The Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon, day 14 - 18
The Colorado River from Lees Ferry to Diamond Creek, 226 miles, 18 days.


Copyright © 2004, Oregon Kayaking. No part of this page may be reproduced, linked, or copied without the express written permission of the Oregon Kayaking webmaster.

This trip report is quite long. You can read it straight through, or use the chapter links below to jump to a particular day.

INTRO: GETTING THERE AND THOUGHTS ON THE GRAND CANYON
DAY 1: LEES FERRY TO LEFT CAMP ( HOUSE ROCK RAPID )
DAY 2: THE ROARING TWENTIES ( SILVER GROTTO )
DAY 3: VASEY'S PARADISE, REDWALL CAVERN AND PRESIDENTIAL SURF
DAY 4: PASSING THE LITTLE COLORADO CONFLUENCE
DAY 5: UNKAR, TANNER, BASALT RAPIDS
DAY 6: LAYOVER AT 75 MILE CANYON
DAY 7: ADRENALINE ALLEY, PART 1 ( Hance, Grapevine, Horn Creek Rapids )
DAY 8: ADRENALINE ALLEY, PART 2 ( Granite, Hermit, Crystal, Turquoise, Ruby, Serpentine rapids )
DAY 9: ACROSS FROM ROSS WHEELER TO BLACKTAIL CANYON ( Shimuno Creek Falls, Walthenburg Rapid, Elves Chasm )
DAY 10: BLACKTAIL CANYON TO TAPEATS CREEK ( Specter, Bedrock, and Deubendorff Rapids )
DAY 11: TAPEATS CREEK LAYOVER DAY ( Hiking to the source of Thunder River )
DAY 12: TAPEATS CREEK TO MATKATAMIBA HOTEL CAMP ( Deer Creek Falls hike, Fishtail Rapid, Matkatamiba hike )
DAY 13: MATKATAMIBA HOTEL TO FIRST CHANCE CAMP ( Upset Rapid, Havasu Canyon hike )
DAY 14: FIRST CHANCE CAMP TO HONGA SPRINGS
DAY 15: HONGA SPRINGS TO PARASHANT CANYON ( Lava Falls for breakfast! )
DAY 16: PARASHANT CANYON LAYOVER DAY
DAY 17: ROWING FOR DIAMOND CREEK, THE LONG HAUL
DAY 18: THE FINAL DAY, TAKING OUT AT DIAMOND CREEK ( Bill rescues a kayaker? )
TIPS: A FEW LESSONS LEARNED THAT COULD HELP YOU ON YOUR TRIP DOWN THE CANYON


DAY 14: FIRST CHANCE CAMP TO HONGA SPRINGS CAMP: 19 river miles
Mellow day, everyone rowed, all kayakers in rafts due to slow water and few rapids

<< BACK TO THE TOP
All of the kayakers rowed today, giving the rafters a rest above Lava Falls. I spent the day in Gerry's 18-foot gear raft, which was kind of fun after I figured it out. It was a long day of mellow floating to a camp a couple of miles above Lava Falls.

Everyone was a little tense tonight in anticipation of the running Lava Falls. The campsite was great, wide and breezy, and dinner was good as usual, but everyone is thinking about Lava. We are also nearing the end of the trip, and tonight the outside world crept into our conversation in the form of presidential politics, a topic that would have been unthinkable even a few nights ago. Perhaps this is the only way the group can get their minds off of the big one, waiting to test our nerve and skill just downstream..


DAY 15: HONGA SPRINGS TO PARASHANT CANYON: 21.5 river miles
Lava for Breakfast!

<< BACK TO THE TOP
We got up early and got ready for the Lava Falls ( aka Vulcan ), waiting just over a mile downstream. As usual the kayakers headed off as soon as the rafts were loaded in order to get set up for photos and video. Ryan and I ranged out in front, and Ryan said that he had waited a long time to run Lava ( he had portaged the drop on his first trip, many years prior ).

Ryan and I arrived at Vulcan's Anvil, a huge column of jet-black basalt rising out of the center of the river just above Lava Falls. It is traditional to leave an offering or to pay respects here in order to ensure safe passage, and both Ryan and I did so in our own way..

Ryan Windsor makes an offering for safe passage at Vulcan's Anvil, just upstream of Lava Falls

You can hear Lava Falls a long way before you see it. This drop has a sound that is unlike any other in the Grand Canyon, deep and throaty, like a hungry dragon. Ryan and I eddied out on the left side, and scouted. There are two routes at Lava: The beefy right side down through the huge hydraulics and holes, or the left side, which has smaller holes and less consequences. I immediately decided to run the left side after pondering the giant hydraulics on the right side.

As the rafts approached from upstream, I got into my boat, peeled out, and dropped in. I had a clean line except for a tailstand out of the hole at the bottom, and then I was ferrying over to the right to get set up for photos.

Meanwhile, Ryan had decided to probe the burly right side of the falls. I got in position for a photo, and he hiked back upstream. Soon he was in the main current, heading down the right side with lots of speed. He crested the top waves and ran right down the middle of the infamous 'V-Wave', where he promptly disappeared, emerging a few moments later in big tailstand, which he managed to hold up for about 10 feet before flipping over. He promptly rolled up and finished the rapid, ending up with a short, involuntary surf on the huge 'Cheese-grater' wave hole at the bottom of the rapid.

Ryan Windsor probes the infamous 'V-Wave' on the beefy right side of Lava Falls, described as 'The most exciting eight seconds in paddlesports' by Dunbar Hardy.

All of the rafters were scouting on the right and saw Ryan's clean line, and they cheered when he emerged at the bottom. After Ryan eddied out, Lori and Audrey hiked back upstream and ran the left side, also without problems. Now it was the rafter's turn. I decided to climb down and stand immediately above the infamous and much-photographed 'V-Wave' in order to get the best photos. All of the rafts had good lines, as you can see below..

Jonathan Rawson powers the 18-foot Kitchen raft through the 'V-wave' on the right side of Lava Falls.. Mike's head is just visible in the foam in front of Jonathan.

Bill Ritchie ( rowing ) and Penny Ritchie ( riding ) square up on the huge 'Cheese Grater' wave hole at the bottom of Lava Falls.

Immediately below Lava we eddied out on the right and filled our water jugs at the spring there. Everyone was in high spirits because of our good lines and lack of carnage, so we set off for Parashant and another well-deserved layover day. All of the kayakers pitched in and rowed the rafts in this section, so I spent the rest of the day pushing Gerry's 18-footer downstream.

We arrived at Parashant and set up camp. It was my turn to cook ( with Ryan and Kristin ) so we prepared a huge pile of pesto pasta. As the night wore on, we broke out the hula-hoop and the spirits and we partied late into the night..


DAY 16: LAYOVER DAY IN PARASHANT CANYON
Hiking and relaxation in Parashant Canyon

<< BACK TO THE TOP

The next morning I lazed around in my shady camp spot under the trees, finishing up my book and relaxing. My reverie was periodically interrupted by shrieks and laughter from the ladies, who were working out their moves with the hula-hoop on the beach next to camp.

After awhile the sun came up and I decided to explore Parachant canyon a bit. I quickly gulped down a plate of cold pesto pasta left over from the night before, and started climbing up the ridge behind camp. After a half hour or so of scrambling I topped out on a nice stone bench overlooking the camp, where I relaxed and enjoyed the cool breeze sweeping up the canyon.

After a rest I decided to follow a mountain goat trail up to a large stone outcropping I dubbed 'The Crown', which towered over our camp. After some more steep scrambling I followed the intermittent trail across a semi-sketchy narrow scree band hemmed in by cliffs to another lofty perch, this one about a thousand vertical feet above camp. After resting for awhile, I continued along the trail, but it quickly petered out into goat-only territory with a marginal traverse above a long fall onto rocks. I decided to stop there rather than risk a long fall, and returned to my lofty perch, where I soaked up some sun and relaxed.

It started to get hotter as the sun climbed into the sky, so I decided to return to camp. When I arrived everyone was relaxing under a large tarp, and I was surprised to see a hummingbird flitting from person to person, looking for a handout. The bird was landing on peoples hands, hair, etc, and poking around for food, but all it managed to get was a little beer from Ron's can before he cut it off and it flew away. I felt pretty sorry for it, but I didn't know what I could do, or if I should do anything at all, because we were told not to feed the animals under any circumstances.

Ron and Gerry watch as a hummingbird scams some beer..

That night we had another party, and everyone did some hula-hooping, good times. The trip was definitely winding down, but our spirits were high and everyone seemed happy and relaxed.

Jonathan does it right with the homemade hula-hoop during the post-Lava party at Parashant Canyon camp.. The yellow and blue light is coming from glowsticks we attached to the hoop.

Finally I decided to call it a night, and I headed off to my tent. On the way over, I noticed a small glow in the tree near my tent. The mice had chewed holes in several of Ryan's drybags, so he had started hanging the bags up in the trees, but as I got closer I saw that the mice would not be denied..

A kangaroo mouse, caught in the act of raiding Ryan's bags, (again!)

DAY 17: PARASHANT CANYON TO 224 MILE CAMP: 25.5 RIVER MILES
Pushing for the take out

<< BACK TO THE TOP

The final day was long and we had a strong head wind so all of the kayakers took turns at the oars. About ten miles below Parachant we were overtaken by an Australian guide who was pushing a gear boat down the river at a brisk pace. He said that he was going to row over 40 miles that day, and that his group was pushing hard to get off of the river because a client had drowned while swimming near their camp ( he got sucked down in an eddyline and wasn't wearing a PFD ) and they were trying to get off of the river as soon as possible. In a remarkable confluence, Ryan actually knew the guy from his days guiding on the Gauley back east, so the guide rested for a moment and got re-acquainted.

After about fifteen miles we stopped at Pumpkin Springs hot springs for lunch. The Pumpkin springs are another unique and amazing Grand Canyon phenomena, with a large pool stained orange by a trace of arsenic in the water.. "Geez" somebody said when we arrived under a blazing 100-degree sun.. "Good thing these hotsprings are here; I was getting a little chilly!"

Penny Ritchie relaxes at Pumpkin Springs hot spring. The orange color on the rocks is caused by a trace of arsenic in the water. It is safe to soak here, but the guidebook says not to drink the water.

We camped at a nice site only a couple of miles above Diamond Creek take out. We did this because the Hualapai indians have strict rules about when you can take off, because the tribe runs river trips down the lower canyon daily. Therefore, you are not supposed to arrive at the take out before 10 a.m. Of course, PRO was picking us up at 11, so we had to be pretty close in order to have everything broken down by the time PRO arrived with the truck.


DAY 18: 224 MILE CAMP TO DIAMOND CREEK TAKE OUT: 2 RIVER MILES
Take out at Diamond Creek
<< BACK TO THE TOP

The next morning we got up and broke down camp. Kristin cooked up a wonderful Quesadilla breakfast, and we were on our way. We only had one small rapid left on the trip, a little wavetrain right below camp, but we (the kayakers) decided to 'arrange' a little kayaker swim so that Bill would have a chance to rescue a kayaker, since the rescues had gone the other way the whole trip.. and Bill had been talking about rescuing kayakers the whole trip, and hadn't had the opportunity to, you get the idea..

So, at the bottom of the rapid Audrey 'swam' near Bill's boat, then Ryan and Lori jumped into the river as well, and it was BILL TO THE RESCUE!! Except, he jumped into the river too.. so who was left to rescue Bill??

Bill finally gets to rescue some kayakers! But wait! He's jumping out of the boat too! Who's going to rescue Bill?!?

We arrived at the take out just as the Hualapai were leaving, and we had the rafts and gear mostly broken down and sorted out by the time PRO arrived at 11. The drive up Diamond Creek ( the 'road' literally goes up the creek ) was interesting and a little bit of a downer because it signaled the end of our trip. That said, everyone was in high spirits, and looking forward to a hot shower ( I know I was! ).

In the end, the Grand Canyon was the best river trip I have ever taken. I would love to go back and do this as a kayak self-support trip because I think you could move faster and have more layover days, though you wouldn't have the all of the luxuries associated with the rafts.

Oh well, maybe some day I'll get to do that. Or, as a wise man once said... "If it is meant to be, it will happen.."


About the author..
I have been running the Oregon Kayaking website ever since 1998 when my mother said: "You should put some of your kayaking photos up online, I think other people would like to look at them.." I still love immersing myself in western rivers and creeks as much now as the day I started boating, back in the day..

Outfitting, tips for running the Grand, etc.
All of the tips below are my opinion and have not been influenced in any way by any of the manufacturers or companies mentioned.

1) For private trips, I would highly recommend PRO's 'painless package' to any private trip headed for the Grand Canyon, you'll save yourself a lot of time and in the end, money as well. The painless package includes everything you will need including food, shuttle, rafts, toilet, kitchen, etc. All you need to bring is personal gear like clothes, tent, etc. You literally show up with a little personal gear, and they take care of the rest, which was pretty cool. (The final cost per person was about $1,100, which included some river fees, etc). A couple of people in our group had done the self-outfitting method before on the Grand, and they said it was a logistical nightmare, the PRO option was much preferred.

2) Find a helmet with a visor, or rig up some sort of visor system. The sun is relentless in the canyon, and the whitewater big and splashy. A good visor will block both sun and water. I purchased a 'Sweet' brand 'Holy Diver' helmet just before I left and was very happy with it.

3) Bring extra sunglasses. This might seem obvious, but you'll be surprised what can get lost in the shuffle during the preparation for your Grand Canyon trip. Jonathan was on his third pair by the end of the trip, and it seemed like pretty much everyone either broke or lost a pair. You don't want to be without sunglasses on the Grand Canyon!

4) Bring something to kill the bugs in case of accidental ingestion of river water. Whenever someone swallowed river water we had them take grapefruit seed extract which also kills parasites along with all of the other bacteria. Nobody got sick in spite of some big gulps of Colorado water, so it seemed to work.

5) Take care of your feet. We had two cases of foot rot in our group, and one of the ladies from the Telluride group had it really bad, with large open sores on the bottom of her feet that had her on makeshift crutches. You get this mainly by wearing the same shoes on and off the river. To keep this from happening, wash your feet every night, bring extra dry, non-river footwear and change into it immediately when you get into camp. Also, rinse your river shoes out with a bleach solution (2 drops per gallon) nightly, and if you are really paranoid ( like me ) you will wipe down your feet with alcohol-based hand wash every night before you go to sleep.

6) Bring alcohol-based handwash. This stuff really comes in handy, and was not supplied by PRO. Luckily we had enough to go around, and it allowed us to do lunches, etc without breaking out the full-blown handwash station. You really can't wash your hands enough on the Grand Canyon, because getting sick on this trip is not an option!

7) Bring some Teknu or some other kind of anti-poison ivy soap or wash. There is poison ivy around Silver Grotto and in a few other places, and if you don't have some way to deal with it you might regret it.

8) Bring a bottle of hand moisturizer. I had never used the stuff before this trip, but you spend so much time washing your hands in bleach-purified water that they will soon start to peel and crack if you don't moisturize your skin. I was globbing it all over my hands by the end of the trip..

9) For kayakers, bring a playboat. All of the rapids are manageable by a strong class IV boater in a small boat, and the play is pretty good when you can get it. Make sure you boat is comfortable, but also remember you will probably spend at least twenty percent of your trip rowing the rafts because the Grand is 90% flatwater.