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Four U.S. Tourists And Guide Dead In Rafting Accident in Quepos,a bachelor party from florida,staying in jaco..

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Jaco is called little USA by all ticos

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im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood

I was browsing my Google news feed today and when I read the article, the bottom of my heart had dropped out.

Less than a month ago, after I left SL/DR, I went to Manuel Antonio and decided to do a whiterafting tour with an outdoor adventure company through a hotel staff member recommendation. In the morning, I was picked up by van and taken to Quepos to meet the rest of my rafting group and tour guides. On our 1.5 hour r/t van ride to-and-fro the Naranjo River, one of the guides that sat directly next to me was Kevin Thompson Reid - the one which had tragically died yesterday.

Kevin and I chatted throughout the entire morning and early afternoon. We had coffee together and I shared my U.S. duty-free cigs with him and his crew. Even though he wasn't my personal raft guide, Kevin was very accommodating to me (moreso than to others) during our land breaks that day. He had spent time in the states and also had family members currently living close by where I grew up. Overall, I got a good vibe from him as he was a pretty laid-back and cool guy. The rest of his tight-knit crew appeared liked they came straight out of that Patrick Swayze/Keanu Reeves movie Pointe Break - but also good guys. When we said our farewells, Kevin had offered his personal contact info to me. I wouldn't hesitate to hang out with him.

I've done some amateur rafting throughout my years and, in speaking with him, I could tell Kevin built- athletically was a well-experienced rafter. I have no doubt that he died during his attempts to rescue the other four passenger rafters who had also tragically died as well after their raft overturned. He would've had no trouble saving himself only in that river. Some people may naturally blame the tour operator that folks had no business being on that river yesterday due to the previous heavy rains. I'm going to make a broad statement and say that these guys are experienced professionals. It was an unfortunate freak accident and these things happen given the nature of these activities.

It's pretty surreal and deeply saddening to me. RIP Kevin. Pura Vida.

I'm going to contact the tour company over the next few days and see if there's a fund I can contribute to.

I am in no way a professional river rafter but I have done numerous rafting trips in the US when I was younger once on a class 4 river and that was fun but a little hairy at times. Mostly the trips I had done were on class 2 and 3 rapids. From the video I saw on the internet those boats were too small and overloaded for that kind of high water rafting. When we were on one trip with high water like that they added an extra boat and only had 6 people in a raft that normally would carry 10-12 people. We were told the extra flotation would prevent us from getting flipped. Apparently theere must have been some truth to what I was told. Anyways prayers to all involved and their familys and friends. Shitty conclusion to what should have been a great bachelor party.

Very Sad. Prayers for all the family and friends involved.

I had a friend invite me rafting in CR. He said, "Class 5 waves". I told him I'd prefer class one waves.
I have not done any adventure stuff in CR in 12 years. No bungie jumping, Zip line, helicopter, dirt-bikes, Small aircrafts, horseback, etc. And I've had many invitations for all of these.
Maybe I've missed out on adrenaline rush, but 1. I did a lot when I was young and nimble. I used to bounce. Now I break.
2. I really don't trust the guides here to follow the protocols. - There, I said it.

After 12+ years in CR and not far from age 50, I'm still in one piece!

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* These are the "Good Ole Days". Enjoy Them.

* RENT but, "Don't Buy a Home in Costa Rica" until you have lived here for THREE years.

From new eyewitness info, it sounded like they unfortunately got caught in a flash flood. Official alerts had been issued earlier. There was also another tour operator which had turned their caravan around when they saw the rough waves that day. Smart move. I stand corrected and negligence led to tragedy. I also do wonder if they got urged on by the party of eager young men. But it doesn't really matter.

The day I went out, conditions were definitely closer to Class III than IV and I didn't feel like we were ever close to flipping even in a small raft with two others and our guide.

If you ever come back to the states, I've got a ticket for you and your grandkids to the wildest Halloween hayride of your life.