Grand Canyon Rafting #2

Lunch stop at Sheer Wall on Day 1; Photo: Scott Stevens

This is the second installment of my description of my Arizona River Runners (ARR) rafting trip in the Grand Canyon.

So, what was the trip like?

Video grab: Scott Stevens

On our first day, we started by loading the boats at Lees Ferry.  The process for loading and unloading was the same. We used a “fire line” process where everyone stands in two lines facing each other and we hand the gear down the line to the boat (or, in the evening, off the boat). 

Photo: Fellow Traveler Meredith

It’s fast, efficient and prevents anyone from having to carry anything too far. Of course, it also underscored how heavy my bag was! 

Rafters seen from Navajo Bridge (I bet some other tourists have a photo of us here)

We headed out from the launch, passing immediately through the gentle Paria Riffle and then our first real rapid, Cathedral Wash (rated 2), before passing under Navajo Bridge. That’s the last signs of civilization we would see until we saw the Desert View Watchtower at the east end of the South Rim area of Grand Canyon National Park on the third day.

Navajo Bridge from our raft

Our first big rapid was Badger Creek (15-foot drop, rated 5-6), followed by Soap Creek (16-foot drop, rated 5-6), Brown’s Riffle, 13 Mile Rapid (rated 1) and Sheer Wall Rapid (9-foot drop, rated 2-3). 

Here we go!

Oh, yeah, we got wet. Very wet. And, I was glad that I had suited up in rain paints, a rain jacket and a hat with my hood pulled over it.

Video grab

By the way, I am making no attempt to match my photos with the actual rapids unless I know for absolutely sure that I have it right – let’s just say the photos are representative. Same is true when discussing camp life and meals. So, for example, the photo of the "fire line" above was at a campsite, not Lees Ferry. It was the best picture to explain what I was talking about.

We stopped just after Sheer Wall (mile 15) for lunch. We offloaded the food, a table, some mats to keep dropped food off the beach and a hand-washing station up the rock ledge. Then, the guides – now cooks – set everything up.

Sheer Wall

Sheer Wall was a rocky beach, where it was quite hot in the sun and it was immediately necessary to strip off the rain gear. We went from cold and wet to hot and dry in a flash. Luckily, there was a little bit of shade.

Sheer Wall; Photo: Scott Stevens

Lunch was delicious – makings for turkey sandwiches or salad, including really good tomatoes and avocados. 

Photo: Fellow Traveler John B.

They managed to keep bread, tomatoes, avocados and lettuce crisp and fresh for the whole tour. Amazing. 

On other days, we had ham sandwiches, roast beef sandwiches and some really yummy chicken tacos. The chicken tacos were my favorite lunch.

We always had lots of condiments, chips and cookies.

ARR provided canned sodas and (sweetened – ugh) tea. I started out making some tea that I kept in a water bottle to drink during the day, but eventually I just drank water (ARR also provides potable water).

This is lunch on Day 4

I was afraid I would miss my Yeti because I like COLD drinks, but the River was a great refrigerator. ARR had given us a very nice insulated mug that I used to make hot (very hot!) tea each morning. I found that I really didn’t miss the caffeine like I thought I would.

Hand-washing station

At our first lunch, we learned that it is required to wash your hands prior to every meal with antibacterial soap and water pumped with a foot pedal out of a bucket. 

ARR is very serious about not spreading disease.  

No one wants anyone to be ill on this trip (especially anything gastrointestinal).

At this stop, we were introduced to the most difficult part of the whole trip – peeing. As usual, for men it’s pretty easy. For women, it’s a bit more tricky. We had to pee either in or at the edge of the river, making sure to go only in the water or in wet sand. 

That's because the climate is so arid that ammonia remains after urine on dry sand evaporates, contaminating the soil. The volume of the river is so great and the flow so fast, any urine put in it quickly dissipates. So, the women had to first find a relatively private area (the guides always gave directions for which way the women should go and which way the men should go – often, the men didn’t listen!), then drop our drawers and do our stuff. Another option, of course, is to just wade into the water. Of course, the water is 50 degrees!

Campsite

In many places, it was tricky to find a secluded and easy to navigate area (you don’t want to fall in the river without a life jacket on). Once, we passed a woman from another tour doing her thing. She just laughed and waved. After a few days, you do start to lose inhibitions. 

Passing another group

Because trash is an issue, lunch is served without plates or napkins. And, to save time, there are no chairs offloaded. There was a roll of paper towels, but we were encouraged not to use them unless necessary.

After lunch, we suited back up, loaded the lunch supplies back onto the rafts, put on our life jackets and shoved off. We then traversed House Rock Rapid (9-foot drop, rated 7-8), Redneck Rapid (rated 3) and then the “Roaring 20s – a series of ten rapids that occur right after each other from mile 21 to 29.

Video grab

The Roaring 20s comprises North Canyon Rapid (12-foot drop, rated 4-5), 21 Mile Rapid (rated 4-5), 23 Mile Rapid (5-foot drop, rated 4-5), 23.5 Mile Rapid (4-foot drop, rated 4-5), 24 Mile Rapid (4-foot drop, rated 6-7 and nicknamed “Georgie” after Georgie White Clark, who ran guided trips for more than 40 years and popularized pontoon rafts), 24.5 Mile Rapid (8-foot drop, rated 5-6), 25 Mile (also called Hansbrough-Richards after two explorers who died there) Rapid (7-foot drop, rated 5-6), Cave Springs Rapid (5-foot drop, rated 5), 27 Mile (also called Tiger Wash because of staining on the rocks that look like tiger stripes) Rapid (7-foot drop, rated 5-6), MNA Rapid (rated 2) and 29 Mile Rapid (7-foot drop, rated 2-3). 

What a ride!!!

Splash!

We stopped to camp on South Canyon (mile 32), a sandy beach with some rock overhangs and sparse vegetation. There are almost 40 designated camping beaches along the Colorado River. They have no facilities and are first-come first-camp for the variety of commercial and private rafters along the course. Only one campsite is “reserved” – the first group out on the helicopter gets use of the campsite by the helipad.

Photo: Scott Stevens

Scott and I did not do well at getting a good campsite. The trick is to move rapidly off the raft to claim a relatively secluded spot. I am not sure-footed, I was terrified of slipping and falling and I always had a lot of camera gears to secure. So, I was slow off the boat. Scott didn’t want to haul our heavy stuff far, so we always ended up getting a space right out in the open when others found niches under cliff sides or in trees or bushes.

Photo: Scott Stevens

Most people just slept under the stars on the mesh cots ARR provides. We opted to set up a tent (also provided by ARR), partially to protect us from blowing sand and partially to provide a small modicum of privacy. The tents are about 50 percent mesh, so they aren’t private unless you also erect the rain fly. We did that the first night, but it made the tent fairly warm, so we didn’t afterwards. On the final night (when I had given up on changing clothes), we decided to forego a tent and sleep just on cots. I’ll talk about that later.

Right photo: Scott Stevens

After thinking it over, I would recommend setting up a tent that everyone could use as a “changing station,” so that guests could have a bit of privacy to change clothes or take care of personal hygiene. But, that idea didn’t come until too late.

Campsite

One thing we learned quickly is that the Grand Canyon is sandy. Really sandy. Everywhere. All the time. I discovered the first night that long pants – and especially long pants that roll-up into cuffs – are a bad idea. That’s just carrying buckets of sand around. Shorts are better.

Sand on our tent floor

Back to our first night. After offloading all the packs, cots, tents, chairs, cooking equipment, tables, washing stations and the portable potty, Riley led those who wanted to go on a short hike to see some ruins and petroglyphs. I learned quickly that the guides' definition of an “easy stroll” is a bit off-base. It wasn’t a difficult hike, but there was some rock scrambling (and I really hate rock scrambling) that was tricky with my camera and lens. Watching Riley jump around in flip flops like a mountain goat makes it clear what his perspective was. But, once we got up high, there was a nice view.

South Canyon

The hike was a nice reward for the effort and a good change of pace from rafting. We saw several bighorn sheep (with great camouflage) ...

South Canyon Desert Bighorns

... the ruins of an ancient native building and some petroglyphs scratched on a big rock. I understand that the Canyon is full of petroglyphs, but these were the only ones I saw.

South Canyon petroglyphs

This was the one time I actually used my hiking shoes until we left the Canyon. Oh, well, I didn’t have to lug them around because stayed in the shoe bag.

Photo: Fellow Traveler Robert K.

So, let's talk about that potty. The guides set it up in a private area (often quite scenic) and that’s where you poop. 

There is a hand-washing station at the head of the trail to the potty where there is a plastic container of toilet paper with a red lid that acts as a “key.” 

If the container is gone, the potty is in use. If the "key"  is there, you can proceed. It wasn’t too bad. At least we didn’t have to clean it!  

Enough about that! Let me cover just a little bit more about river life. The really important stuff!

Photo: Scott Stevens

Let's talk some more about food. Dinner was delicious. Dinner was delicious every night. Every meal was good and plentiful.

Photo: Scott Stevens

During the course of the week, we had grilled salmon, pork chops, hamburgers, barbequed chicken and steak with accompaniments (baked beans, mashed potatoes, veggies, salads, etc.) and dessert (cheese cake, carrot cake, brownies, cake – some fresh baked in a Dutch oven). 

Final night dinner

ARR also makes accommodations for vegetarians, vegans and so forth as long as you inform them in advance. We had one pescatarian in the group – he had salmon twice, plus some other fish and veggies options.

We ate sitting in the folding chairs – the tables were only for serving food and dish washing.

Dinner

Dishwashing was similar to how I handle it when camping. There were four tubs – initial rinse, hot soapy water, hot rinse water and chlorinated rinse. We had to wash our dishes BEFORE and AFTER each meal. Just more precautions. The water comes from the river and is remarkably clean. Of course, heating it and chlorinating it makes it even cleaner.

Dishwashing with clean river water

ARR also has a rule about leftovers – they can’t be re-served. Such a shame because we always had an abundance of food. But, once again, not worth the risk.

Fishing is allowed in the Grand Canyon – with, of course, a valid Arizona fishing license. There are trout and carp. We had a few avid fishermen on the trip – and a few caught fish. One even had the guides cook it up for him for dinner. Scott fished, but regretted bringing the fly rod because the current was just too strong for fly fishing.

Photo: Scott Stevens

We spent most of this free time sitting and talking, but there were a few rowdy horseshoes games.

Right photo: Fellow Traveler Meredith

Sleeping in such unfamiliar surroundings was a bit tough the first night, but after that I was very comfortable and well-rested. We tended to retire early – it got dark and there was no campfire so we would not defile the beach. The stars were phenomenal and, during the course of the trip, I saw several shooting stars. Scott got some very nice night sky pictures that ARR has asked if they can use on their website.

Photo: Scott Stevens

In the morning, everyone woke up early because the sun comes up (and we did retire early). The crew makes coffee and then serves a full breakfast (the variety included pancakes, sausages, omelets, scrambled eggs, French toast, griddled English muffins). There was also yogurt and fruit, plus cereal and instant oatmeal. I don’t eat eggs, but I always found enough to eat.

Breakfast preparation

After breakfast is done and dishes are washed, we all packed up our gear – waterproof bags, cots, tents, cooking gear, etc., and, then the guides packed up the potty and secured the rafts.

So, that’s camp life. It was pretty much the same every day and, by the last day, we really had it down!

Dinner

We generally traveled about 30 miles a day, depending on what other activities we did, covering 187 miles by the end.

The river

For some fun, here's a video Scott made of a little bump against the side wall.

I'll continue with the next post.

Trip date (rafting): May 15-20, 2018