Up again before the coffee, after a great night’s sleep under the stars. Breakfast this morning is pancakes, bacon, strawberries and cream, and I’m beginning to feel a little spoiled! Realizing that today is Memorial Day we try to get up some enthusiasm for a parade. We would eventually be overruled by a less than enthusiastic crowd at the end of the long tiring day, but we had some fun over breakfast imagining all the different ‘parade-like’ uses to which you could put a metal/canvas folding chair! This morning I’m back on TJ’s boat. Today we will visit the Little Colorado River.
This is a highlight of the trip I have been waiting for. I have heard that the LCR is very clear when it has had no rain, but can be very muddy after a storm. I was not disappointed. The river is running crystal clear and turquoise blue under a deep blue sky. I could not have asked for it to be more perfect.
The hike up the river was short, and I actually managed not to fall. Lucky me as it was solid sharp rock all the way! A short way up the river is a small rapid through some travertine covered rocks. The ‘in’ thing to do here is to travel the falls without the assistance of a boat. All that is required is some protection for the butt and spine from the sharp and bumpy rocks below, which is very easily accomplished using the life jackets but worn upside down and diaper style.
At the confluence the blue of the Little Colorado swirls into the green of the Colorado. If anything the water appears even greener, almost emerald, at this point.. The canyon widens somewhat as we travel through. These are the layers of rock that have entirely eroded away in other parts of the canyon, which causes the great unconformity. The rafts tied up at the lunch stop just above Hance Rapid, I think at Papago Creek. This was a hot beach. Lunch was Mexican Train Wreck Pitas, and extremely good. Shade was hard to find. A little further below this lunch stop the rafts were tied up again for the guides to scout Hance Rapid, which can be very tricky at the low water flows we were experiencing. As we pulled away a group of kayakers and small boats pulled in to scout too. As much as I’m enjoying the rapid rides now, I’m not sure I could ever do it in a kayak.
Below Hance rapid we enter the Upper Granite Gorge. The sandstones we have been traveling through the past couple of days are replaced by shiny black Vishnu Schist with intrusions of pink granite running up, down, and every possible way. This is much harder rock, and deeper water. The rapids are stronger. I even manage to get myself washed into to boat going through the fairly small 83 mile rapid. Fortunately I had a good inside hold, and I did fall inwards. That was a valuable lesson to learn! Pretty soon we come to Phantom Ranch, and the 2 foot bridges crossing the river. We stop to stock up with fresh water.
We finished off the river day by running Horn Creek Rapid. This was our first (to our knowledge anyway) not quite perfect ride through a rapid. TJ’s raft, in the lead, made it through fine, though he did finally get himself as wet as he had been getting us all day! Trey’s raft appeared to come through on the same line, but the wave totally engulfed and swamped his motor well and the engine stalled. We in the lower boat could see something was wrong as his life jacket ducked and bobbed as he frantically tried to restart his motor. Unfortunately he was unable to restart it in time to stop the boat hitting the canyon wall rather hard at the bottom. The good news is that everyone came out of it unhurt, and soon after that it did start. We stopped for the night at Trinity canyon very soon after that. I think everyone was a little shook up. We couldn’t raise the previous enthusiasm for the parade anyway!
Dinner tonight was delicious as usual: stir fry veggies and beef, with pound cake strawberry shortcakes for dessert. This was a another great campground, though a little rocky in places. The toilet though was placed in a small cave like opening about 20 feet above the river elevation. A great spot for the view, but rather awkward to climb up to and down from with a flashlight and boat cushion in hand. I confess after a trip up in the dark, and knowing how unsteady I had been on my feet, I prepared myself to hold off on another trip until full daylight the next day.
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