Huatulco Mexico Vacation

The river rippled calmly in front of us, but we could hear the thunder of the rapids ahead.

“Everybody dowwwn!” our guide bellowed in his thick accent, a command to pull our paddles from the water and crouch onto the floor of our rubber raft.

No way we would stay upright on these rapids, I feared, thankful for the helmet strapped to my head. When I could finally see the swirling current, tumbling and slamming into boulders just ahead, I took a deep breath.

Waves of warm water washed over us. Our boat spun and ricocheted, sending us twirling between . . .