JOHN CANYONING

It was his search for a virgin river that first brought Englishman John Pollard to the Kali after trial runs on Kaveri and Sita, both in the state of Karnataka. With 10 years of rafting experience, including a stint as head guide for Fazinatour Adventure Company, InnsValley, Austria, Pollard came to India in 1993 for rafting on the Ganges. He liked the country so much that he stayed back doing runs on rivers like Alakhnanda, Bhagirathi and Beas. He later explored the South Indian rivers for their rafting potential.

I like to do runs on virgin rivers, it’s a wonderful challenge,” says Pollard. He has rafted on rivers in Australia, Switzerland, Italy and Nepal. According to him, South Indian rivers are more technical and require greater amount of skill. This is especially true for Kali. “It being a perennial river due to construction of dams, rafting conditions depend much on the water level,” revealed Pollard. In 1999, he set up Southern River Adventures (attached to Jungle Lodges and Resorts), an adventure and rafting company.

At Kali John offers not just whiter water rafting but also other adventure activities such as canyoning (rappelling down a waterfall), kayaking, canoe tours and mountain biking. If you have any questions for him about the outdoors and the above activities, you are welcome to write to him. Just fill the simple form below. The answer to your query will be posted in this section of our website.

TAKING A GROUP ON WHITE WATER RAFTING