Moonlight rafting

From his nautical eco-base, Tom Rafing offers white-water and calm-water activities on the Gave de Pau with the "Comme un Desman dans l'eau" and "Moonlight Rafting" outings.

We're in Villelongue in the Hautes-Pyrénées, next to the Pyrenees National Park on the banks of the Gave de Pau. I arrived here in 2007. When I discovered the valley, I loved the wilderness. At the time, I was alone, but now there are 6 of us working here.

We mainly run inflatable boats on the Gave de Pau, from the biggest eight-person rafts to the smallest single-seater inflatable kayaks. What I really like about this activity is the diversity of practices, which means we can go rafting for the sensations, but at the same time, it can be a moment of sharing. It can be a calm approach, with no engine. If you row very gently, you can approach certain animal species without making any noise, which is pretty cool!

The "Desman" outing is something we've set up with the Comité départemental de canoë-kayak and the Parc national des Pyrénées.

We have a very interesting educational kit at our disposal. There are several themes around the desman, including its habitat, how it moves, how it feeds... We make several stops along the way down the Gave.

The Desman is the entry point. The great thing is that afterwards we talk about everything that surrounds us, the riparian forest, the ecosystem, and so on.

It's true that it's difficult to see the Desman! On the other hand, we're going to find out whether it's on the bank where we are right now, whether we can find what it eats under the stones, whether the quality of the water is going to be favourable or unfavourable to the Desman, whether this or that human activity around the river is going to be good or bad for the Desman?

The Desman is the central point that will enable us to tackle all these issues.

I've always believed that paddlesports and those who practice them with respect can play a part in spreading positive messages about the environment, particularly among young people. The advantage of white-water activities is that, as well as being fun, they take place in the heart of an environment that is as unique as it is vulnerable.

We share the values of the Esprit parc nationalbrand . Firstly, the base we've just built is local, with dry toilets, rainwater recovery for cleaning wetsuits and equipment, and local wood used in its construction. Secondly, we preserve the environment in which we practice. We don't want to be just rafters on a river. Every year we clean up the river. Every day, if we come across garbage or the like, we pick it up, and we're also river wardens for the French canoeing federation. We're the Federation's eyes and ears.

Thanks to Esprit parc national, we've benefited from a visual showcase and also from the brand's network, which is really interesting. This has enabled us to develop projects that today take us in the same direction, whether it's Tom Rafting or the National Park.