Close Encounter with Death @Cajon del Maipo, Chile

Surprised by the title?!!! Well you will understand why I chose to give this title to my post... as it unfolds.

My stay in Chile was nearing to its end. My return tickets had been booked. Yet deep down in my heart I was wishing to make for at least few of the long list of destinations in Chile which I could not visit during my stay. Before finally I bid goodbye to this wonderful Latin American country, I wanted to make one Ghanchakkar trip.

Cajon del Maipo was one of that. It’s a is a canyon (as shown above in photo) located in the Andean southeastern portion of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, Chile.. This time I was lucky enough to get few of my colleagues also to join in this trip. On one fine sunny afternoon of Saturday we all started our journey towards this marvellous place.

We had done our stay arrangements @ Cascada De las Animas Resort. I have only one sentence to describe this beautiful resort i.e. ‘A stunning place to stay and let yourself get lost in nature’s beauty.’

My main motive to visit Cajon del Maipo was to go for White water rafting in River Maipo. What an experience it was!!! Rafting is indeed an exciting thrilling outdoor adventure.... not to be missed in lifetime...

That Day Maipo river was flowing between Level 3 to 4. For people who are unaware of the Rafting, let me share this information. The International Scale of River Difficulty is a standardized scale used to rate the safety of a stretch of river, or a single rapid. The grade reflects the technical difficulty and skill level required associated with the section of river for Rafting. There are total 6 levels are defined according to this scale. Level 1 is easiest while level 6 is termed as unraftable river.

After finishing our insurance formalities we straightway headed with our instructor for Rafting. Before it got commenced there was briefing sessions for all of us. On our special request instructor gave us additional session in English language. At the end of the session instructor asked “How many of you does not know to swim?” It was only me in the entire group of 24 people who raised the hand!!!!

It was really a good and thrilling beginning, to put on special rafting attire, to learn how to handle paddle... to learn how to follow instructor’s order in case of emergency situation....instructor again and again repeatedly told all of us that even if you happen to get thrown out of Raft because of Rapids just don’t panic. Just keep flowing with the water , make sure to hold on the paddle, As the paddle is very costly, we can’t afford really to lose it ....He also showed us the Rescue Kayak and place of the holding hook where we can hold in case of emergency rescue is carried out in the river.

I have shared few of the images of our raft and team in this post. Initial 2 or 3 rapids went past smoothly and we were enjoying each moment. Typical team cheers after passing across each rapids was awsome feeling. Our eagerness and adrenalin rush started reaching high...so as the Rapid levels and the water force.

 It was a real wild, swirly and chilly river- roaring at its highest pitch and inviting us to conquer it. For a little while river was little calm, so guide asked all of us if we want to feel the water of river we can jump outside the raft and swim for a while. But of course it was allowed for people who can swim!!! Even though he was not very well versed with English language his ability to guide the team was exorbitant.

Mani, My friend who was also accompanying me on the raft told me: “Hetal I am jumping in the river, I can’t stop myself to feel this.” I stopped her forcefully, telling that she should not take that risk. After all we are all away..far far far away from our family. What will happen if suddenly rapid will come, unnecessary risk we should avoid taking. Mani started laughing at me telling Come on Hetal coming for rafting that itself is biggest risk we have taken, but if you are telling no then I will not jump. I even don’t know why I stopped her from jumping in the river for only 10 seconds even though she knew swimming. But my instinct told me to do so. And I forcibly stopped her.

We were reaching to our halfway through. Mani was upset with me. She was keeping on making faces and cursing me for not allowing her to swim in that wild river. We kept on laughing and enjoying the rafting.

Soon the force of the water became so much wild; we could here only roaring noise of river rapid and instructions by our guide to paddle backwards and forward. Suddenly one big rapid came and guide asked us to paddle backwards fast. I started paddling don’t know why I was getting tilted and sliding slowly in the raft towards outer side....I could hear one voice from behind.. From my friend Arun..”Hetal paddle it hard don’t move yourself why are you tilting towards right... keep on paddling and I am getting scared....”

Banggggggggggg.... those were the last words I could hear. Suddenly I saw a big white wall kind of forming in front my eyes and immediately next I found myself deep inside water. Total blackout. There was no voice of anyone, no breath, no light. It happened in flash of second...I could hear only wild sound of roaring water.

I tried to wave my hand sideways, to understand where I have come suddenly. I got only water around me. Still I was not able to see anything, I couldn’t hear anything. But at least I could sense that I am flowing inside dark water. Except this my mind was not giving me any signal. I was totally clueless on the situation on what is happening around and within me.

After 5-6 seconds I could think that may be because of that wild rapid, I am actually thrown outside the Raft and now floating in the water. But I couldn’t understand why I am not able to see anything, as I was wearing life jacket, ideally I should be floating on the surface of the river.

I started now trying to take stock of the situation by waving my hands in upward direction. I found some rubber kind of material up like a ceiling wall. I started to raise my head also up, I got hit with that wall kind of material and my helmet’s inner ring which holds the head got broke. So helmet got slide till my nose covering my both eyes. Except that wall kind of stuff up still everywhere around me there was only water.

After around 1 minute floating like this finally I saw some light from the little gap of close to 1-2 mm between my nose and helmet ring. Suddenly I started listening voices of Mani.. “There she goes.. She is on left side of raft floating away in the river... save her ...Hetal hold the rope... catch the rope”...Instructor’s voice ...”Don’t panic... we will save you...try to catch the rope.”

Now I could understand entire situation. Actually I was sitting on the right side of the raft, that wild rapid thrown me outside raft in the river. After I was thrown in river, because of the direction of Rapid or the flow of river I actually slide underneath the raft. And that wall kind of stuff above my head little while ago was nothing but our own raft. I was floating underneath it in river. That was the reason I could not hear anything. After some time raft got drifted sideways so luckily could come on the surface of the water because of the life jacket which I was wearing. And that’s how I could start see some light and hear voice of people. Now it was rescue time for them to save me.

Interesting situation isnt’t it :). I couldn’t catch the rope thrown by my instructor because of the broken helmet was covering my eyes almost entirely, I could hardly see anything. I started drifting farther and away from my raft and team. God knows why but my mind was following each instruction given by the guide at time of briefing of what needs to be done in time of emergencies.

I didn’t breathe inside the water, when I was floating underneath the Raft. This actually avoided the ice cold freezing water of Maipo River to enter inside my body. It saved my body to get frizzed underneath water. I didn’t tried to swim against the flow of water when I came to surface, instead I kept on floating in the direction of the water flow of the river keeping my body in same position as we were taught to keep in case of such situation. This avoided any injuries to my body due to rocks and wild water rapids in the river. All these things my mind was following without my deliberation and knowledge actually! I was letting my self float in water keeping tight grip on paddle which I was carrying. For me my paddle was only companion which was accomnying me throught out that deadly incident :).

On failure of rescuing me through rope, guide sent Kayak [Which can be seen in upper right corner of the photo] behind me to catch me. Kayak is a small boat which has a covered deck and can cut the wild river water and its swirls very swiftly. These kayaks are handy as last resort for rescue operations when no other technique has worked. After around 5 minutes of floating alone in mid of water, I could hear some Spanish voice around me. Yes it was from the paddler of the Kayak. I was thinking why Spanish should haunt me here also where I am struggling between life and death!!!!

I shouted on top of my voice: “I can not see annnnnnnnnnythingggggggggggg.”

Paddler on Kayak: $$$$%%%%########%%%%%%

Me: No Espaniol..Ingles por favour...I

Paddler on Kayak: $$$$%%%%#####%%%%

Me: I can see anything. English please.

I started waving my hand and I could feel its Kayak I am striking. I got relieved that now my life will be saved, finally safety Kayak has come to take me from this River. But because my vision was obstructed due to broken helmet I couldn’t see the holding hook of the kayak that normally a person is supposed to hold during rescue operation. Instead I started to hold paddle of the Kayaker. As a result of that he lost his balance and kayak turned upside down. I got slide further away from Kayak as well!

It was this time I actually lost the hope. I presumed that now Kayaker is also in the water like me, nobody can save me. I need to keep on floating in river, now god will take me wherever he wants. So I just closed my eyes and started visualising each of my loved ones one by one. May be it was last time in my consciousness I was going to feel them before me death. These thoughts were keeping me engaged and this time water came rolling down in form tears from my eyes. This was only moment in entire incident where I found myself weak.

To my surprise again after sometime same Spanish voice got struck into my ear. Bingoooo ..ray of hope again of my survival. Soon my hand got struck to the rescue kayak again. I, like a blind person, started banging my hand on kayak’s side surface to get the holding hook to hold on. This time I was lucky, I could catch it. I could hear voice: ‘Si Senorita, $$$$%%%%%%&&&&’. I assumed I have done the right thing by holding some part of the Kayak and that tiny little boat started drifting me towards our main raft. After 2 minutes or so I started listening clapping and cheer sounds from so many people. That gave me hint that I am reaching towards my raft now may be.

On reaching near to raft, our guide pulled me inside the raft. Mani rushed towards me and hugged me. I still remember her sentence: “Are you ok Hetal?” On waving my head upside down in affirmation to her question, She uttered: “ Lucky mad girl, you must have enjoyed there no? Instead of you I sould have got thrown out in water, I missed that feel , How exciting :) and she kept on laughing”.

I busted into laughter listening to her words. Guide asked: “ Hetal are you good to go? We are still half way though, we have to finish entire stretch... shall we continue, will you take your position and start paddling again?”

I nodded my head and straight away started to paddle again for onwards journey. We reached the end point after 30 minute and crossing few more rapids even worse than the one which thrown me in river. But this time I conquered them all....In return journey to the base camp in the bus all fellow tourists were talking about me and how they rescued me...:) . One lady came near my seat and told:” Brave girl, Heard about you just now, in spite of being a non swimmer you held on and fought for life and continued to raft again till the end... bravo Indian lady..hats off to your spirit.”

Unforgettable encounter with death....indeed. This was my last adventure in Chile which was so much memorable.