ThePADDLER 120
As Isaac Martinez , an 18-year-old professional kayaker , says , “ Jalcomulco is like a playground of rapids ... you can chill and relax or try to learn technique . The water level changes depending on the season ... the river can get low and rocky and also high and funky . But it ’ s navigable all year .”
The rainy season ( June-September ) offers higher water and class V-IV rapids on the sections of Barranca Grande and Rio Pescados , respectively , and class III-IV rapids on the section referred to as Rio Antigua ( that goes from Jalcomulco down to Apazapan ). The drier months still offer plenty of water for rafting , kayaking and paddleboarding , yet the rivers become a bit more technical but always fun .
Typically , Veracruz rivers are narrow , steep , continuous and carry a high to medium volume of water , which makes manoeuvring both technical and challenging .
RAFTING CAPITAL
For over 20 years , Jalcomulco has been known as the rafting capital of Mexico . You can raft all year around here through various outfitters and also rent kayaks and take lessons from local guides .
Although still relatively unexplored or unknown by many , the Rio Antigua is known as a legend . Such is the case for Mike Douglas , who has been to Mexico over 50 times and has paddled all over the US , Canada and Ecuador , who says , “ Rio Antigua has always been a somewhat legendary river name to many river runners in the US . I always heard of it as the main commercially rafted river in Mexico .
“ My wife and I finally got the chance to go in January 2019 . A quick flight from Houston , rent a car and an easy twohour drive west into the foothills of the highest mountains in Mexico . We booked with Mexico Verde , one of the larger raft companies in the area . Lulu was the manager of the place and made us feel at home . We stayed in a nice cabana on site . They don ’ t get many American tourists to Jalcomulco , and neither us nor Lulu understands why .
“ We met our river guide the next day , Oscar . Oscar told me in near-perfect English how he was a little nervous because he hadn ' t guided in English in many years . It turns out he and I had worked at the same river company many years apart in Terlingua , Texas , on the Rio Grande .