Grand Canyon Raft Trip (5/3/04-5/21/04):
by Scott McCollough (revised and edited by Bob and Sue):
For me, the trip began Friday afternoon, April 30th, when I suffered through the Phoenix traffic to get to Bob and Suzy's house. Suzy was stuck in the same traffic jam, about an hour behind me (probably only 100 feet behind me). She had spent the day in town picking up more food for the trip. We enjoyed a quiet evening visiting and hot tubbing, and looking for Geraldine (Gerald Dean, Susan is not sure how you safely sex javelina).
Bob and Suzy left early for another trip to Phoenix to shop the perishables, buy the ice and dry ice needed to pack the freezers and coolers, and to pick up Lorie. They left me with a pile of food and an empty garage floor. I immediately began sorting the food for the trip by days. Bob and Suzy met the Kerry's and loaded the coolers with ice. Lynn and Suzy left to pick up Lorie at the airport, and finish the shopping. The two Bobs headed back to Black Canyon City, where I finished what I could with the food. Bob then pulled the rafts and equipment for loading. About 1:00 PM Suzy, Lynn and Lorie returned with the rest of the food, so we began the final sorting and packaging. By 8:00 PM, the six of us had it all packed, so we ate some pizza, during which Geraldine and three of her/his friends paid us a visit.
Up early again, we finished loading the boats onto Bob K's trailer, and were on the road for Flagstaff. Dave Sample and Christina King were at the KOA when we arrived. Suzy, Lorie and Lynn took off to get the perishables, while the rest of us sorted the raft gear. The permit holder, Ernie, his wife Sandy, daughter Cynthia and son Andrew arrived mid-afternoon by car from Colorado, with Rob, Jackie, Richard and Suzanne arriving a bit later after flying into Phoenix and driving to Flagstaff in a one-way rental. All had traveled from their homes without incident or loss of personal gear along the way. The Hildners took off for dinner and hotel, while some of us found an oriental restaurant down the street from the KOA. The restaurant had a huge fish tank with 6 very large gold fish. After we ordered, all six of the fish lined up and stared out at us for a moment or two. Kind of freaked us out.
Most of the group was up early to run down the road for breakfast. Back to camp where all gathered, REO arrived with the truck, and we were loaded in about 30 minutes. The van arrived a bit later at 10:00 AM, so we headed for Lees Ferry after leaving the cars at a storage yard in route. Near Cameron we stopped at a roadside picnic table for a quick lunch, then on to the river. Arrived at Lees Ferry by 1:00 PM, where we unloaded the truck, rigged the rafts, and moved everything to camp by 5:30 PM. It was a busy day but everyone was pitching in and things we going very smoothly.
On launch day everyone was up early, eating, rigging, and excitedly waiting. But there was no Ranger to check us out and after lots of hikes to try and find him we were getting a bit desperate. Finally, Ernie and Bob rounded up Ranger Ray, who was busy relocating rattlesnakes from the campground. Realizing he had delayed us over an hour and a lot of us were very familiar with the river regulations, he decided to forego the slide show and sped up the checkout to about 15 minutes. We were off. Boating downriver we noticed the beaver tail prickly pear and the hedgehog cactus were in full bloom. We lunched in limited shade under the twin bridges. After lunch Christina gave me a lesson in rowing as we unhurriedly cruised down to our first major rapid, Badger. Because we had two inexperienced oarsmen on the trip we scouted Badger. Everyone had good runs and soon we were floating downriver past ten mile rock and into camp at Soap Creek.
The rigging of the boats went well this morning. With the walls of Marble Canyon rising higher every mile, much of the canyon was in shade and the mornings were cool. Great rapids today - all the boats ran without incident, even though the boatmen had a couple surprises in the Roaring 20s. A fairly large fire on the South Rim that we later heard burned right up to the Canyon's edge made the inner Canyon smoky for most of the day. Later, along the shore, we saw some desert big horn sheep with their spring lambs. We camped below Silver Grotto, where several hiked before dinner.
The next day we boated less than a couple of miles down to South Canyon and hiked up to the Indiana Jones cave for an odd view of South Canyon through a hole in the back of the cave. With no major rapids expected for a day or two we leisurely floated by Vasey's Paradise and stopped for a short time at Redwall Cavern. Soon we were at Nautiloid Canyon for lunch and a hike to find the little devils (the nautiloids that is). Unfortunately our search was ended when Christina broke her leg sliding into a small gully in the slick Muav layers. Andrew came to her rescue, managing the medical issues, while others accumulated the gear needed to get her down and set up a landing zone for the helicopter. Bob K contacted the park service, which quickly dispatched a helicopter. The crew told us about a burn on the rim that caused the intense smoke yesterday. By 2:30 PM Christina was on her way to the rim medical facility and we continued downstream. We floated by the Bridge of Sighs - wow, then on to the "Fahrenheit 451" or Tatahatso camp. Since it usually didn't schedule out well for rowed trips, neither Bob nor Suzy had ever camped there before but it was an excellent campsite. Without Christina the camp was quiet that evening and the crew somber.
Today we had an early start, saw the Marble Canyon dam site, the Anasazi Bridge, and continued on to the Nankoweap area. Fortunately there was no one in the large main camp there so we set up and hiked to the granaries, which offered incredible views of the river. It was Bob M's 64th birthday, so Suzy surprised him with a wonderful German chocolate cake she baked in the Dutch oven. We did not see anyone else on the river today.
Another slow start day. After many trips on the river Bob has a feel for the pace of the place. He usually tells us the prior evening what he thinks will work best for the section of the Canyon we are currently boating. Thinking there are lots of camps below us, he really isn't interested in the fast morning leave drill today. We boated down to the Little Colorado River and played in the beautiful blue waters, hiked upstream to the Beamer Cabin, ate lunch, and floated on to Carbon Creek for camp.
The next morning, ten of us headed up Carbon Creek leaving six folks at the river to get the rafts down to Lava Creek. Carbon is a beautiful narrow canyon that eventually opens into a tortured uplifted valley. From there we hiked up and over to Lava Creek on the old Horsethief Trail. The North Rim was now a couple of thousand foot higher and excellent views were plentiful. Lava had some water flow, but wasn't all that pretty. Bob met us as we hiked down Lava Creek to the river and our seven rafts were there to meet us. We had lunch at Cardenas Creek. It was pretty hot but some, including the permit holder, still hiked to the hilltop ruins and over to the edge for the view of Unkar Rapid. Across the river we scouted Unkar from river level, visited the extensive ruinsite, and were off to the Upper Rattlesnake camp.
Several of us hiked to the Tabernacle first thing this morning. Headed downstream about 11:00 PM. Successful runs by all followed a quick scout of Hance Rapid. We continued on to an early camp on a large patch of sand at the base of granite cliffs above Grapevine Rapid. Unfortunately the wind was so strong that the camp became Saharan without the camels, a small sandstorm endlessly raged. We wound up on the boats to get away from the blowing sand. With everything being coated in sand we decided against cooking the traditional pre-Phantom Ranch steak dinner. We merrily dove into a hardship dinner of canned sardines, oysters, M&Ms, and peanuts. With lots of happy hour, it made for an unusual evening on the backs of our rafts. The constantly blowing sand-laden winds made sleep miserable; even our tents couldn't keep it out.
Wishing to escape the sandstorm, everyone was up early and eager to leave. Arriving at Phantom Ranch we found Bob Marley's son Scott waiting for us on the beach. Because we already had two inexperienced boatman on the trip, Bob had used Christina's satellite phone earlier to contact him and it seemed that he would not be able to join us when they last talked. Afterwards Scott found out that his important meeting was not going to happen, but then he had no way to contact us since sat phones are basically one way instruments. Being a make it happen sort of guy he got on the phone to the South Rim, tracked down Christina, got our Phantom schedule and then hiked down to meet us, taking a chance that his dad hadn't gotten someone else to walk in and take Christina's place. We said our goodbyes to Richard and Suzanne so they could get an early start up the Kaibab Trail, and shortly thereafter Hutch and David arrived. Most of us walked up to the lodge where ice-cold Snickers bars were all the rage. Continuing downriver, Horn Creek Rapid was run between the horns without incident, Ernie ran right and had a pretty impressive ride. The campsite at Trinity seemed awfully small this year so we continued on to Granite Rapid, a beautiful camp with wonderful shade and no wind!
Ernie, Dave and I left camp early to hike up to the monument, and wound up scrambling and clawing around for 2 hours before returning to camp tired and bleeding. Turns out we went up the wrong canyon - the monument was a 20 minute stroll up another much larger canyon. As we pushed off, two condors visited the beach, one with "23" painted on its side. The first rapid of the day, Granite caught Dave and I with a bit of a tip, so I learned to high side real quick, which worked. I didn't see Dave all but falling out of the boat. The rest of our group ran without incident. Crystal Rapid was carefully scouted and run without problems on the right, I didn't even get wet. Bob Kerry had a beautiful run on the left side. Bob Marley had water lapping out over the tubes in his old bucket boat but still managed to pull the mid-rapid camp so his crew could bail him out. Recognizing that the North Bass Camp would probably be taken, Bob suggested we camp above Bass Rapid on river right. For some reason Lynn decided to float down the river in her tent. Actually, as she set it up, the wind caught it and blew it out into the water. Scott Marley and Cynthia rescued it.
Today started by seeing the Ross Wheeler boat and the remains of the Bass cable. On to Shinumo Creek to visit a beautiful waterfall, then Elves Chasm for more beautiful waterfalls and pools followed by Blacktail Canyon for a short hike to see the Great Unconformity. Bob's back was feeling tweaked so he and a couple of others continued on downriver to camp rather than hike. The naked Bob bathing at the head of the eddy easily identified our camp at mile 122. We played Polish horseshoes tonight- the Marley men becoming the champions.
Fun rapids for us - Specter was scouted and run without problem. Bedrock was a bit more interesting. Suzy lost the line for the right side pull and we wound up against the rock in the middle of the river. I fell back, Suzy shoved me back into the seat, and we pealed off the rock to the left side, bouncing our way down and out into the eddy below. Dubendorff looked really nasty and Bob spent a lot of time scouting it from river left. The flow was high enough that there was no obvious cheat runs so everyone tried to run along the picket fence of rocks in the middle of the river and then move right mid-rapid. This was done with varying degrees of success but without problem. Since the Stone Creek camp was open and we didn't know who was downstream of us we decided to camp there. The afternoon was spent playing in the waterfalls above camp.
Several opted to hike up Tapeats Creek and across Surprise Valley to Deer Creek. The rest took the boats down, with a stop at Christmas Tree Cave. A few years back Kim Crumbo, an NPS ranger, chopped the date palm tree down that was at the cave mouth, so the river guides are now calling the cave Date Rape Cave. The pull-in was easy but tying up and scrambling up the first couple of feet from the river was a bit dicey. Once at Deer Creek, everyone but Suzy and Bob hiked up to the top of the falls and read or napped there, then down to the Back Eddy camp at mile 137.
With a good idea who was around us on the river now, Bob felt there was a great chance we would be both able to hike at Matkatamiba Canyon and still score the popular Ledges campsite. The pull-in at Mat is blind so Bob went first to see what was there and prepare things to tie the rafts to. He asked the other boats to wait five minutes and then come at one-minute intervals. It was fortunate we did that because when he pulled into the tight mouth he found a 36' motorized raft just getting ready to leave. Fortunately he was able to tell them what was happening and they cooperated by leaving before the mouth was blocked with our seven rafts. Everyone enjoyed the climb up through the highly polished Muav pools to the alcove above the river. A cool slot canyon hike with running water. In the flatter patio area we made several large butt dams to everyone's delight. Why are butt dams so much fun? Lynn also sang for us in the canyon to check the acoustics. So as not to block others out of this marvelous place, we reluctantly drifted on downriver to the sandy beach at the Matkat Hotel and had lunch. On to Upset Rapid, with Bob Kerry running left again while everyone else ran right. Good runs by all and on to the Ledges for camp.
The Havasu pull-in was busy with several commercial trips. Fortunately the big motor rigs were tying up downstream so there was sufficient room in the mouth of the canyon for us to tie up and go hiking. Most of us hiked up Havasu Canyon to Beaver Cascades. The rest went down to camp at the great middle camp at National and hiked there. Surprisingly enough people didn't seem all that nervous that night. Bob and Susan showed us oracle rock with the nautiloids. The rock is not as useful as it used to be. With the changes caused by the Prospect Canyon debris flow and the lower release levels due to the seemingly endless drought in the Colorado Basin, the rock seldom sees high enough flows to make it much of a predictor.
Today we run Lava Falls, the big one - a 37' drop in a quarter mile! Tension had been building for a few days because of this rapid. During the scout, we watched an AZRA group run it. It was time. The boatmen checked the rafts, several put extra straps in place to brace themselves or avoid being thrown off the raft. On the water, the blue tongue reached into the white foam below. I remember thinking, it will all be over in twenty seconds, just twenty seconds. The raft moved slowly, the boatman pushing a bit here, pulling a bit there. The oars working the smooth blue water, slowing gaining speed, more flicks of the oars, water dripping off the tips as they pulled from the water. The perfect line is reached. Faster now, another flick of the oars and the sideways slide of the boat became a headlong rush down the blue tongue into the white foam. White water, big holes, more waves, a couple hard thrusts of the oars, the boat so small - so, so small - the hole looking huge, waves of water, the next hole smaller, and smaller, the boatman working the oars to pull into the eddy, and it's over, except the bailing, so much water to bail, and urgency to clear the raft if we need to chase for one of the others - but not necessary - all ran without problem. That night we camped at Whitmore where Mr. Shorty stopped by for a visit.
What a goofy day! We started late and had a number of water fights in route. We had a problem with river piracy today - one of our boats stole our drag bag full of beer. Upstream winds made continuous rowing necessary but we still managed to reach our Granite Park campsite at a reasonable time. We had a wonderful evening of talking stick. Each person took a turn with the stick to display their talents, and to thank Ernie and Sandy, as permit holders, for making the trip possible, and Bob and Suzy for their work in putting the trip together. During the evening a rubber snake was left near Scott Marley - and was then moved to the kitchen where it kept startling folks. We later learned that some friends of Bob and Suzy's had been there the previous evening and had trouble with real rattlesnakes.
First thing in the morning, Bob and Suzy found a bark scorpion in their tent which everyone had to come and look at, then we found a real rattlesnake in a bush next to their tent. A long river day was necessary to cover the miles to the next camp. We stopped just above Pumpkin Springs to visit the Womb, where Suzy showed her flexibility. Dave spooked several climbers in the sculptured riverside rock there with the rubber snake. More windy miles with much rowing eventually left us at the Mile 220 camp. Another game of Polish horseshoes kept us entertained that evening. Andrew and Bob were tough to beat it seemed, especially with Andrew racking up the big scores and Bob getting the closing points when they were needed. To celebrate the trip Lorie made margaritas for everyone with the leftover ice.
The Indians now limit access to the beach at Diamond Creek to after 10:00 AM. We still broke camp early and headed down to see what the situation was. We pulled off the river on the sandy beach upstream of the takeout where a non-commercial Diamond down trip was rigging. The Hualapai were launching some trips so Bob walked over and talked to them about coming in. The official word was wait until the truck has the boats in the water and then check with us. About 9:30 they told us to come on down. Fortunately there was no other group getting off the river so we had the takeout pretty much to ourselves. While we were breaking the gear down both REO and Christina's husband Pete arrived. We continued de-rigging, loaded up the trucks, and headed for Flagstaff and our goodbyes.
After 16 days on the river certain habits are formed that may take a while to break. I keep waiting for the yell "EATERS". When I didn't hear the yell, and couldn't find Suzy, I decided to shop for dinner myself, but couldn't find any rocket boxes or coolers. I needed to use the bathroom, and waited for 30 minutes before I realized there is no red cushion and no one is in the bathroom. I am beginning to wonder why I still have my wallet, camera, book, everything in zip lock bags. When I am ready to eat, I keep looking for the hand wash buckets. I don't have the blaster to wake me up in the morning any more. To sleep, I have to leave the water running in the shower to simulate the background river noise. I keep adding chlorine and cool-aide to drinking water. I wonder why my hands don't ache from being so dry.
