Saturday, February 2, 2013

Base Camp Davao

On the 14th of July 2011, Base Camp emerged from the venture of River One Adventure and Bugsay Dabaw as a new player for your whitewater rafting adventure in Davao City. 





Located at 2nd Floor Philippine Red Cross Building, Roxas Avenue just beside Marco Polo, Base Camp provides a unique service for the whitewater adventure seekers. They can schedule 2 rafting trips in a day. The morning batch starts at 7 a.m. and comes back at 2 p.m., while the afternoon batch starts at 11 a.m. and comes back around 6 p.m. It takes about an hour of jeepney ride towards the starting point or what they call as "put-in" area at Tamugan bridge which is about 38 km away from downtown area. After unloading all the equipment the safety briefing starts which takes about 30 to 45 minutes. The rafting itself takes 2 to 3 hours to finish the 13-km long course. This stretch of the river offers a Class 3 to Class 4 rapids. The end point or what they call as "take-out" area is at the Lacson Bridge. It requires another hour to travel back again to downtown area.



To schedule a trip with Base Camp, you must book ahead of your schedule. They require at least 5 persons per trip but you can join the schedule of others if your group is below the required minimum number of persons. However, if you really want to go on whitewater adventure with less than minimum participants and with no other groups going on that schedule, you still can although you have pay for the cost of 5 persons.




The package is PhP 1'500 per person which is inclusive of transportation, lunch, documentation CD, safety gears, and guides. For the afternoon batch, snacks is provided so participants are advised to have an early lunch before reporting for the 11 a.m. call time. Small bottled waters are also provided but participants are still encouraged to bring extra. A non-refundable down payment of Php 500 per person is required at least a day before the schedule. 










Aside from the convenient rafting schedule, Base Camp also provides a free hotel pick-up and delivery for areas with downtown central. For Areas at Matina, Ecoland, Maa, Damosa, and further a minimum of PhP 200 charge per group will be collected. It is still much cheaper for big groups rather than to take a 2 or 3 taxis.



Immediately after arriving at Base Camp, the pictures and video clip files of your trip will be transferred to a CD, thereafter they will provide you individually with a copy.

Shower facilities are also provided at Base Camp, so backpackers especially can save time and money by checking out early morning from the hotels. Lockers are also available for free if you want to secure your valuables before you leave for rafting.

Souvenir shirts are available for PhP 200. Rash guards, arm sleeves, and sun screens are also available at a very reasonable price. 




So for your next visit to Davao City, don't miss to book ahead for your whitewater adrenaline adventure. Call or text 0932 350 0921 or 0927 275 6099, or call their landline at 082 321 6311, or look them up at Facebook: Base Camp Davao. 



River Rafting is an Extreme Activity and not recommended for persons with the following conditions:

          Expectant Mothers
·         Heart Conditions or Abnormal Blood Pressure
·         Back or Neck Disorders
·         Motion Sickness or Dizziness
·         Recent Surgery or Easily Aggravated Conditions
·         Children below 7 years old
·         Persons With Disability
·         Extremely contagious illness
·         Severe Asthma
·         Inability to follow simple instructions
·         Alcohol or Drug Intoxication
·         Any Condition Not Fit for the Activity