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Archive for ‘2012 Spring River Trip’

Day 24 A Brief Retrospective In Photos In No Particular Order, Mostly

 

There will, I’m sure, be many more photos from the trip available as people make their way home and post them. But for now, here’s a look back at some of the events, people, and places mentioned in the blog. A fitting end, I hope—after all, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Thanks for reading along, and for all your comments. I hope you enjoyed following our journey. Now go get a river …

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Day 23: The Things They Carried

April 12

The river rats were defined, at least in part, by the things they carried, which varied according to mission and personal
preference. They all carried cam straps–red ones, blue ones, wide black ones–and some of them, like Norm Takasugawa,
seemed to carry more straps than could possibly be necessary and yet Norm used them all and would still ask the boatmen
nearby if they had any extra straps, and would find a way …

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Day 22: A Long Way to Go and a Short Time To Get There

April 11

Today’s run takes us from our camp at Bridge Canyon, river mile 235, a long long way to somewhere around mile
263–twenty-eight or twenty-nine miles. We’re hoping for tailwinds.

Here below Diamond Creek, we’re actually heading into the upper reaches of Lake Mead. The Canyon is a bit wider here,
more open, and all along the steep sandy banks are piles of sand dropped here as the river slowly silts out. Glen
Canyon …

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Day 21: A Rough Introduction to River Running

April 10

Today’s run takes us on a fifteen-mile run from our camp at Upper Two Hundred Twenty Mile Camp to Bridge Canyon, at
river mile 235. Along the way we’re stopping at Diamond Creek to pick up five new river rats who are traveling on
their own river permit: John, Helen, Elmira, Rich, and Kristin. The river mindset has sunk too far for me to have
learned their last names yet. Last names, clocks, …

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Day 20: The Clown Was From Phoenix

April 9

Today’s run takes us from camp at Indian Canyon at mile 207 to the upper camp at Two Hundred and Twenty Mile, another
large sandy beach on river right. The biggest rapid we’ll face, now that we’ve run Lava Falls, will be Two Hundred and
Nine Mile Rapid–an easy right run, unless you choose to punch through the big hole in the center.

For some reason, David Perez decides to run the hole.…

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Day 19: Eighteen Hundred Vertical Feet

April 8

Today we’ll be running a long day on the river, from our camp at 185 Mile to Indian Canyon on river right at mile 207.
Day nineteen of our twenty-four day trip. Two hours of battery remaining for this blog.

The past eighteen days have slid by relentlessly, rolling along like the river itself until life in camp and on the
boats and hiking the side canyons has expanded to fill our awareness …

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Day 18: The Colorado River Swim Club

April 7

Today our run takes us from camp at river left–Above Anvil–to Lava Falls, just two miles downstream. I haven’t thought
much past Lava, the biggest baddest most-talked-about rapid in the Canyon. We’ll be camping somewhere below if we make it
that far. Probably not a long day on the river; it’ll take too long filming the boats run the rapid. And–maybe–rescuing
people. At least it’s another warm and sunny day, perfect weather again …

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Mid-Way Photos

I just got a snail mail from the rafters with these photos to share.

 

 …

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Day 14: Layover

April 3

Yesterday was a short day from our camp at Galloway on river right at mile 132 to OC’s, a camp on river left at mile
137. The new camp, a broad sandbar at the foot of dramatically swirled cliffs of Tapeats Sandstone, will be home for
two nights: today is our only scheduled layover day on the trip.

There’s some debate about what to do with our time. There’s some talk about hanging …

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Day 17: An Evening of Magic

April 6

Today our run takes us from the aptly-named Mile 158.7 Mile Camp on river right to Above Anvil Camp at mile 178. Mostly
flat water punctuated with small read-and-run ripples. Huge red cliffs dropping directly into the river on each side.

And so begins again the endless cycle of loading heavy boxes and drybags and tables and chairs and silverware and
shitboxes and paco pads and kitchen boxes and all of the acoutrements …

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