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Shady Ady
Shady Ady
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5 out of 5
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Inner-Tubing

  • August 8, 2007
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Shady Ady from Hinckley, United Kingdom
Inner-Tubing

As you walk down the one main road in Mindo, away from the villages park you pass numerous information and tourist agencies offering you the chance to participate in the adrenaline filled sport of inner-tubing. If not interested in spending a day looking at the various birds that bring the majority of tourists to the area, then inner-tubing comes highly recommended and offers a cheap alternative.

For those of you who are unaware at what inner-tubing involves let me quickly explain. A number of large inflatable inner-tubes are tied together and after sitting in between these you are then sent floating down the river into a series of rapids, where not only you have to hold on for dear life, you also have to cope with getting drenched from head to toe in icy cold waters in the process.

The various places that offer inner-tubing in Mindo all do so for virtually identical prices and there's not really any reason for choosing one rather than another. I decided to use Centro Informacion Mindo on the corner of the park (7am-7pm daily), who had a number of creditable references and cost the very reasonable price of $5 for the experience.

Upon paying I made the schoolboy error of deciding to participate in this sport at the ridiculous hour of 8am before the sun had even had chance to burst through the thick gloomy low level clouds. As to be expected, this also was when the water was at it's coldest. Taking the 10-minute pick-up ride (included in the price) to the start point located next to the Mariposas de Mindo butterfly farm and riding adjacent to the raging river, I have to admit I wasn't really that excited over the prospect of this white-knuckle adventure, especially after stripping to my trunks and immersing myself in the icy cold waters.

It wasn't long after entering the water and getting myself comfortable on the tubes that the first rapids were reached where the guide tried his utmost to soak you from head to toe. It was at this first set of rapids when I learnt the important lesson of not dangling your feet in the water as scraping them on the rocks below can result in some painful interactions. By the end of the twenty-minute ride, although exhilarating I was happy to finally catch my breath.

Afterwards, you get driven back to the centre of Mindo, where you become the focal point for some strange looking stares from locals. If you want photos of the occasion then you can give your camera to the pick-up driver who follows the river where there are a number of vantage points, although the distorted faces you might be pulling wouldn't make for the best pictures. A guide comes with you every time and they normally know the rapids inside out. On the bright side this increases safety issues but leads to more of a soaking. This sport is certainly worth the $5 cost.

From journal Birder or Adrenaline Junkie? The Joys of Mindo

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