Who could imagine that Henry and I would find ourselves sleeping under the stars in the Grand Canyon! This is the ultimate way to experience the Grand Canyon at the mercy of her creator, the Colorado River. The river is named by the Navajo for its color, meaning “red river”. Most rafting expeditions are booked two years in advance; yet, we were fortunate to find spaces with Western River Expeditions on a four day (three days on the river) trip as late as March, 2007. The minute we arrived on the shores of the river in the sandblasting winds of the “chopper” blades, we knew we were in for an experience. Waterproof “Dry bags” and “Day Bags” were waiting for our personal effects. We followed the shouted instructions of Craig, our raft captain and guide. There were two rafts. We chose one, along with an assortment of 12 other vacationers, and climbed aboard the huge blue rubber rafts consisting of  five pontoons each. We pushed off to motor to a shaded cove nearby, away from the helicopter pad, where we could hear further instructions about the trip. Craig was likable from the very beginning, His dark shades and big white cowboy hat hid his blue eyes and blonde hair, but not his sense of humor. He explained that he had so much to tell us, that he would do it in snippets, and assigned one of the passengers a laminated check-off list to make sure he covered all the information. Then we set off, buckled on our life vests and grabbed a seat. There were 9 spots forward on the pontoons -- the best place to ride the rapids. Then there were 4 places on the lockers, and 4 stretched out rides in the Chicken Coop behind for those who were “chicken”. Between these perches and the next area behind, housing the huge containers of cold  water and lemonade, was a yard-wide passageway termed “The Mousetrap” where you NEVER wanted to be caught in rough water. The nature of the rubber meeting metal created dangerous foot-wide gaps where feet and hands could be trapped between the heaving pontoons and the immobile solid metal containers. These facts, once learned and never forgotten, would create a relaxing, safe ride down through the canyon. Day 1 included learning the following: how to stay on board, i.e., how to hold on to the ropes, how to “suck rubber” going into the rapids, how to float down river if you fall overboard, how to signal “man overboard” and “engine cutoff” to prevent  the blending of human extremities in the outboard motors, how to get pulled onboard, how to set up a tent, why NOT to set up a tent, how to set up a cot, how to set up a camp chair, the etiquette of the latrine,  how to pee, how to poop, how to sanitize your hands and why, how to wash dishes, how much water to drink, why not to diet during the trip, how often to apply sunscreen, why to wear a hat, what to do in case it rains and there is no tent, how to bathe in the river and why, how to change clothes in front of a crowd, how to load and unload a boat, how to create a “fire line” how to deal with trash, and, in spite of all the above,  how to have a great time! The highlights of the trip included wonderful meals prepared by the guides: poppy seed muffins, and wonderful birthday cakes, for example, baked in dutch ovens, by Amber, Craig’s wife. There were also pancakes, bacon, sausage, and eggs-any-style for breakfast. Dinners included steaks and rainbow trout cooked over charcoal grills, shrimp cocktail, Swedish meatballs, spaghetti bolognese and grilled garlic bread. We were served buffet style and ate in a circle on our camp stools in the moonlight. Craig read us bedtime stories or wonderful “Cowboy Poetry” selected from books he enjoyed. And, we slept under the stars looking at the Milky Way. Daybreak brought a Tarzan call wakeup followed by cowboy coffee, then breakfast, and finally breaking camp. It was 5:30 when the day began; putting us well downstream by 8 AM. What luxury to float leisurely aboard this craft as the beauty of the canyons passed by! Craig proved to be an excellent guide, taking us on an ecological botanical hike, then later on a hike to see the evidence of human habitation with pictographs, pluson  a wonderful rope climbing adventure to a pair of beautiful, temperate, clear waterfalls. We had a mud experience during a lunch break on the river’s edge, where many of us were indeed, “stuck in the mud” with quicksand-like properties. The youth on board used this gunk to its best advantage as a “slip and slide” alternately getting coated by the mud and washing off in the river. Riding the rapids was always fun, especially from the very front of the pontoons. We watched the churning waters produce eddies, breakers and troughs, with the added excitement of the bucking bronco action of the rubber raft. This raft was fortunately extremely stable, and, by design, could not be flipped over.  The canyons were immense. The “M” words to describe it are: Magnificent, Majestic, Monumental, Monolithic, Miraculous, Marvelous. One of the historical human errors in assessing the Grand Canyon has been our inability to understand its SCALE. What might look like a boulder the height of a man from the rim, would be, in actuality, 300 feet tall. From our perspective on the river, this was NOT the case. We actually experienced the immensity of these rocks. We were also at a sight-line advantage to see, touch and experience the oldest rocks in the canyon, the Vishnu Schist and Zoraster Granite, laid down by heat and pressure 1.7 - 1.66 billion years ago, almost half the age of the earth.  The “Great Unconformity”, missing chapters in the geological record, is present here, because erosion destroyed the rocks which would have been layered above this ancient foundation. This erosion allowed the “invasion of Paleozoic seas”, which laid down 2,000 feet of sediment that would become the walls of the Grand Canyon.  The Colorado Plateau rose between 70-40 million years ago, beginning the formation of the canyon. The Grand Canyon, as we know it, was formed during the last 6 million years, carved out by the Colorado River. The river, deepest in the USA, carries the sediment of sand which slowly undercuts the existing rock. The river drops 1,709 feet in  296 miles, approximately 8 feet per mile, 25 times that of the Mississippi River. It averages 200-300 feet in width, narrowest at 76 feet and widest at 750 feet. One of the delights of being on the river is the constant change it presents. Sometimes it is mirror flat, others times it is turbulent. When plunging through the rapids, water measuring  46-60 degree F./4.5-15 C. drenches everyone on the raft, bringing goose flesh to the body. Ten minutes later, the sun and air at 100-120 degree F./37-48 C. has dried and warmed the body to comfort. At night, a warm wind blows off the rocks; or, if lucky, the wind dips to the river and bring cool, air that feels like air conditioning. Better still, the winds alternate their cooling and warming effect bringing a deep, refreshing sleep. Our river journey began at the Helicopter Pad on the edge of the Hualapai Indian Reservation at Mile 187.5. Right away, we experienced our first rapid which was Whitmore Rapid at Mile 188, rated a #2-3, with a 3-foot drop.. The Colorado River is the only river in the country with rapids rated as high as #10, depending on the c.f.s. (cubic feet per second) of water flow as it is released from Glen Canyon Dam. Other rivers’ ratings top out at #5. We had great fun “riding the rapids” rated as high as a #7 with drops ranging from 7-25 feet. On some, we really needed to hold on tight. On others, it was easy going -- bumping along over low riffles and minor rapids. Toward the end of our awe-inspiring journey, we lashed the two rafts together, were met by a speedboat, changed craft in the middle of the river, and joined our group of 28 with  two other parties. About 60 of us high-tailed it across the shallow silted-in waters of the lower Colorado River to Lake Mead. We picked up lunch at Meadview General Store, drove across Hoover Dam, and made it back, by bus, to Las Vegas, arriving by 3 PM. Henry and I collected our baggage and car,  then checked into Wynn for a major cleanup and a much deserved spa respite.  See: “Las Vegas”.

PHOTOS: Left Column: 1. The two rafts sitting side by side. 2. Our neighbors, lounging around on their cots. 3. Craig, our tour leader, steering the raft through the Grand Canyon. 4. One of the girls on the trip, making good use of the pontoons of the raft. Center, Top: A view of the canyon from the raft. Center, Bottom:  Jourdan & Henry under the waterfall -- fresh water! The climb to the Fall was worth it!  Right Column: 1. Unloading the raft to set up camp. 2. Jourdan & Henry taking it easy on the raft. 3. The climb to the Fall. 4. View of the canyon from the raft -- near the end of our trip.

JOURDAN ARPELLE-ZIEGLER                                             BACK TO MAP PAGE