Windwalker's Mountain Post: River: Into the Grand Canyon, 2 -- The River

Rapids on a J-Rig--"Gusto Seating" on the tubes. Western River Photos

For most people, the rapids on this river--if not the main attraction--are certainly the excitement and challenge that thrill passengers. I travel this river shivering in the bang-splash of early morning rapids, then warm my bones in the afternoon wind pushing up the river, or in the reflected heat coming off canyon walls. I travel this river with the love of my life (Canyon keep her safe), our life-long friend, people near to our hearts, and people we have just met. We chatter and laugh as we go along, telling stories of our lives outside of the canyon, or just quietly rising and falling with the moods of the river as it navigates and flows its way southward. Mostly, I travel quietly...watching, thinking, feeling, trying to fathom the experience. It's not that the rapids don't interest me. Of course they do! They demand and command riveted attention. But for me, they are not the main part of the trip. There is no way, onboard a raft that I can see to capture the thrill, the excitement, the danger of going through rapids. I have resorted to taking pictures off the internet to attempt to show what this was like.

I love the softness of the river and the contemplative, reflective time spent aboard. The river color changes from green, to blue, to "pooey brown" as Shad says. The color depends on what is happening in the sky, sun bouncing off canyon walls, and conditions in the side canyons. Muddy colors reflect flash floods from near or distant rain storms that send sediment and rock crashing into small rivers that empty into the main channel.

As for the difference between calm and turbulent water, Pam explains the dichotomy best, I think: "It's being between these canyon walls, on this river where time in the surrounding rock is measured in millions of years, where a human lifetime is less than an eye blink. And then suddenly you are in the rapids, feeling the river rock kick your raft this way and that, having hundreds of gallons of water crash over you, push you, knock you…you are feeling time in mini-seconds…all attention to what you need to do next. What is coming at you." And then you are through the rapid and back into calm or just choppy waters. I suppose one could reason that this is like life compressed into a day.

Travelers know when large rapids are coming. Travis walks forward and stands by the "Adventure Seating" or bench as we call it, or on the outside tube. He tells us the name of the rapid, who it is named for, how many people died here (if they did) and reminds us to hold on. Then he either sits on the end of the bench or retreats to the Chicken Coop. The rest of us get ready. Lee and I ride on the tubes most of the time…sometimes as the number one, at others number two or three. Jeanne comes out often, and Pam does occasionally, mostly in the late afternoon when it is warmer. Kristi and Lyn are regulars on the bench, although toward the end of the trip, Kristi took her turn on the tubes as well. Anchored behind me, Jeanne says, "Watch where we enter this rapid. Shad is aiming for the calm V between the rough water. That's where you enter. Then, watch out!" Jeanne is an experienced white-water kayaker. When the guides yell, "SUCK RUBBER!" you know that this is BIG WATER. Those of us on the tubes flex forward, attempting to put our faces as near the tube as possible. In this way, you are less likely to have the crashing waves slam you off your perch. My record through rapids: kicked by a bench sitter the first day, the bruise on my arm just fading two weeks later; knocked flat off my tube inboard and tangled with my neighbor, who was also knocked off his spot; banged in the back by a rider who fell from the bench; unseated because I held on with an overhand rather than an underhand grip with my forward hand (it makes a big difference); knocked flat backwards going through Lava Falls.

Rapids, we learn are caused by constriction and unevenness due to debris fans deposited in the river from side canyons. At river mile 179 Prospect Canyon enters the south side of the river. At the foot of its debris fan sits Lava Falls…A debris flow is different than a mud flow because it is a mixture of rubble, sediment, and water that has the ability to carry and deposit boulders the size of automobiles…somewhat like the debris flows around Estes Park after last year's flood. Lava Falls was, in part, created by the eruption of three volcanoes seven hundred thousand years ago. Lava from the eruptions choked the river for some time before the water, once again found its way and created a passage through the black rock. Lava Falls is the great rapid that looms at the end of the last day of our trip. Everyone talks about it. "Wait 'til you get to Lava." "Lava is just the scariest." "Lava will give you the thrill of your life." "Can we get out and walk around it?"

I haven't thought much about Lava, I suppose because rapids were not the big draw for me on this trip. I think about it now as we approach. Now, I am nervous. How will I do? Will Pam be OK? Lee is in front of me with Dan, the young Aussie, at the front of our tube. "SUCK RUBBER!!!" Dan is smashed mid-rapid and is knocked backward onto Lee. Lee, ends up on her back in my lap. I am flattened backward wondering how to recover…no hand hold with my forward hand. Both Lee and Dan have their right feet caught for a few seconds between two tubes. I feel gentle hands pushing me upright from behind. It's Biff from his perch on the bench. His wife Annie is laughing, so I know things are O.K. Lee and Dan become unentangled, feet free and we help one another to an upright, secure position again. Soon after, we are in the chop at the bottom of the rapids laughing, whooping…making all the sounds and words one says when one is relieved and grateful to come through a scary experience in one piece.

I cannot say enough about our guides as steersmen. Never were we in danger. Never was anyone seriously hurt (bruises and small cuts? Not too serious). Never did anyone go overboard. We were given some wild rides, but through it all, the most amazing thing was their skill and knowledge of the river.

Coming next: River: Into the Grand Canyon, 3 -- Canyon Hiking

The following three images courtesy Western River Photos…not us, but just what we did!