This was the only morning that I was not already awake when the coffee boiler started! Something to do with my late night moonlight reading I think! I was up and about by the time it was boiled though. This morning we start off the day with Pancakes and Sausage. In a break from our usual schedule we also have the lunchtime sandwich bar set up to make bag lunches too. The plan is to hike to Thunder River Falls. It’s around a 4 mile hike each way, steep and strenuous. It is not a hike that is regularly undertaken from the motor trips, and even our guides have not visited in several years. Twelve of our group elect to try it. I am not sure I can make it, but decide to try anyway when I’m told that there are cool places beside Tapeats creek if it gets too much. We load our rafts as well as possible before we leave, and see several groups from other boats set off on the hike before we are finally ready to get started. They are smart. They make it up the first several hundred feet steep incline before the sun hits us. As we do finally get started we run into two more hikers who we had seen come down the final slope by flashlight after dusk last night. It turned out they were hoping to meet up with our 2 hikers who came to dinner last night, but did not expect then to be camped in the midst of our big noisy camp, so assumed that they had camped elsewhere. They had missed meeting up again this morning as Larry and Alvin had headed off up river early this morning, so now they intended to go downriver instead to Deer Creek and meet up later in the week. They were hoping to ask a passing boat for a ride downriver to save them some of the hike.
So off we set on our hike. Our price for dallying is a full sun hike all the way up the steep talus slope. At the top is a narrow loose rock trail around the canyon edge. Not exactly stable or fun, but we’re told it will wind down to the creek shortly. And it does. We cross the creek and again climb up, but this time onto a wide level plain, which is of course my excuse to twist my ankle over and fall. TJ to the rescue, picks me up, dusts me off and we continue. AS we walk on and talk more about the hike ahead I realize that while I could probably make it to the Falls, I would need a much longer rest there before returning than we will be able to take. After another couple of stumbles on that weak ankle, and the knowledge that the steepest section of climb is still ahead on the other side of the creek, I make the decision to not complete the hike. The next time we meet up with the main party waiting for us by the swift running creek I have decided to find a suitable rock and hold it down until the party completes the hike, turns back, and meets me back here. I knew I had reached my limit. At this stage, no-one forced me to stop, nor encouraged me to continue either. Everyone respected the decision to push myself as far as possible, but to accept my own limits too. I respect them all in return for their support up to my break point but their acceptance of my decision The creek was cool and shady. I have my lunch, and no desire to attempt my own way back. So I found a sunny spot a little above the trail where I can watch the trail for my party returning. The canyon was quiet and peaceful, with only the Canyon Wrens and the rushing stream to accompany me. After eating my lunch, the sunny rock became a little too hot and I moved back down to the creek and into the shade. A couple of additional parties who had set off even later (and hotter) than us passed through while I waited. I sent messages with each group that I was holding steady and doing just fine.
Pretty soon TJ reappeared. He had been to the falls and back and had set off ahead of the main group to collect me and give me a chance to walk back at my own slower pace. I guess if I had been really smart I would have sent my camera up with him so I would at least have got a photo of what I did not make it to see! We started off back down the trail. Again I stumbled several times and was glad for the decision to stop when I did. One stumble was at a particularly narrow, loose and high part of the trail. I was glad to have TJ by my side. We stopped when I needed to rest, or wanted to take a photo, and it was a fairly pleasant hike back (for me at least). We saw a large Chuckwalla lizard on a rock ledge right above the trail. Then, as we reached the final steep downhill section of the talus slope the remainder of the group caught up with us from behind. By now the rocks were extremely hot to hold onto, a necessity on the steep loose trail when you have short legs. Some of the groups passed us by, but we finally reached the level ground in the midst of the group. Back at the rafts I once again made use of the creek delta to cool off, this time fully clothed and in the water! It felt great to lay cool and wet. MaryBeth brought me a great big water bottle of fresh water to drink. Shame it wasn’t cold, but even warm was better than none! Eventually, feeling refreshed and wet we loaded the last gear onto the rafts and set off downstream.
Today would be a really short river day. We were headed only around 3 miles downriver to Deer Creek, taking the hitch hiking hikers with us. At mile 135, in the narrowest part of the river the raft were set to drift and anyone who wanted took a cooling river swim. The guides did everyone proud with their multiple twisting, flips and jumps into the water.
The hikers were dropped on river right while we claimed the campsite on river left. During this time, another boat pulled up, the white ‘snowflake’ Canyoneer’s raft. The swamper on this boat is Travis, the boyfriend of our swamper Lindsey. A short stop is made for the two to share a quick personal moment and for introductions between the 2 crews. Snowflake then moved on downriver. This was to be a source of amusement for us all at Lindsey and Travis’ expense for the next couple of days every time the 2 rafts were within shouting distance. Having claimed the beach with the rudiments of camp setup we ferried back across the river to Deer Creek falls. About half of the group set off for a hike to the top of the falls and the spring beyond, but the hike involved a very narrow ledge that was not recommended for anyone with height problems, and many of us were hiked out for the day anyway. We chose to just sit in the cool canyon by the side of the 1000’ waterfall.
After a while beside the waterfall the twisted ankles and knees from the hike began to bother me and I begged a ride back across the river for painkillers. I had the beach all to myself so I took a relaxing bath, set up my bed, then helped Lindsey prepare dinner veggies as the rest of the group were brought home from Deer Creek and settled themselves for the evening. There was a pleasant surprise for a lucky few on their return. The river water that had been sitting in the wash buckets was much warmer after 3 hours of sitting and was offered upto anyone who wanted it for washing. MaryBeth took advantage to have a warm hairwash for the first time this week.
Dinner tonight is chicken fajitas, dessert is fruit salad and MnMs. The full moon never made it over the rim of the canyon at this site. It was an early night and a dark and restful night’s sleep.
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