Grand Canyon- The Friends Trip.

Having fun in Redwall Cavern

This was our second Grand Canyon kayak trip in a row. That’s 27 days on the Colorado River. It’s not easy leaving the Canyon after so many days. Writing about the adventure is even harder. This group was into experiencing the Canyon to its fullest, both on and off the water. We’ve never explored the side canyons as much as we did on this trip!  In addition, we celebrated birthdays, heard great music performed, saw personal challenges faced, new skills acquired and most wonderful of all, there were long-standing friendships strengthened and new ones forged. If some of these events sound life-changing, it’s because a trip down the Canyon tends to be just that.  It’s a little of the magic that place performs on us all.

I’ve posted a photo gallery here to make up for my lack of words.

Kayakers entering the mouth of Havasu Creek.

King Jay celebrated his b-day.

Mary putting in on her birthday.

Camp near the mouth of Lava-Chuar canyon.

Does this pfd make my butt look big?.

Amazing light at Grapevine camp.

The waterfall at Thunder River.

The iconic view from the graneries at Nankoweap.

A hiker in Lava Chuar canyon.

Alice takes a break at the Throne Room.

Hiking Havasu Creek.

A refreshing break at Clear Creek.

Taking in the view during one of many hikes.

Having fun in Redwall Cavern

Photos and content ©DeRiemer Adventure Kayaking all rights reserved.

Grand Canyon- A Proper British Education.

Ross, one of the Brits, leading the charge into Granite Rapid.

Just two days prior to putting in on the Grand Canyon, we had been amongst the lush forests of the Rogue River in Southern Oregon. The area around Lee’s Ferry in Arizona, the put-in for the Colorado, could not be more different.  Driving through the lunar landscape from our meeting point at Marble Canyon Lodge to the put-in at Lee’s Ferry you wouldn’t expect to find a river there. One of the things that I find so beautiful is the red cliffs in contrast with the blue, blue skies and puffy clouds.

The view looking toward Vermillion Cliffs near the put in of Lee's Ferry.

Mary H. and Will enjoying the ride.

The first 7 days of this trip began with flows fluctuating between 11,000- 18,000 cfs then it settled into a steady 10,000 cfs for the remainder of our river miles.  Our mostly American group was joined by seven Brits, all family or friends from the same club.  We had been emailing them for over a year, so it was good to finally meet them in person.

Those crazy Brits- you should have seen them the last night when we all dressed up!

"Hiking" Matkatamiba.

Despite our similarities in language (ours was English, their’s was proper English), there are some wonderful differences in kayaking terminology. As we discussed lines, technique, equipment and strategies it was fun to see the sometimes puzzled looks on all of our faces as one group used terms unfamiliar to the other.  Splits, cags, stoppers, break ins, break outs, domer, cfs vs. cms, fpm vs. mpk  and buoyancy aid were just a few that required clarification. Nothing a pint at the end of the day wouldn’t clear up .

Enjoying an impromptu raft party at the end of the day.

How did you want that fish cooked?

Joel in his HPIK (high performance inflatable kayak) at Havasu Creek.

Here is a quick summation of the trip: It ain’t over till the Hawaiian swims, twins x 2, number nine, go big and GO BIGGER, Mike K. on grill, “No thanks, tequila makes me dance naked”, laps at Granite,  Andrew’s amazing one-oar raft technique, windstorm at Fern Glen, Steiner’s geology, laps at Crystal, Bruce’s poetry readings, cooked Brits at Thunder River, raft parties, Ross’ paddle dance, rainstorms and rainbows, dinners by Dave, and “can someone translate ?”.

Connor gets his weight forward in Granite.

Liam between big and BIGGER in Granite.

Desert rain at Galloway camp.

British and Americans unite! The August 26- Sept 7 Grand Canyon group.

Photos and content ©DeRiemer Adventure Kayaking all rights reserved.

Rogue River- Make Me Stop.

Larry M negotiates Tyee rapid at the end of our first day. Photo courtesy of RRJ

Everyone comes on a river trip for different reasons; work on skills, relax, have fun, be in a beautiful place, reconnect with friends and family.  And when the group is eager to learn, like this one was, we are on fire. The Rogue has many wonderful, user-friendly sites to work on skills, and the warm water (about 68° F) makes you want to be wet. As with anything you’re doing, if it’s really fun and interesting, you can lose track of time.

Phil and Ed discuss the finer points of surfing at the perfect teaching spot. Photo courtesy of RRJ

I’ve often referred to Mary as the task master.  I mean it in a good way. She’s an amazing instructor that has boundless energy for her students. Because of that she and her group are usually the lasts one in at the end of the day. Well, on this trip I had her beat, hands down.

Mary draws on all her playground skills while giving a talk on eddy maneuvers before hitting the river.

My group and I might have been a bit a little late for lunch one day (an hour- don’t worry we had snacks) because we stopped to work a couple of killer eddies and run every “optional” line I knew, plus hone our jet ferries, surf waves and make attainments. It’s also possible we drifted into camp with just enough time to change and line up for dinner that evening, “But we had to play that cushion, you know, the one by Battle Bar.”  We all slept pretty well that night!

Ed R at the crux of Upper Black Bar Falls. Photo courtesy of RRJ

Mary spots Sam P, making the move above the "picket fence" in upper Blossom Bar. Photo courtesy of Jon P.

Thanks go out to long time Rogue returning paddlers Jim and Ginny. Paul K was back for his second time and brought his friend Larry.  Alaskan Terry P was soaking up the sun and warm water.  First timers Isabella, Ed, Donna, Mike, Helen, Jon and Sam were talking about returning again next year. We hope we see you too!

Our group from August 19-22, 2009. Photo courtesy RRJ.

Photos and content ©DeRiemer Adventure Kayaking except where noted, all rights reserved.

Rogue River -Living Up To It’s Rep.

Running the fish ladder at Rainie Falls. Photo courtesy of RRJ.

In mid to late August we ran two trips on Southern Oregon’s Rogue River.  We’ve long touted this as a great introduction to multi-day river trips and it didn’t disappoint.  Looking back through the photos I am reminded of the incredible weather we had with clear, blue sunny skies. It is so typical of the Rogue that time of year.

Enjoying breakfast and the warmth of the sun.

We had a lot of Rogue veterans return for the first trip, proving that this river has something for everyone.  We got to reconnect with Doug H. and his two, now adult, boys Trevor and Brett- what a solid paddling family.  Our long time friend Steve F., another solid class IV boater (who we’re used to seeing in Ecuador) used it as a chance to forget about work and spend some much overdue time in his kayak. Sheri M., Hubby Bill H. and Sherri’s son Marc and his wife Angela used the trip as their summertime, family get-together.

Sound advice from the back of Jonathan's T-Shirt.

Howard D. was there with his young son Johnathan. Don’t show him the guide book, he’ll memorize it and give you the blow by blow on rapids. Lynne A. and Lynne V. came from Texas, mixing things up with hardshell and inflatable kayak skills.  Bird L., on the fast track, pulled off a highly successful trip with a grand total of  7  river-days under her belt (don’t try this at home)- that’s just not fair! She’s been picking up some good skills from partner Mark, a verteran kayaker. Mary K. and Richard brought a boat-load of good, positive energy. Doug S. used the river as a stepping stone to further his whitewater paddling before heading back to Hawaii.

Kayaks and the view from camp at the end of day one.

A big treat for us was having our godson Hayden S. join us on the river- all the way from North Carolina.  Zeroing in on his last year at high school we knew it would be hard to get this opportunity with him again.  Rogue River Journeys provided a stellar crew with their usual first-class support and great food.  A special thanks to J.R., our third kayak guide.  His knowledge of the Rogue and smooth style were greatly appreciated.

A black bear checks in to see what's cookin'.

Katherine, one of the great raft guides from RRJ, goes big!

What happens on the river, stays on the river- that's the hope anyway.

The gang on our August 12-15 trip

Photos and content ©DeRiemer Adventure Kayaking except where noted, all rights reserved.

Ecuador- keep your season going.

We hope you’ve had a great spring and summer of paddling.  If you’re  not ready for it to end why not join us in Ecuador for one of our many offerings this winter.  We have a variety of trips for skill levels from class III+ to IV+.  Check out our website www.adventurekayaking.com for more details. Start dreaming today.

If it’s August it must be the Rogue, no wait, the Grand Canyon.

Our camp at Solitude on the lower Rogue River.

In what may be one of our quickest set of turn- arounds between trips we have spent less than twenty four hours at home.  We’re just back from two really great 4-day Rogue trips and we are now off to the Grand Canyon for two trips there.  We’ll be back the first part of October to write more about it. Gotta run (aren’t we lucky!).

Kayakers take in the sites while floating near Saddle Canyon, Grand Canyon.

Idaho- Land Of Change. Middle Fork Salmon July 3-8

Kayakers on a mellow section of the upper stretches of the Middle Fork Salmon- day one.

Between the weather and the folks that were along, our second trip on the Middle Fork was quite the variety pack.  While the West was strongly represented, we also had folks from as far away as Washington D.C., Wisconsin and Canada. There were several families, couples, friends, hardshell kayakers (long boats and short), inflatable kayakers and rafters, . We also had a good mix of ages, including a pod of youngsters, ages 16-21, that we affectionately referred to as the “pack of wolves”.

Once our bags were loaded onto the support rafts at Boundary Creek, we did our usual thing of dividing the hardshell kayakers into three groups, each with it’s own guide, so as to give us all plenty of room to move about the river and play.  That first day I had the wolves. This group of young, enthuisastic kayakers were all in play boats of one type or another.  Their motto seemed to be “leave no river feature untouched”. This was demonstrated as they zipped about the river in search of  the slightest hint of  play. Nothing was off limits; boofs, waves, holes, and given the chance, each other. My job that day was to keep the wolves at bay from the other groups and make sure they were “well fed” with play and challenges.

Hannas F., one of the pack, hits the boof at Ram's Horn.

Middle Fork Salmon, Idaho: June 25-30th

The sun rises over a meadow near Stanley Idaho.

I’ve written before about how I look forward to our trips.  It’s not just about the paddling, it’s also about where the paddling takes place. In this case it starts in Idaho at the base of the Sawtooth Mountains just outside of Stanley.  Stanley is a small town that sits in a stunning valley made up of mountains, rivers and meadows.  It sits at a crossroad between Boise, Ketchum and Salmon in a mostly roadless area of Idaho.  Only the two-lane highway is paved, the rest of the streets are dirt. There is a small dirt airstrip on top of the hill behind town where the airplanes take off and land when shuttling folks from Boise or into the Middle Fork for low- water trips later in the season. It’s mountain flying, so early morning and late afternoon are the only times you usually hear the engines.  A dirt lot across from the small hotel where we stay is full of cars waiting to be shuttled to the take out.  Hang around the gas station for an hour and you’ll see rigs loaded with rafts, kayaks and other gear on their way to the put in at Boundary Creek.

Mary kicking up her heels at a view of sunset over the Sawtooths. Stanley, Idaho

It’s in Stanley where we meet our groups the night before the trip.  Final questions are answered, drybags handed out, and plans for getting everyone to the put-in the next morning are gone over.

Mary Featured in American Whitewater Journal

For the past several years AW has produced a “Women’s issue” of their journal.  Check out the July/August 2009 issue (page 32) featuring a profile on Mary.  Besides seeing the many different ways you can spell our last name, you’ll get to learn a bit about Mary’s beginnings in the sport, wild water racing, exploration and her path toward becoming one of the top instructors in the field.

If you’re not currently a member of AW please consider joining.  AW really does a lot of work toward boater access issues as well as pushing for recreational releases when hydro projects come up for relicensing.

Mary's profile in the women's issue of AW Journal.

Guides Corner-Rein in your kayak

Kayaks are wonderful crafts! What better way to transport yourself through remote locations than while seated on your arse? Not far from our house is a fine run that is often part of my spring ritual- it’s called Giant Gap. It’s a spectacular stretch of river with a remote feel that is just the right amount of difficulty, a great tune-up for the harder runs one hopes to do as the snow melts, yet straight forward enough it puts a smile on your face. The only problem with Giant Gap is the put-in trail. More specifically, the two mile, 1900 ft. of elevation loss to get down to the river.

Kayakers on the trail to Giant Gap

When boats were lighter (and I was stronger) I used to just suck it up, throw the boat up onto my shoulder and hike the boat in. My boat was pleased but my back was torqued.

Thankfully, there is a nice layer of fallen leaves on most of the Gap’s trail. A plastic kayak slides easily over this layer, freeing one’s shoulder and back from a Quasimodo-like posture. As with kayaking a river, a little control goes a long way when sliding the kayak down to the river. Here are some reasons I don’t want to just shove my boat off the top of the trail and hope for the best; the safety of others below, the well-being of my kayak and of the trail. If I haven’t motivated you yet, let me mention the Gap trail can be loaded with poison oak; oak on boat can equal rash on boater.

Some time ago I learned a slick little trick from a canoeist who rigged a rope bridle from the bow to the stern.