At Great Falls, near McLean, Virginia, the Potomac River builds up speed and force as it plunges over a series of steep, jagged rocks and flows through the narrow Mather Gorge. It’s considered so dangerous, that ironically the National Park Service warns, “Swimming, wading, and entering the river in any manner are prohibited year round. Dangerous currents, rocks, and rapids make the river extremely hazardous.” Here’s an adrenaline junkie running a rocky kayak ride at Great Falls Park. Photo #1 by O Palsson

Would you be so inclined as to trap your legs inside the cockpit of a kayak and attempt extreme kayaking down a waterfall? White River Falls State Park in Oregon has a long drop; the waterfall plummets 90 feet (27 m) from a basalt shelf. The base of the falls has ruins of a hydropower plant. Photo #2 by World of Wallpapers

Running the Teacups at Dry Meadow Creek, Southern Sierra Nevada Range in California. Photo #3 by wallpapercavern

Whitewater daredevils take on avalanches of raging whitewater and waterfalls via extreme kayaking. Photo #4 by hd-wallpapers

Kayaking down two cascades at Bridal Veil Falls, Oregon, Columbia River Gorge. Photo #5 by McD22

Kayaker Luke Spencer goes over Outlet Falls, in icy Washington, USA. The photographer wrote, “Outlet Falls had just seen its first kayak descent the day before this photo was taken. While I had some great images from that day, I spent most of the day kicking myself for not having brought the climbing gear I needed to rappel the 20 or so feet down to the vantage from which this photo was shot. That night, I rallied a couple of local paddlers to go back out with me and see if there was still enough water. This time I brought my climbing gear, and not only was there still water, but more ice had formed over night. This was one of those rare moments when all the factors came together and the moment was captured.” Photo #6 by © Jed Weingarten via windowsace

Running the White Salmon River in Washington. Photo #7 by wallpapercavern

As kayaker Tyler Bradt set a new world record by paddling over the 186ft Palouse Falls in Washington State. National Geo explained, Bradt “dropped 18 stories amid water rushing at 2,000 cubic feet per second.” Photo #8 by © Erik Boomer via izismile

Kayaker running the Great Falls of the Potomac River. Photo #9 by anoldent

River rapids are defined by “difficulty, danger or severity” of the whitewater grades. According to Wikipedia, “Grade/Class VI can be described as extremely severe or almost unrunnable whitewater, considered almost certain death, such as Niagara Falls.” Every year Level Six hosts a freestyle kayaking event called ‘The Level Six Capital Cup’ at Bates Island off Island Park in Ottawa, Ontario. Photo #10 by Robbie

Interested in watching Crazy WhiteWater Kayaking in action? Video #1 by lnjp96

Rapid descent. Photo #11 by wallpapercavern

While you are allowed to hike or view the waterfalls, NPS says “Swimming and wading are not permitted anywhere” within the park. Whitewater boating is common here with the use of whitewater kayaks and canoes. Flipped while running Great Falls National Park in Virginia. Photo #12 by David Priddy

Kayak waterfall, adrenaline rush at Victoria Falls, Zambia, Africa. The photographer wrote, “To capture this feat, multiple camera angles were needed. For the film crew (and myself) to avoid aviation authorities and fly below the 1,500-foot minimum flight limit, the paddlers had to set off across the crocodile- and hippo-infested waters above the falls before sunrise. The paddlers approached the edge of the mile-wide, 350-foot-high falls to scout the rapids below. This moment was captured from a helicopter circling 500 feet above the falls, battling with mist and wind blowing up from the narrow canyon. Challenges included extreme air turbulence and constantly having to wipe water from the spray off of the lens. I had initially planned to shoot wide at 15 mm, but a last-second in-air lens change in these conditions rewarded me with this shot.” Photo #13 by Desré Pickers

Path of Light Cathedral Grove, Oregon. Photo #14 by wallpapercavern

While parts of the Lewis and Clark Expedition were undoubtedly extreme, and White River is part of the Lewis and Clark Trail, we doubt they attempted the extreme sport of kayaking over White River Falls in Oregon. Photo #15 by feedyourdesktop

Bavarian Mountains: Schwarzenbach, Oberbayern in Germany. Schwarzenbach has six waterfalls, the tallest of which is over 82 feet (25 m, 12 m, 6 m, 5 m, 5 m, 5 m). Photo #16 by Björn Braun

White River Falls in Oregon. Photo #17 by wallpapercavern

Launching at North Fork Rogue River within Rogue River National Forest, Oregon. Photo #18 by wallpapercavern

Kayak running Bloomer Falls, Salmon River, in California. Photo #19 by Photography Match

Hood River, a kayaker places one of her last strokes off Celestial Falls in Oregon. Photo #20 by © Tyler Roemer, National Geographic

Kayak power splash while paddling Ivrea, Italy. Photo #21 by Edoardo Bartoccetti

25 Foot Drop at Clear Creek, Klamath National Forest in California. Photo #22 by wallpapercavern

Kayaker paddling Dragon’s Back on the East Fork Lewis River, Washington, USA. Photo #23 by Zachary Collier

Kayaking Chetco River through the Kalmiopsis Wilderness, Oregon. Photo #24 by Zachary Collier

Mediterranean, a group is kayaking upstream of Ponte Altu, Corsica. Photo #25 by Pierre Bona

Extreme Whitewater Kayaking in Chile. Video #2 by Pilot Collective

Kayakers running Showerhead Falls, Trinity River, in California. Photo #26 by Photography Match

This is a bit different, but still extreme kayaking. Snow kayaking Monarch Mountain jump. Photo #27 by Alex Kerney

Extreme whitewater kayaking at Drag Creek, Ontario. Photo #28 by Miek

Treacherous whitewater rapids at Santa Rita Hole, Animas River. Photo #29 by wallpapercavern

Kayaker on whitewater rapids of Dochart River in Killin. Photo #30 by nz_willowherb

Bottoms Up at Salmon River. Photo #31 by wallpapercavern

Extreme kayaking in Italy. Photo #32 by Sfondi Canoa

Bulls Sluice rapid on Chatooga River between Georgia and South Carolina; this shows a mishap in an inflatable kayak. Photo #33 by Brian McInturff

Jared Alexander creeking on Hazard Creek in Idaho. Photo #34 by Seek writ awe there

Paddling is common among the half million visitors who want to get wet at Great Falls. The 800-acre national park is only 15 miles from D.C. Photo #35 by George Brett

Recover from capsizing, whitewater flip at Chilliwack River. Photo #36 by Curtis McHale

Running Devils Canyon, Middle Fork Feather River in California’s Sierra Nevada Range. Photo #37 by wallpapercavern

Kayaking in Ivrea, Italy. Photo #38 by Edoardo Bartoccetti

Bridal Veil Falls in Oregon plunges 120 feet. Photo #39 by McD22

Viewing the obstacles at Great Falls Park, VA. Photo #40 by guy_incognito

Controlled Chaos at Spirit Falls in Washington. Photo #41 by wallpapercavern

Pro Kayaker Brad Ludden running a waterfall at Rattlesnake Creek, California. Photo #42 by bhmpics

Rainbow over “canoeists” at Falls of Dochart, Scotland. Photo #43 by nz_willowherb

Scouting the river and whitewater before running Great Falls. Photo #44 by wallpapercavern

Kayaker holds up paddle after nearly drowning in Italy. Photo #45 by superedo

When running the rapids and extreme whitewater becomes boring, and kayaking down a waterfall becomes the old been-there, done-that, no-longer-challenging, how about extreme kayaking a waterfall at night? Kayaker Ron Fischer traverses down the insanely treacherous waterfalls of Rheinfall, Switzerland – at night. Video #3 by RedBull

Tyler Bradt completes the World Record Waterfall Descent. This drop was re-measured at 189 ft. A few feet taller then we had previously thought… Tyler sustained minor injuries which included a sprained wrist and a massive hit. Video #4 by TheAdrenalineRush

How does such an adrenaline junkie get started into extreme kayaking? Meet Rush Sturges. Video #5 by TheAdrenalineRush