145 Days To Go - Tapeats Creek/Thunder River



Thunder River Springs. You can just see the Colorado River in the hazy distance down Tapeat's Creek.



 

TL Report: Tribe members, Heads up! Final trip balance is due in two weeks. You can send it to my email via PayPal or send me a check (addresss is on the $$ Deadline link on the left). You should have rec'd an email from me last week with a trip expense spread sheet. If you didn't call me asap. Thanks to the folks who have already sent me their money!

The NPS is taking lottery applications for GC non commercial permits until 2/23/11:

Grand Canyon, Ariz. – The National Park Service is now accepting applications for noncommercial river trip permits to raft the Colorado River through Grand Canyon National Park. The permits are for specific launch dates within calendar year 2012. A total of 436 permits will be awarded for 12- to 25-day river trips. Eligible individuals may apply online at the weighted lottery web site. To access the web site, start from the park’s main web page at www.nps.gov/grca and select “River Trips/Permits” then “Weighted Lottery”. Applications will be accepted online through noon on February 23, 2011.

Remember you can only go on one trip in a calendar year, so your date has to be after we are off the river (July 16th). I want to go if you get a permit :-).


Here's 5 ideas for the trip Tshirt. Email me with your favorite(s) for front or back.

GC Koko



Wave Koko



Map with Eve's birthday!

Marble Canyon

Nankoweap

If you want a tshirt, add $22 to your final trip payment. Men's Tshirts are Hanes, and the women's are fitted and run small.



Western pin in Crystal

 I just updated a post I made in August about the NPS' rescue of a commercial outfitter after they pinned below Crystal with new photos. The NPS river ranger sent my daughter, Callie, the photos as part of her 5th grade Nat'l Park Project. The photos are from the NPS helicopter and I don't think they are on the web anywhere else. An Exclusive! Check out the updated post/photos here.

Mileage This Week: River Mile 134-136. We are coming into another of my favorite sections of the river, Tapeat's Creek to Deer Creek. We'll cover Tapeat's this week and Deer Creek next week.

At river mile 134.4 we'll stop and hike up beautiful Tapeat's Creek. With lots of shade trees and cool clear water, this hike is simply delightful. Even though the camping wasn't the best, this used to be on of my favorite layover spots. Unfortunately the NPS has now restricted camping at the mouth of Tapeats, probably because it is so popular and is a well used area. Regardless, just a short hike up this creek and we'll be able to swim in some deep pools and water slides.

If we are very, very lucky and the weather is cool we may consider doing the longer, more strenuous hike up Tapeat's Creek to the magnificent Thunder River. Thunder River originates from Thunder River Springs and pours 100ft directly from the Mauv Limestone before flowing into Tapeat's Creek.

Thunder River Springs

Thunder River is considered to be the shortest river in the lower 48 states and is the only place in the US that a "river" flows into a "creek".

For those of you familiar with the canyon and it's hikes, it is not recommended to do the full Tapeat's -Thunder River-Surprise Valley-Deer Creek loop in the summer. I remember the last time part of the group did this hike in April they all came back practically delirious. I can't imagine doing it in the extreme heat.



Granite Narrows



At river mile 135.6, we'll pass through the Granite Narrows, the narrowest point on the river at 76 ft wide.






GC History: Tapeats Creek: Named by Major Powell after a Pai Ute Indian who showed him the place.

Equipment/Camp/Info Check: What is Heat Exhaustion?

Heat exhaustion, also called heat stress, results from heavy physical activity in hot conditions, and not drinking enough liquids. Normally, the body has a cooling system that is controlled by the brain to make the organs work properly. The cooling system adjusts and lowers the temperature by producing sweat. With heat exhaustion, the body's cooling system is not working well and results in an increased body temperature. Normal body temperature for an adult is generally 98.6 degrees. With heat exhaustion, body temperature is usually between 98.6 to 104 degrees. Heat exhaustion may damage cells and cause dehydration (loss of too much water and mineral salts). As the body temperature increases and affects your brain, heat exhaustion can lead to heatstroke.

What are the causes of heat exhaustion?

• Extremes of age: Old people and young children.
• High temperatures
• Illegal drugs and drinking alcohol
• Medicines: Certain medicines used for treating pain, allergies, depression, heart problems, or tumors.
• Obesity
• Too much exercise or physical activity: Sweating a lot can make your body lose too much salt and water. Hard exercise which lasts a long time such as hiking. Those doing heavy physical activity and manual labor in a hot environment may also get heat exhaustion.

What are the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion?

• Signs and symptoms usually appear when water and electrolytes in your body drop too low or too fast. Because of this, you may be unable to continue exercising or doing physical activity in the heat. You may also have any of the following:
• Body temperature between 98.6 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Headache, dizziness, or body weakness.
• Irregular or fast breathing, fast or pounding heartbeat, and low blood pressure.
• Muscle weakness and twitching, or a feeling of pins and needles on the skin.
• Nausea (upset stomach), vomiting (throwing up), or abdominal (stomach) cramps.
• Too much sweating.

How is heat exhaustion diagnosed?

• Taking your temperature through the mouth or armpit. (I love you guys, but I'm NOT taking your temp in your ass no mater what).

How is heat exhaustion treated?

• Heat exhaustion needs to be treated as soon as possible to prevent further problems. Caregivers may suggest that you rest and stay in the shade or sit in a cool side creek or the main river.
• Soaking in the River
• Intravenous fluids: These are liquid solutions that contain water, mineral salts, sugars, and proteins. These may be given through your vein (IV) to increase your fluid volume.

What should I do if I think someone has heat exhaustion?

• Move the person with heat exhaustion to a cool, shaded area and turn him on his side.
• Check if the person is breathing or has a pulse. Start rescue breathing and CPR (basic life support) if needed.

• If the person is awake and cool water is available, drench him in cool water. You may also wrap him with cool water-soaked sheets. This may drop his body temperature rapidly. Give him cool liquids if he can drink them.
• Remove his clothing and start fanning him, or spraying lukewarm water on his body.
• Apply ice packs on the neck, armpits, and groin (area where the trunk and legs meet).
• Do not give fever medicines, such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen, to lower the body temperature.

How can heat exhaustion be prevented?

• You can do the following when exercising in a place with a very high temperature:
• Drink lots of liquids, such as water, fruit juices, or energy drinks, even if you do not feel thirsty. Avoid drinking alcoholic drinks, such as beer, wine, liquor (vodka and whiskey), and other adult drinks.
• Eat salty foods, such as celery, salted crackers, and salted pretzels.
• Limit your activities or strenuous exercises during the hottest time of the day. The hottest time of the day is usually late morning through early afternoon.
• Wear lightweight, loose, and light-colored clothing. Protect your head and neck with a hat or umbrella when you are in the sun.

http://www.drugs.com/cg/heat-exhaustion.html

Next Deadline: Final trip balance is due February 15th.

152 Days To Go - Bedrock/Deubendorff/Stone Creek

The Infamous Bedrock Rapid. Site of Elaine's "Come to Jesus" swim in 1994. Basically the rule here is: "Don't go left!"

TL Report: I've emailed everyone a spread sheet showing final trip expenses and our final Moenkopi invoice. If you didn't receive it, please let me know.  Bill is designing a T-shirt for the trip to be digitally printed.  I will show it to you in next week's blog.


I was looking through the trip permit application that I will need to return to the NPS in March. Steve Leibig is going to be our qualifying boatmen since he has the most experience on the Canyon (10 trips!). I will need everyone's legal name, date of birth, address and phone number for the application. I will also be turning in the $100 per person NPS fee ($90 pp for the younger kids) with the permit (=$1770.00).


Did you have a chance to look at the new menu? Any feedback?




What the Grand Canyon forums are chatting about this week:

Tipping:  I posted a thread on how much to tip our shuttle drivers. I was private messaged by a couple of people and $50 a driver seems to be fine. I have factored this into the trip expenses.

Candle Pots - Campfire In a Can 
NPS regulations limit burning driftwood for camp fires to the winter. In the summer, we don't need a warming fire, but a aesthetic focal point would be nice. So, I'm going to make some candle pots. 

Parafin matches with candle pot

1. Take a coffee can or new 1 gallon paint can.
2.  Cut against the grain corrugated cardboard and tightly roll up to fit the roll vertically and as tightly as possible into the can.  You can use scotch tape to hold it in place.
3. Stick can in oven set to 225 degrees or slightly lower temperature and let it heat up for 1/2 hour or so can and cardboard are very hot.
4. Melt block paraffin wax (from food canning dept in grocery) in a pot on the stove or a crockpot. About 5 lbs is needed.



Thanks Mike Sawyer for the pictures!

5. Pour wax into can.
6. Put back in oven to make sure everything soaks through to the bottom and fills alll spaces in the corrugated cardboard.
7. Add more wax as needed to fill corrugations to the top and fully soak cardboard.

 We're taking three of these - quick to light, easy to snuff, great ambiance (little heat) and few ashes.


Deubendorff Rapid

Mileage This Week: River Mile 131-133.
At River mile 313.1, we'll run Bedrock Rapid (see photo very top of blog), class 7 (out of 10), a 7 ft drop. The top of the rapid has a large polished schist rock that divides the river into two channels. This center rock is called the Doll's House. The clean run is the river right channel. Running the river left channel is not recommended and usually only results from hitting the Doll's House rock. The video below is how NOT to run Bedrock and shows two rafts stuck in the river left channel after not making the move right. 










At River mile 132.3, we'll run Deubendorff Rapid, class 7 (out of 10), a 15 ft drop. This rapid has lots of holes, and a boulder field in the center.






Directly after Deubendorff, we'll make camp number 10 at Stone Creek as long as it's not too hot. Depending on the weather, we may layover here and hike to a beautiful waterfall, wash clothes, recoup, etc.

Stone Creek Camp

One of the Stone Creek waterfalls we'll hike to. This is a Christopher Smith photo. Thank you Christo for permission to use it. Lovely!

Notice the folks high siding on the right look a lot healthier?

Equipment/Camp/Info Check: What is High Siding?
In whitewater, if your craft (kayak, raft, etc) floats into something, you always lean toward it, which usually means you shift to the downstream side or the "high" side of the craft. 

Jumping to the high side of the raft will help to level it out and prevent capsizing.  There is a really good example of this in the Bedrock flip video above. The passenger high sided, the boatmen did not. Guess who ended up in the river?  This is an important thing to remember when rafting. If you feel one side of the raft go up, you should always move to that side. 
 "Defy Gravity."

Next Deadline: Final trip balance is due February 15th.

159 Days To Go - Specter

See below to learn about GC helicopter evacuations

TL Report: Thanks for everyone's feedback on the menu. I have altered it a good bit and uploaded a new copy to the blog here or at the right column link. I added three "hot" breakfasts on shorter milage days and incorporated more fresh veggies for Elaine. Elaine, I did my best, but I couldn't find a non-gmo/organic/free range/picked-only-with-tender-loving-kindness veggie supplier. Please forgive me! :-) I also added a potential layover day at Stone Creek. I think we'll play the layover day by ear. Alot depends on what happens on the trip. If we have a monsoon day, we may use that day to recoup, if we are fascinated with a canyon, maybe we'll want to stay, or maybe we won't want to do the layover at all and hike like maniacs... You get the drift (ha!). Forgive the puns, but we'll go with the flow (double ha! I'm killing myself.).

Check out this cool 24/7 webcam of the Yavapai Point (if there's no view, it's probably nighttime in Arizona):

What the Grand Canyon forums are chatting about this week: 

I posted a thread asking folks their favorite layover camps on the river after Phantom Ranch. Stone Creek seemed to be high on the list, so that's why I thought to do our layover day there. 

There was also some news on the fantastic water levels (22,000 CFS!) coming for February:

The Bureau of Reclamation is now projecting that for February, during the first 6 days of the month, they will have 7 power generating units available and the last 22 days of the month they only have 5 units available. So during the first 6 days of February, they are thinking the release will be fixed 24 hour a day flows at 22,000 cfs. Then when they lose the 2 units on February 7th, they expect releases will be steady 24 hour a day flows at about 16,000 cfs.

Mileage This Week: River Mile 128-130. At mile 129.7, we'll run Specter Rapid.

This is from Colorado River Briefs for a trip through
 the Grand Canyon by Linda and Dan Lindemann.

Martin and Whitis have this to say about Specter:

The Scout for this rapid is on the debris fan on river left. There is an easy pull in within the eddy just above the fan. A schist island in the middle of the river is normally passed on the left. Below this, the current is moving toward the right wall, and rebounding off that wall. There is a large hole in the middle of the upper section of the rapid. It is best to split the difference between the right side of this hole and the right wall.

At river mile 130.7, is 130-mile waterfall (left) which can be seen in a small alcove from the river.

Equipment/Camp/Info Check: Helicopter Evacuations

Here's the scoop on Heli Evacs. You can read a blog entry of a woman who was evac'd by helicopter due to a broken leg in 2004 here.

NPS Non Commercial Trip Regulations state the following:  Helicopter Evacuation

In the event of an emergency requiring helicopter evacuation, arrangements will be made for the rescue service by Grand Canyon National Park only. The costs of an inner canyon rescue are covered by the tax payer, however ground transport and supporting commercial aeromedical transportation is the financial responsibility of the patient. The Trip Leader/permittee will be responsible for the cost if the passenger is unable to pay. (So have insurance or get trip insurance!!)

Helicopter Evacuations

Justification – Helicopter evacuations are available only for medical emergencies.

REQUEST PROCEDURES

A. ONLY THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WILL MAKE ARRANGEMENTS FOR HELICOPTER EVACUATIONS.

B. Requests for evacuation can be made by contacting the NPS directly (river patrols, Lees Ferry, Phantom Ranch) or through emergency communications (ground-to-air radio, satellite telephone, or mirror flashes). Callers contacting the park should use (928) 638-7911.

C. When contacting aircraft by radio, be sure to provide accurate and concise information, since the message may be relayed several times before it reaches the Grand Canyon Dispatch. Provide information in the following order, using emphasized phrases:

• GIVE YOUR LOCATION. State that you are a river trip requesting helicopter evacuation at River Mile (?) in Grand Canyon National Park.
• Specify a CRITICAL or STABLE patient. This will allow EMS personnel to determine priorities in the event of simultaneous requests for medical responses or bad weather.
• State whether the problem is a TRAUMA or a MEDICAL.
• State whether it is a COMMERCIAL or PRIVATE river trip, or a HIKER who is in need of assistance.
• If there is time, ask the pilot to repeat the message so that you know he understands your situation.

D. Satellite telephones are the most reliable method of obtaining assistance. However, a mirror flash is often the most reliable method of contacting aircraft, so be sure you understand how to use the mirror as a signaling device. Remember that the mirror flash presents problems in that no patient assessment information is relayed and your location is not certain to be reported correctly.

LANDING ZONE SELECTION AND PREPARATION

A. Select a level area approximately 15 feet by 15 feet. Be sure it is clear of obstacles such as trees and large rocks for a diameter of 75 feet. Such areas are virtually non-existent in some stretches of river (i.e., below Crystal to Bass, Olo to Havasu, etc.). Unless such travel poses serious problems for the patient, transport by boat to a safe landing zone will generally provide a faster and safer evacuation.

B. Set up an X with the orange signal panels. Do not locate the panels directly on the landing zone. Remove the panels once the pilot locates your position in the event he selects that site for landing. This will assist the pilot in determining your party from others in the vicinity.

C. Prepare your group and camp for the evacuation. It is extremely important that everyone be gathered together at least 100 feet away from the landing zone and in full view of the pilot. Be certain that no loose items are in the landing zone, since the down-wash will lift and toss articles, possibly into the rotor or into your group. Secure loose equipment in the camp (sleeping bags, ground cloths, tables, life jackets, tents, etc.) in the event the pilot must pass over the area.

D. Wet down as much of the landing area as possible just prior to the helicopter’s arrival. This helps the pilot’s visibility, decreases the amount of sand blown into eyes, boats, and food, and reduces damage to the helicopter’s surface and engine.

E. The pilot’s awareness of wind direction is critical for safe landings. The helicopter must fly directly into the wind when landing and taking off. Do not locate your group in the flight path. You can assist the pilot indicating wind direction. The easiest method is to simply toss a handful of sand directly upward. The pilot can then observe the direction of drift. Another method is to stand with you back into wind and extend both arms forward pointing in the direction the wind is blowing.


F. NEVER APPROACH THE HELICOPTER UNLESS DIRECTED TO DO SO BY THE PILOT OR CREW. Never approach from the rear of the helicopter. Keep your group together and in one location. When directed to do so. Approach the helicopter in full view of the pilot. Walk in a crouched position to avoid being struck in the head by the helicopter rotor blades.

 The Moral here is to be prepared, have insurance, and BE CAREFUL!

Next Deadline: Final trip balance is due February 15th.

Liquid Logic Trailer for "12 Days" Self support kayaking on the Grand Canyon

Here's the trailer for Liquid Logic's self support GC trip that launched on Jan 3rd. Kelly Fisher was one of the groomsmen at our wedding :-).



"12 Days" Self Support Kayaking on The Grand Canyon from Amongst It on Vimeo.

166 Days To Go - Fossil

Archaeological site on the canyon

TL Report: Exchange folks, time to get on the stick to arrange reservations if you haven't done it yet! If you have any questions contact me!I have put a new page on the links to the right about exchange logistics. PLEASE READ CAREFULLY!

After input from some tribe members, we decided we will be eating at Marble Canyon Lodge the night before we put in at Lee's Ferry (this is not covered by the trip). If you would like to stay at the Marble Canyon Lodge the night before we launch here is the link. Moenkopi will pick you up the morning of the trip to rejoin us at the put in. Everyone else will be camping at the put in.




What the Grand Canyon forums are chatting about this week: Archeology in the Canyon along the river. Check out this really cool video below. Hit the "standard" link next to the video for DSL users.

Mileage This Week: River Mile 125-127. At river mile 125.5 we'll run Fossil Rapid, class 5 (out of 10). This is a read and run s-shaped rapid. At river mile 127, we'll pass Randy's Rock.


Randy's Rock


GC History: Here's the story of how Randy's Rock got it's name:

On the mighty Colorado, once you are inside a major rapid, it is impossible to turn or maneuver your raft because the water is too strong and fast. So you must set your boat up straight at the top of the rapid before you enter, and then hang on for dear life once you’re in it. Boats full of people flip quite often on the river, and that was what happened to us on our trip.



But we did not flip on Lava Falls or Sockdolager or some other big rapid on the river. It wasn’t even a rapid, and it didn’t have a name at the time. Because there are long stretches of open, flat water on the Colorado, it is common for the professional boatmen (or boatwomen) to turn the oars over to passengers to give them the experience of rowing. This was what Randy did. A passenger was rowing, and no one noticed the big rock jutting from the water ahead of us. We reacted too late. The power and speed of the river even in this mild stretch caught us off guard, dumping us all into the drink.


Two of the passengers were not strong swimmers and not wearing their life jackets. I towed one to shore, and Randy pulled out the other. Everyone made it to shore safely. But our inflatable six-person rubber raft was wrecked. It filled with water and both ends of it wrapped around the rock. The only way we eventually set it free was by cutting it with a Buck knife.


There were two other boats on the trip, following after us. They picked us up, and the five of us on Randy’s boat squeezed into their boats and rode the rest of the way. We recovered our clothes and gear, stored in waterproof bags, as they floated down the river until getting snagged on rocks or running aground.


Our mishap became a permanent part of rafting lore on the Grand Canyon. It is virtually impossible to lose a raft on the Colorado, because the force and power of the water will almost always push it off a rock or wherever it is stuck. But we had done it. We had achieved the impossible, and if you look in the official guidebook for rafting on the Colorado, at Mile 126, you will see the notation for “Randy’s Rock Rapid.” That is the true story of how it got its name.

http://kevinnelson.wordpress.com/2009/09/11/randy-breckenridge-and-a-true-story-of-the-colorado-river/

Equipment/Camp/Info Check: If you are interested in what first aid we are bringing check out the Moenkopi first aid kits below. We will also probably be bringing IV fluids. That's what happens when you have a bunch of nurses on your trip. :-)

MAJOR FIRST AID LIST (one per trip/on last raft)

Aspirin
Ibuprofen
Antihistamine
Anti-fungal ointment
Anti-bacterial ointment
Vaseline
Cervical Collar
Eye Wash
Stethoscope
Blood pressure cuff
Mineral Oil
Hydrogen peroxide
Tincture of Benzoin
Oil of Cloves
Ipecac Syrup
Sam Splint
Razor
Needles
Scissors
Thermometer
50 band aids
4 eye pads
4 butterfly bandages
10 2X2 Gauze pads
Ace wraps
Triangular bandages
2” gauze roll
Trauma dressing
Tampons
Bed sheet
Phisoderm
Campho phenique
First aid book
Signal mirror
Helicopter signal (2) 3’ X 10’ Orange

Moenkopi addition to NPS reg.
Kaopectate
Cough suppressant
Anit-bacterial soap
And sanitizer
Baby shampoo
Earwax removal aid
Hydrocortisone cream
Insta-glucose
Molefoam
Safty pins
Snake bit kit
Treatment for insect bites

MINOR FIRST AID (on every raft)



Anti bacterial hand sani o band-aids assorted
Anti bacterial ointment packets o butterfly band aids
Hydro cortisone cream o q-tips
Burn gel packets o moleskin
Eye drops o tampons
aspirin
Ibuprofen
scissors
Tylenol
tweezers
Antacid
Razor
Glucose
Safety pins
Anti diarrhea
triangular bandage
anti histamine
adhesive tape
Sam splint
2X2 gauze
ace bandage
3X3 gauze
gloves
Eye pads
pad and pen
Roll Gauze
pen light
Next Deadline: Final trip balance is due February 15th.

173 Days To Go - Forster

 TL Report: Great video via helicopter of the Canyon and some of it's rapids by Aerial Filmworks above. Thanks Mike, Jim, and Eve for help with setting the menu for the trip over the holidays. I've posted it on a page link to the right. Here Ye! This is a tentative menu, there may or may not be changes.   If you want to see the menu in a larger format you can click the full screen icon above the text.

Tentative Hester Trip Menu

Navajo goats, check out the brown one. It's easy to miss!

What the Grand Canyon forums are chatting about this week: Navajo Sheep in the canyon. This exotic species (it seems there are only a few of these goats in the canyon) are feral goats that have wandered down from the reservation on river left around Redwall Cavern. Guides and river runners have apparently been seeing them for years.

Mileage This Week: River Mile 122-124.  At river mile 123.3 we will run class 5 (out of 10) Forster Rapid. This 7 ft drop is a read and run rapid.

Equipment/Camp/Info Check:
Herrreeeessss, Bill Hester, our guest blogger! :-) Here's Bill's take on Group Dynamics. Thanks!

Five  Ways to Make Your Grand Canyon Trip

One of the Best Experiences of Your Life

1. Get and Keep the Right Attitude

Bill sledding with the kids last week.

Adventure travel is all about your travel attitude. That's why it’s called adventure travel, right? We aren’t tourists with a set plan, we’re adventurers! We won't always know what to expect, so it’s best to just expect anything and everything - then accept whatever comes our way. A lot will go as we expect it, but there’s always an element of the unexpected in any adventure. I can guarantee everything won't always go right. I can also guarantee that at times during this trip we will be uncomfortable, cranky, impatient, tired, hungry, hot, thirsty, sore, burnt... basically, you name it. But, we will also be exhilarated, delighted, excited, astonished and overwhelmed. The positive experiences are easy to handle, but the less than perfect ones can be more difficult.

We have a couple of choices for handling these challenging situations - we can accept that these experiences are expected and ephemeral – they will pass and it’s best to put on a cheerful attitude and get on with things, or, we can get angry and aggravated and take it out on ourselves and the rest of the trip. Personally, I want everyone to enjoy this adventure, so let’s all make a pact to keep things positive and relish the adventure aspect of this trip. (Besides, the things that seem to be the worst at the time always make the best stories later on!)

2. Prepare Your Body
For some of us, 18 days of hard work, hard play and even harder conditions will be the most difficult thing we've ever done. It’s a challenge when our bodies can’t/won’t keep up with what we want to do, especially when we are on the trip of a lifetime. With the New Year upon us, let’s start now and get our bodies in shape to enjoy whatever adventure comes our way.


Pre-trip conditioning should prepare us to...

1. Walk long distances while marveling at the awesome scenery.
2. Climb steep trails to ogle at amazing historical relics.
3. Swim small creeks and pools to revel in the one-of-a-kind splendor that is Grand Canyon.
4. Endure long days of playing until we drop from exhaustion.
5. Be able to eat all you can, sleep like the dead, and get up before the sun to do it all again.

 3. Accept others in all their glory (and their pettiness).

This may be hard to for some to believe, but everyone doesn't believe the same things you do. Everyone also won't understand your obvious logic and wisdom of wanting to use the last remaining sugar for your coffee and not the dessert planned for that night. Unbelievably, they might not appreciate the obvious benefits of Obama's health care plan. They won't even appreciate the fact that you didn't share the last column of cookies with them simply because they weren't around when you found them hidden in the bottom of the food box. Eighteen days of Kumbaya-togetherness is difficult, if not impossible to achieve, no matter how Zen-like you are. We have a diverse group of people with a plethora of backgrounds and ideals. Heck, isn't diversity what makes life interesting? Bottom line is to help make your trip and others a little more enjoyable we need to get along. I suggest the following if you find your patience running low.

• Try to be aware and accept others ideas on religion, politics and food desires. If you can't discuss things without trying to convince everyone how and why you’re right, and then discuss the Braves playoff hopes, or how awesome the new album by Yanni is.
• If you find you’re not enjoying the conversation, take a break, take a walk, or even go ponder the innate beauty of the view from the groover. At least you'll be alone to collect your thoughts.
• Take care of your body needs....eat, drink and shade. We (me) often get cranky when we need to eat, drink, or cool down.
• Go jump in the river and have a mud fight. Nothing says "fun" more than a good frolic, and that is why we are here after all.

 4. Follow the Leader

Our fearless trip leader has the final say on all things. She is a benevolent trip leader and will take your considerations to heart when making any decisions. In the end though, it’s her butt on the line and the success/safety of the trip is her responsibility. It’s all our responsibility to follow safety rules and limit the stupid stuff that might endanger trip members, including ourselves. Remember, this is a wilderness trip and we will be on our own out there.

Secondly, listen to your boatmen. They are an exacting bunch and expect gear to be unloaded, loaded and stacked in very specific ways. You may not realize the importance of this, but if your raft has unexpected excitement, you will be glad that straps were tight and your things secured. Never, never, never unbuckle, or move anything on a raft without first asking the boatman. We really would hate to see you complete your trip with only the clothes on your back and a tube of Chapstick due to unsecured gear.

  5. It's Not All About the Rapids

 Well, at times it will be all about the rapids, but it’s also so much more. We are on one of the greatest adventures of our lives. For some, this is the first time on a trip of this magnitude, and they are apprehensive. However, the very essence of adventure is not knowing what comes next and anticipating, even relishing, the unexpected! Don't let your focus be only about the whitewater. Being away from your day-to-day life is a gift! No phones, no email, no computer - and no pressure other than your day-to-day life in the Canyon. Take time to enjoy everything and be open to anything. Take advantage of the time and this extraordinary place to explore hiking, photography, nature, people, history, geology, art, reading and whatever else floats your boat. Yes, the rapids are big fun and sometimes intimidating, but don't forget to enjoy the rest of it, too.

There's a ton of ways to have fun and a ton of ways to wallow in misery. The blabbering above is an attempt to impart some wisdom, experience and, perhaps, some humor into your trip preparations. I am psyched to have each and every one of you on the trip. The gift of having family and friends on a trip of this type is a life-dream for both Susan and me. We are really looking forward to sharing this adventure with you!

Next Deadline: Final trip balance is due February 15th.

Putting on at Lee's Ferry on Jan 3, 2011

Here's our friend, Kelly Fisher, putting on with the Liquid Logic Grand trip. Lee's Ferry on Jan 3rd?! BRRRRRRR.