It was spring in the South Island of New Zealand, but an unusually late winter storm was sending snowflakes swirling around me as I tentatively stepped into the gently rocking Shotover Jet Boat operation’s “Big Red” jet boat. The wind was blowing straight off Antarctica, but I was bundled in many layers, mittens, and hats plus the tour operators had given me a waterproof coat that resembled a black duster worn by Old West gunfighters and all was topped with a red life-jacket. When I plopped down in the seat and grabbed hold of the hand rail I was pleasantly surprised. The seats and the hand rails were heated! I snuggled in and waited for the others to load.
This jetboat operation runs through Shotover Canyon near Queenstown, New Zealand, the site of many of the scenes in the Lord of the Rings movies. Gray walls form the narrow gorge cut by the glacier-fed Shotover River. Jetboating was started in New Zealand along with bungy jumping and other such sane activities. These boats don’t have a propeller so they can operate in the shallow New Zealand waters and are able to do their signature 360-degree turns.
The driver gives us safety instructions – basically hold on type and keep your arms inside –and I personally add prayer. He starts the boat and I’m slammed back in my seat. We streak under an arched bridge, go sideways around a river bend and head straight to the gorge’s rock walls. At the last moment, our driver jerks the wheel and we miss the wall, careen around a boulder plopped in the middle of the river. I don’t know whether to scream or pray.
We shoot out of the narrow canyon, the river widens and I start breathing again. Just as my adrenaline rush is starting to recede, the driver lifts his arm in the air and twirls his finger and yanks the boat into a 360-degree spin splashing walls of water around the boat. We do corkscrew spins, sideways slides and more 360-degreers before turn around and heading back into the gorge.
Those canyon walls are just as scary the second time through. I oscillate between hyper-ventilating and not breathing then with a spectacular slide, the driver stops the boat gently against the dock. Shotover Jet bills itself as the World’s Most Exciting Jet Boat Ride. I think they’re right. That has got to be the wildest boat ride I’ve ever had.
Submitted by Janet Webb Farnsworth, writer and Bernadette Heath, photographer and writer of "Grandma Needs a Four-Wheel Drive, Adventure Travel for Seniors." web page: www.grandmaneedsafour-wheeldrive.com
This jetboat operation runs through Shotover Canyon near Queenstown, New Zealand, the site of many of the scenes in the Lord of the Rings movies. Gray walls form the narrow gorge cut by the glacier-fed Shotover River. Jetboating was started in New Zealand along with bungy jumping and other such sane activities. These boats don’t have a propeller so they can operate in the shallow New Zealand waters and are able to do their signature 360-degree turns.
The driver gives us safety instructions – basically hold on type and keep your arms inside –and I personally add prayer. He starts the boat and I’m slammed back in my seat. We streak under an arched bridge, go sideways around a river bend and head straight to the gorge’s rock walls. At the last moment, our driver jerks the wheel and we miss the wall, careen around a boulder plopped in the middle of the river. I don’t know whether to scream or pray.
We shoot out of the narrow canyon, the river widens and I start breathing again. Just as my adrenaline rush is starting to recede, the driver lifts his arm in the air and twirls his finger and yanks the boat into a 360-degree spin splashing walls of water around the boat. We do corkscrew spins, sideways slides and more 360-degreers before turn around and heading back into the gorge.
Those canyon walls are just as scary the second time through. I oscillate between hyper-ventilating and not breathing then with a spectacular slide, the driver stops the boat gently against the dock. Shotover Jet bills itself as the World’s Most Exciting Jet Boat Ride. I think they’re right. That has got to be the wildest boat ride I’ve ever had.
Submitted by Janet Webb Farnsworth, writer and Bernadette Heath, photographer and writer of "Grandma Needs a Four-Wheel Drive, Adventure Travel for Seniors." web page: www.grandmaneedsafour-wheeldrive.com
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