Phil DeReimer, Lars Holbek & Eric Magneson. In 1986 Phil DeReimer returned with Hayden Glatte & Bryan Tooley for the second descent, followed shortly thereafter by Chris Spelius, who would go on to popularize the river and pioneer commercial use. The first raft descent was attempted in 1985 by a group led by Steve Curry. The first successful raft descent had to wait till 1991, when a group led by Eric Hertz and Chris Spelius were able to complete the entire whitewater section of the river. Rapids The internationally acclaimed rapids are on the Chilean side of the river. Paddlers describe the Chilean side of the Futaleufú in four distinct sections—the Upper, Middle, Lower, El Macal whitewater (Bottom), and El Macal flatwater. Rapids range in difficulty from Class II to Class V+ on the International Scale of River Difficulty, and each section offers a unique spread of difficulty. The most difficult and dangerous is the upper section, , containing 6 class V rapids and the highly continuous “Wild Mile” class IV section. The middle contains what many consider to be the longest and most technical rapid on the river, Terminator (class V+), along with several other difficult class IV rapids. Because most of these are conducive to avoiding or portaging, however, the middle section less demanding than the upper. The lower section, , is very popular for its high-quality, continuous, class IV big water rapids, and a few class Vs. El Macal is popular with beginner paddlers for its class III rapids in the upper section, , which are a safer introduction to the Futaleufú's big water, and for its lower flatwater section, also . Dams Currently, the Futaleufú is dammed once near its source in Argentina and is free flowing through Chile, with two dams built on the Futaleufú that captures its water for energy generation while inundating the river’s spectacular landscapes. The Futaleufú Hydroelectric Complex in Argentina, also known as Dam Amutui Quimey, is a high embankment dam with 472 megawatt generation capacity that was finished in 1978. Amutui Quimey lake, the reservoir behind the dam, is now in place of what used to be three natural glacial lakes. After leaving the dam, the Futaleufú is free flowing for the remainder of its journey until Yelcho Lake. The multinational corporation Endesa proposed a large-scale hydroelectric project on the Chilean side of the Futaleufú watershed. The Endesa proposal would