Summer is a great time to try something on the wilder side

By VANESSA ETHERIDGE
TEENS IN THE NEWSROOM

last updated: July 02, 2008 01:58:49 PM

Have you ever hung from a rope 165 feet above the ground?

That's not an everyday thing for most people, but it's what I did when I visited Moaning Caverns, a series of caves just outside Murphys in the Sierra foothills.

When I got there, I didn't know what to expect. As I snapped my harness belt tight and put on my helmet, I glanced at the first 20-foot hole. This isn't going to be so bad after all, I thought to myself.

I climbed down the hole like it was nothing, until I was back on my feet on a ledge. I peeked through the crack in the ledge and it seemed like the next ledge down was at least 500 feet below; beyond that was pitch black. That was when the fear sunk in.

I survived the experience, and even relaxed enough to take in some of the beauty of the caverns. There were stalagmites of all shapes and sizes. They looked like upside-down ice cream cones dipped in millions of brown-sugar sprinkles.

Rappelling at Moaning Caverns is just one of many fun, exciting things for teens to do over the summer. Adrenaline junkies wishing to rappel must be at least 12 years old. The cost is about $65 per person. For information and directions, call 866-762-2837 or go to www.caverntours.com.

Other examples of things to do for adventurous teens include white-water rafting, dirt-bike and quad riding, and rock climbing:

• At Modesto's Stonehenge rock-climbing facility, you can do indoor rock climbing on 25- to 50-foot walls. The cost is $20 for first-time climbers and $12 per climb after that. For information, call 521-3644 or go to www.climbstonehenge.com.

• For another adrenaline rush, try white-water rafting on the American River (about a two-hour drive from Modesto). An experienced leader will train you to work with your fellow rafters as a team and will guide you through navigating the crashing waves.

There are five skill levels for white-water rafting: Class I beginner, easy (Yawn!); Class II beginner, intermediate (yeah, OK, still a yawn for most teens); Class III intermediate; Class IV intermediate, advanced; and Class V advanced. If you are an adventurer like me, I recommend going straight for the Class III to start. You will have an amazing, and somewhat scary, time.

White-water rafting is available closer to Modesto on the North Fork of the Stanislaus River, but a large portion of the river has Class IV rapids, which require a very experienced rafter.

If calm waters are more your speed, there is a portion of the Stanislaus River at Knights Ferry where you can take a float trip. These are mild rapids considered to be Class I and II levels. For more information on float trips at Knights Ferry, go to www.riverjourney.com or www.raftadventure.com.

All equipment is provided by the rafting companies. You might want to bring dry clothes to change into afterward because you will get wet. It costs about $120 for a one-day trip. Longer trips that involve camping at various sites along the way also are available. For white-water rafting companies, check out www.aorafting.com, www.oars.com and www.raftwet.com, and you can find many more online by searching "white-water rafting in Northern California."

• If dirt-bike and quad riding are more your thing, check out the Carnegie Recreation Area of Northern California, about a one-hour drive from Modesto. Because of its landscape of hills and steep canyons, it is well known as a great place to go riding. There are four tracks designed for riding. There also is a motocross track, which is open only to motorcycles. There is a track for ATVs and motorcycles, a children's track and a beginner track. For more information, call 925-447-9027 or go to www.motomartatcarnegie.com.

Vanessa Etheridge is an sophomore at Valley Charter High School in Modesto and a member of The Bee's Teens in the Newsroom journalism program.

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