How are whitewater rapids classified?
OK, so you’ve got a spiffy new kayak, canoe or raft, and you’re itching to try it out on a whitewater rapid. But while you want those rapids to be challenging enough for you to have an exhilarating time, you don’t want them to be too challenging for your level of aquatic skills, experience and physical hardiness. So how do you pick the right stretch of river? Thankfully, the safety experts and aquatic sports enthusiasts at American Whitewater — a national organization founded in 1954 that works to preserve river rapids and helps people to enjoy them safely — are available to bail you out with some guidance. They’ve created the International Scale of River Difficulty, a standardized rating system that divides stretches of whitewater into six main categories. Even beginners can venture safely into the relatively calm waters and minimal obstructions of Class I rapids. A
