go survey the river downstream before going at it. There was one point, called the Washing Machine, where we bumped into a huge rock, capsized and got caught in a mini-whirlpool.

No one was seriously injured in all these. All got thrown overboard. Most got scrapes and bumps. Most drank some of the river water. A couple of flip-flops were washed away. A sunglass fell or “donated to the river” as the guide would say. But everyone was okay. Everyone liked it and everyone wanted to go back and do it again. Everyone had his own rafting story to tell.

As they say, in midst of rafting do we truly feel alive.

And alive I was. This is what I needed. Fully re-charged na nga pagbalik ng Maynila. I have no doubt pagbalik ko work sa Monday, the energy, the interest and the creative juices will be back as they used to be.