The Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon, day 7 - 9
The Colorado River from Lees Ferry to Diamond Creek, 226 miles, 18 days.


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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 7: ADRENALINE ALLEY, PART 1
Hance, Grapevine, Horn Creek Rapids
75 Mile Canyon to just above Granite Rapid, 15 miles
<< BACK TO THE TOP

We got up the next morning, feeling quite relaxed after our restful layover. First up was Nevills rapid, which was a nice warm-up for the first really large rapid of the trip, known as Hance. Hance ( rated 8 on a scale of 1-10 ) was only about 1.5 miles downstream from our camp, so we got there pretty quickly.

When I got to Hance I decided to try and pick my way down the rapid, which turned out to be a big mistake. I started down the right side, but was quickly forced to get out an scout because the river drops 30 feet here over a long boulder field, and there are holes everywhere.

I was well out in front, with only Ryan behind me, and he had decided to scout from much higher up. Now committed to the right side, I was forced to scramble around some big holes and bust through a few others to make it through safely to the bottom. I pulled into an eddy below and breathed a sigh of relief..

Ryan came down next, and had a nice line down the middle, followed by Lori and Audrey who also did very well.

Ryan Windsor threads his way through the large holes waiting at the bottom of Hance rapid (only about 20% of the rapid is visible in this photo). I was standing in the exact same spot when I shot the next photo, which gives you an idea of the size of this rapid.

As the rafts entered Hance, the sky opened up and the wind started blowing hard, upstream, spraying the rafters in the face and making it very difficult to navigate. The wind was blowing so hard at one point I was almost blown off the rock I was standing on, taking photos!

Once I regained my balance from the huge gust of wind, I looked upstream and saw Ron drop into a large hole on river-right sideways, stopping his raft and causing him to tumble out of his boat head-over-heels. Ron's raft surfed for awhile in the hole, then came out, with Ron clinging to the grab line. Charlene was unable to pull him into the boat, so I took off running for my kayak, blowing my whistle as I went.

I got in my boat and peeled out into the current, catching up with Ron's boat just as he entered the next rapid just downstream, known as 'son of Hance'. Just below this drop I was able to help Ron get back into his boat ( he was pretty exhausted at this point ) and we stopped briefly to recuperate and make sure everyone was ok.

Looking upstream into Hance Rapid, shot from the same spot as the photo of Ryan above, just before Ron wiped out in the top hole.
Rolo leads the way for the rafts through Hance Rapid. Ron Klint is visible at the top of the rapid, just about to drop sideways into a large hole which is visible just downstream of his raft in this picture. When he hit the hole he tumbled out of the raft. Ron swam the rest of Hance and took some serious blows to his legs and hand.

Just downstream of Hance was Sockdolager rapid, which means 'A heavy, finishing blow'. This rapid was named by the original Powell expedition in 1869 during their bold first descent of the Grand Canyon. Powell and his crew were novice boatmen in primitive wooden boats, and they suffered greatly portaging around rapids and had some epic carnage running others. When Powell and his crew arrived at Sockdolager, Powell wrote: "The sound grows louder and louder as we run, and at last we find ourselves above a long, broken fall, with ledges and pinnacles of rock obstructing the river... and the rushing waters break into great waves on the rocks, and lash themselves into a mad, white foam.."

Powells crew was forced to run the rapid due to the narrow canyon walls, though they would have portaged if they could. One of his crew, a bold ex-soldier named Sumner, wrote later: "We finally encountered a stretch that made my hair curl." Once below the rapid, Sumner, a veteran of the Civil War, described how it felt to run Sockdolager: "I have been in a calvary charge, charged the batteries, and stood by the guns to repel a charge, but never before did my sand run so low. In fact, it all ran out, but as I had to have some more grit, I borrowed it from the other boys.."

I ran down through this one first, then got out to take photos. Everyone had clean lines through Sock, though some were more exciting than others..

Mike Mcgahan and Jonathan Rawson punch a hole at the top of Sockdolager in the 18-foot kitchen raft.

A few miles below Sockdolager was Grapevine rapid, which was pretty uneventful as well, no worries. Below Grapevine the river canyon started to narrow down dramatically and the rock started to darken as we moved deeper into Adrenaline Alley.. I could feel the tension and excitement building in the group as we moved downstream between the ever-narrowing walls as the clouds continued to build overhead..

A monsoon hit us hard as we approached Phantom Ranch, complete with huge raindrops, chain lightning, and earth-shaking peals of thunder..

At mile 87.5 is Phantom Ranch, which is a bit of an eyesore but it is worth the taint of civilization because they have a new potable water pump about 200 feet from the river, which makes this an ideal stop to fill up water. A couple of the people in our group hiked up to the ranch to mail letters and buy souvenirs, but I didn't want to see buildings and people so I stayed down at the boats..

Our group, watering up at the new, lower watering point at Phantom ranch. The cliffs on both sides of the river are banded with red, marble-like rock, pretty amazing!

The walls start closing in as you approach the section with the biggest rapids on the trip, known as 'Adrenaline Alley'.

CARNAGE AT HORN CREEK
It was about 4 p.m. when we left Phantom, and we were a little worried about the time. The plan was to push down to a camp just above Granite rapid, which left only one more big drop, a rapid known as 'Horn Creek' which was rated an 8 on a scale of 1-10.

As usual the kayakers ranged well out in front, so when we arrived at the rapid well ahead of the raft crews. It was a little ominous when we got there, because the black walls had closed in and the rain was still coming down.. all of which set the stage for some serious carnage. We got out to scout on the right, and the drop looked big and powerful. Immediately I saw a thin, turbulent line starting middle and driving left to avoid the large holes in the middle and right side of the river (you couldn't start far left because of the holes guarding that side of the river).

Audrey and Lori picked the same line, and we decided to go while Ryan shot video. As the rafts rounded the corner upstream, we peeled out in the current and dropped in with me in the lead, then Lori, and Audrey trailing behind. Man, it was big and pushy in there, and I pulled like crazy to get over to the left, barely making it past the hole at the bottom of the river. Lori had a much better line, setting up at the top better and going with the flow. Audrey, on the other hand, got sucked down into the middle of the river and went into the hole, got pummeled, and swam. Lori and I recovered her gear in the pool below, no worries. Audrey is very tough, so she shrugged it off and got back in her boat to wait for the rafts.

At this point the raft crews were scouting the drop. I ferried across to river-right in order to get better photos, while Lori and Audrey waited in a river-left eddy to provide a safety net for the raft crews.

After a long look, Rolo and the rest of the raft captains settled on our line, starting middle and driving left to beat the hole. At this point, I was standing on a rock about midway through the rapid, and I had now taken a closer look at the powerful eddy on the right side, which posed a significant pin/wrap/swimmer hazard. I decided to get my rope in case of an incident, so I hiked back down and then got back in position by the time Rolo swung into view.

As Rolo dropped in, the sky opened up and it started HAILING. "What the.." I muttered as I started getting bombarded with white pellets and wind, it must have seemed even crazier to Rolo! Rolo dropped in and immediately got sucked down the middle, but he pulled like a champ and scampered past the hole at the bottom on the left!

Rolo pulls hard to punch the huge wave and avoid the bottom hole in Horn Creek Rapid while Lori and Audrey watch from an eddy across the river.

Next up was Ron, with Charlene riding in front. Ron had pretty much the same line as Rolo, at least until he hit the large guard wave halfway down the rapid. What happened next was totally unexpected, and when we reviewed the video later we marveled at how fast he was immediately surfed over to the right and pasted against the boulder in the 'room of doom' on the right!

"Oh shit, they're gonna wrap it!" I yelled and took off running downstream. I got there pretty quick and to this day I don't know how Ron kept the boat from getting wrapped, he was working the oars like the pro that he is, spinning and bouncing off of the rock and then around again while Charlene struggled to untangle the bow line.. I knew we had to get that boat tied off NOW because if the current loaded up a tube we were one flip away from a seriously life-threatening situation.

Ron hits the large, violent waves in Horn Creek rapid. Just after this photo was taken, he was surfed over to the right, ending up trapped in the 'room of doom' against the rock visible just downstream on river-right.

Finally, after one short throw and much yelling, chaos, and a couple of near-flips, Charlene got me the bow line and I threw a couple of loops around a boulder and cranked down hard, securing the raft on the inside of the surging, violent eddy. I got Charlene off first and told her to head downstream (not an easy task given the size of the boulders) and then Ron and I waited for everyone else to arrive.

I think Ryan had paddled the 18-foot kitchen raft through, because he showed up about the same time as Rolo, Jonathan, and Audrey.

Ron and Jonathan stabilize Ron's boat in the 'room of doom' eddy at the bottom of Horn Creek while the rest of the group gets the gear ready for the rescue.

Once the calvary (Rolo, Audrey, Lori, Jonathan) arrived with extra ropes, we decided to try and swing the raft out into the current and pop it loose downstream. It seemed like a 50/50 boat-wrap proposition, but better than any other immediately available option. Finally we got a line around the outside of the boulder, and heaved on it. The raft slowly eased along the boulder, but when it hit the edge of the current it the river instantly grabbed the upstream tube and flipped it on edge, pinning it firmly against the boulder. Everybody started yelling at once, ( especially Jonathan and Ron, whose gear was getting mangled ) and after a couple of back-breaking hauls we managed to pop the raft loose and return it to it's original spot.

"Well.." I gasped, straining to hold the rope tight, "THAT didn't work... what now??"

"I'm going to row it out." Ryan said.

Everyone stopped for a moment when he said it, not quite believing what we had heard.

Was he serious??

After some discussion, we decided that if we hauled it into the top of the next higher eddy, it just might work. Everyone was very nervous about putting Ryan in the raft ( except Ryan, who acted it was no big deal ) but we got to work.

It was pretty difficult getting the raft into the next eddy up, because there was a boulder separating the eddies. After some more back-breaking hauling we managed to attain the raft back upstream, and we got set. Ryan and I climbed into the raft and removed whatever gear we could to lighten the load, and then Ryan got into the raft by himself while we held him steady with ropes.

"Be careful, Ryan." Somebody said, their voice nearly drowned out by the tremendous roar of the water.

And then, time stood still as Ryan seized the oars and got ready to match wits with Horn Creek in a big way..

The eddy was surging and difficult to maneuver in, and for a few agonizing moments he spun and surged, trying to get purchase with both oars. Finally he let the boat drift slightly downstream, and (everyone held their breath!) He stood up on the raft and pulled like a hero out into the current that was screaming by, and before I could react he blew by me ( I had stationed myself on the wrap rock with a rope ) and was spinning crazily away in the pool below, the roar of the river briefly overcome by the yells of relief and joy from our team.. HELL YEAH!!!!

Ryan gets ready to attempt to row Ron's raft out of the 'room of doom' in Horn Creek Rapid. A dangerous pin seemed like a very real possibility at this point, and everybody was pretty stressed out, except Ryan..

Ryan peels out into the current, pulling hard to avoid the pin rock downstream..

He MAKES IT!! Just barely! This was soooo sketchy, five feet to the right and the raft would have been pinned again on the boulder..

Downstream we regrouped while Ryan hiked back upstream to get his kayak so he could run the rapid ( Ryan actually ran Horn three times: First, rowing the 18-foot kitchen boat, second rowing Ron's boat, and third in his Kayak..) Not surprisingly, he ran right down the middle where he was swallowed up by the hole, and emerging upside down in the surging eddylines below..

I found out later that Bill had hit the bottom hole in Horn as well and had gotten knocked out of his raft as well, so we had one raft swim, one kayaker swim, and one raft entrapment at Horn Creek.. Welcome to Adrenaline Alley!!

That night we camped about a mile upstream of Granite, which is the first of 'The Big Three' in Adrenaline Alley.. Granite, Hermit, and Crystal.. I tried to work on my river journal but was swept off to sleep much too early..


DAY 8: ADRENALINE ALLEY, PART 2
Granite, Hermit, Crystal, Turquoise, Ruby, Serpentine rapids
Granite Rapid to Across from Ross Wheeler Camp, 15.5 miles

<< BACK TO THE TOP

The next day we got up bright and early and gulped down breakfast, everyone was pumped up and ready to go. Just about the time the rafts were packed we were overtaken by the Telluride group, who swept by with cries of 'CALIENTEEEE!!!'.

I jumped into my kayak and took off downstream after them so I could watch them run Granite. When I arrived, the kayakers in the group were peeling out to run the drop. All of them had clean lines, and then their rafts careened down the right side, whooping and hollering!

At Granite Rapid, the river drops through a series of large, powerful holes in the middle of the river. The line is a wild ride down the right-center, driving through the large diagonals coming off the right wall and avoiding the huge hole that the diagonals feed into at the bottom. The trick here is that you can't go against the right wall, because there are powerful, boiling eddies against the wall that could easily trap a paddler with no way to set safety.

Soon our group arrived and scouted while I described the clean lines of the previous group. Ryan and Lori went first while I shot photos, and then the raft crews followed up with very clean lines, everyone looking strong and smooth after a good night's sleep!

Ron Klint ( rowing ) and Jonathan Rawson ( riding ) enter Granite Rapid in Adrenaline Alley.
Only about a third of the rapid is visible in this photo, there is more like this downstream.

Next up was Hermit, a rapid described as 'The best wave train in the world..'

Everyone was getting really pumped now after having clean runs through Granite. "Hermit is the most fun I have ever had in a kayak." Ryan said, grinning as we headed downstream. "You're gonna love it!!"

We got to Hermit and got out to scout, and it looked like nothing but a good time, a BIG wave train, right down the middle. The rafters went first, and had great lines. Ryan, Lori, and Audrey went next and also had no problems while I shot photos. I went last, and it was fun-fun-fun!! Hermit was my first combat roll on the Grand Canyon, a large wave at the bottom broke on me and swallowed me up, flipping me end-over-end, too much fun!!

The rafts continued downstream while Ryan and Lori hiked up to run it again, in retrospect I wish I had done the same thing. How many chances will you get to run Hermit???

Ron Klint ( rowing ) and Jonathan Rawson ( riding ) enter Hermit Rapid in Adrenaline Alley.

We decided to each lunch just above Crystal. I was very excited to see this famous rapid, so when we stopped at Crystal camp I continued to the downstream side of the eddy and took off downstream to see the rapid.

Like many Grand Canyon rapids, Crystal is much harder for heavily loaded rafts than for kayaks. The rapid is formed by tons of flood-deposited boulders fanning out from the mouth of Crystal Creek. The river swings around a gradual corner to the left and swings back to the right, dropping through a series of big holes in the middle and left hand side (where all of the current is going). Below this first drop, the river divides around a rocky island and continues over a second set of rapids on either side of the river.

At the end of the description for Crystal, the guidebook warns: "A moment of indecision at the bottom of the first drop can result in many hours on the rocky island trying to free a raft.."

I immediately saw a relatively straightforward line down the middle-right, avoiding the two large holes in the middle of the river. After lunch, Lori, Audrey and myself led off, running down middle-to-right and avoiding the holes. Ryan came down after a bit and had no problems either. At this point, we decided that Lori and Audrey would position themselves downstream just above the island, while Ryan and I would shoot photos and video at the rapid.

Rolo led off, followed by Ron, Gerry, Mike, and Bill. Everyone had very clean lines, and I thought everything was ok until I heard whistling downstream. I scrambled up onto a large boulder, and there was mike, stuck on the boulder bar below Crystal.

"Mike's stuck on the rocks!!" I yelled to Ryan and we jumped in our boats and headed downstream. When I arrived at the boat, the girls and Ryan had managed to catch an eddy in the middle of the river formed by the boulders that had broached Mike's 18 footer. I hopped into the same eddy, and after a few fruitless attempts to get Mike and Charlene to highside, Ryan jumped out of his kayak and climbed into the raft, hauling his kayak in after him.

Ryan hopped back out of the raft onto a boulder and managed to rock the boat, and after straining mightily he shoved the raft out into the current. Of course, his kayak fell off immediately when the raft took off, so Lori and I gave chase down through the rapid while upstream the raft got hung up again on another boulder, only to be freed again after some more rocking..

Bill Ritchie ( rowing ) and Penny Ritchie ( riding ) power through a hole at the top of Crystal rapid

After we got reorganized, we cruised downstream through the 'gems', a series of rapids named for the nearby creeks, including Turquoise, Ruby, Serpentine, and Emerald rapids. Everyone was feeling great and paddling well, it was a great way to finish up one of our best days (whitewater-wise) on the river.

Bill Ritchie ( rowing ) and Penny Ritchie ( riding ) slip past a huge hole in Ruby rapid

DAY 9: Across from Ross Wheeler Camp to Blacktail Canyon: 12.5 river miles
Shimuno Creek Falls hike, Walthenburg Rapid, Elves Chasm hike

<< BACK TO THE TOP
The day next dawned sunny and hot as usual, but we now have the raft loading down to a science so we are on the river in record time. Immediately downstream of our camp we stop at Shinumo creek and hike 100 yards up to the first short falls, where everyone takes a turn getting a 'waterfall massage'.. I wish briefly that there was more water so we could paddle this little creek, but that is not to be..

The kayakers get a nice massage from the falls on Shinumo Creek. From the left: Ryan Windsor, Audrey Tollefson, Me, Lori Hoffman
The only major drop of the day is Walthenberg rapid, rated 6 on a scale of 1-10. When we arrive at this drop I am out in front and I boat-scout the rapid, getting surprised by a hole at the bottom. I claw through the hole, arriving at a large, circulating eddy on the bottom-left side. As usual, I hiked back upstream with my camera and waited for the others.

At Walthenberg, ( as in so many other Grand Canyon rapids ) the river swings around a corner, and there are some large hydraulics ( a huge hole at the top ) where all of the water is going. Everyone else arrived and scouted the rapid, and Ryan went first, running down the middle with the flow and punching the beefy hole, shooting out in a huge stern squirt downstream!

Ryan Windsor takes the 'hero line' through Walthenberg rapid, punching though the huge hole in the middle of the river.. Only Ryan took this line, the rafts avoided the hole down the right side..

Ryan was the only one to take this line, however. The raft crews were worried about flipping, so they drove hard to the right side, punching through the smaller hydraulics over there with ease. Lori and Audrey had no problems as well, and we continued downstream.

Just around the corner (or perhaps the next one..) was another top-rated hike, known as 'Elves Chasm'. When we arrived at this wonderful little crack in the wall there was a large commercial J-Rig parked in the eddy, but we managed to find space on the downstream side. The hike up into the Chasm was pretty cool, and it ended with a large, boulder-choked falls. Most of the group swam across the deep pool at the base of the falls and then jumped in from the first tier of the falls, which was very fun!

Lori Hoffman, Audrey Tollefson and Jonathan Rawson check out the boulder-choked falls in Elves Chasm while Ron Klint swims across the pool to climb up behind the falls.

We had heard that it was possible to work your way up around the first falls via a devious route on the creek-left wall. Jonathan and I climbed up to the first ledge, but only he continued along the wall, eventually getting stymied when the traverse pinched off about a hundred feet further along. ( Ordinarily I think both of us would have completed the climb, but we didn't want to risk falling and wrecking the trip for the group.)

Below Elves Chasm we drifted lazily downstream, bathing in the beauty of the canyon. At this point we were totally immersed in the river, the canyon, and the place. We seemed to be a part of the river, inseparable, as it bore us ever downward on it's mighty back..

We camped at Blacktail Canyon, which turned out to be one of the coolest hikes of the trip. We arrived as the sun was starting to go down, and after setting up camp Rolo, Kristin and I headed up into the canyon. The hike was short (maybe .2 of a mile ) but enchanting, the rock walls undulating away up to the sky, the pebble-strewn creekbed, and the water seeping from the walls.. As we walked upstream a small but determined bat careened crazily around in circles overhead, searching for dinner as the last of the light faded away.

At the end of the canyon (at least for us) we discovered that the creek actually had a tiny trickle of water in it that appeared and disappeared in the white gravel underfoot, while on either side the water seeped from the walls, sliding down the rock faces into the gravel. It was breathtakingly beautiful..

That night, Jonathan set up his bedroll at the mouth of the canyon on one of the ledges and some of the group hauled their drums up and played the night away, the sound rolling down and blending with the river's ancient rhythms as I drifted off to sleep..

Rolo and Kristin hike up into Blacktail Canyon as evening falls. This was one of my favorite hikes of the whole trip, second only to Havasu and Matkatamiba downstream.
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