If you're not experienced then rivers can be deadly. That's probably why you shouldn't take on dangerous rapids in a raft that you bought from Walmart. One Texas man found that out the hard way. Fortunately, an expert kayaker and his friends managed to save the inexperienced man from drowning.
He had been rafting when it flipped in the Shoshone River at a section called The Iron Curtain. Many consider it the worst section of the rapids. "They ran the biggest rapid on the river during the highest water in a Walmart raft," Kevin Kennedy told Cowboy State Daily on Monday.
The Texas man and his two friends attempted to raft down the river on Sunday, but their raft flipped. Two of them made it to the shore, but third did not. He was stranded in a cave near the river.
"When I got to him, he was basically standing there in his underwear and shivering. He was about a 19-year-old saddle bronc rider from West Texas," Kennedy said. They had purchased the raft from Walmart that day and wanted to raft down Shoshone River. However, all three were inexperienced and didn't anticipate the danger that waited them. Due to spring snow melting, the river had a heavier flow of water. That put waters at 4,500 cubic feet per second. It's something that Kennedy balked at as a professional. He's surprised all three are alive.
Texas Man Gets More Than he Bargained For
"I'll run the Iron Curtain up to a certain level, up to about 2,500 cfs. And right now, it's way above that level," Kennedy said.He said he and his friends new better than to try the Iron Curtain on the day. They stuck to the upper section of the river. However, when the raft flipped, emergency teams began to search for the missing Texas man. Kennedy got roped into helping locate the man. Once located, Kennedy used his kayak to bring emergency supplies to the man.
"He'd had a Walmart life vest on, but apparently he lost that after they were dumped in the river," Kennedy said. "So, search and rescue was able to pass us the warm fleece, a new life vest, a harness and a helmet." Once the man was in a good condition, Kennedy chatted with him while a rescuer put in the appropriate ropes.
"After a while, Scott was able to rappel down there with us, get some ropes hooked onto the harness and pull him out of there," Kennedy said.
"That water is extremely frigid right now," Park County Sheriff's Office spokesman Monte McClain said. "And add to that the effects of windchill. The whole time he was stranded, he was getting blasted by the wind coming down that canyon."
