From the Rim to The River

Five months ago, we got the phone call. A friend of ours, Hutch, dialed us up and said the words we had been waiting to hear for years. We got a permit to raft the Grand Canyon. Jeremiah said something along the lines of "Oh my gosh that's so exciting! We need to sleep on it but..." and I interrupted with "WHAT!? Jeremiah we are not sleeping on it. We are going!" This had been my dream for years. This coveted permit is one we had been applying for for years and one that many people never get. 21 days to raft 280+ miles of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. This phone call lead to a whirlwind of prepping, buying gear, researching and planning for the trip of a lifetime.

We started our trip by visiting the Southern rim of the Grand Canyon so we could gaze down into the vast expanse below and find the tiny sliver of the Colorado River. As I gazed down on the river, my stomach was in knots. Nervousness of the unknown plagued me. How would this trip go? Would we flip? How would I handle the elements? Could we really paddle 280 miles? On a private Colorado paddling trip, there are no guides to help you. We had to rely on our own resourcefulness and on our group. Our group of 14 people consisted of 8 very experienced white water boaters and nearly all of us had lots of white water trips under our belts before attempting this trip. Each boat had at least one very experienced rower for the big rapids and two support rowers for anything in between.

We went from being on the rim one day, to being at the very bottom the next. Day Zero, our rigging day was long, brutally hot, and full of nerves. We outfitted our adventure with a group called Ceiba and they provided the rafts, kitchen, groovers, and food for our expedition. At Lee's Ferry, we followed the instructions of our outfitter to get all of our rafts full of all the gear we needed. They warned us of the dangers to come and informed us that most deaths on the Grand do not happen while rafting, but during the time in camp or on side hikes. We launched on July 5th and the biggest concern was the heat. We needed to be vigilant in hydrating, jumping in the river, and adding electrolytes to our water to avoid hyponatremia (a condition arising from a lack of salts from sweating too much). 

In the days to come, the heat was often oppressive with daily highs reaching 120 degrees. Our saving grace was the river. The water temps were so cold that Jeremiah and I could stand in it until we shivered before crawling onto our cots at night in order to be comfortable. There were nights that didn’t get below 90 degrees. We kept a bucket of water next to us while we slept so we could wet the sheets that we slept under to stay cool. Despite the discomfort, this adventure is one I will never forget. 

We launched in the early afternoon on Day 1 and the mood was electric as the group hit the water. It was the moment we had been leading up to for months! We were here. We were starting!!! 

The early days on the river were days of adjustment. Days of goggling at the thousand foot canyon walls towering above us. Days of re-learning how to row. Don’t get me wrong, we had rowed rafts before… but the Colorado is like no other river. With eddies so strong that they will rip you from the main current and send you around the merry-go-round of water until you manage to fight your way back into the current. With waves so big you feel as though they will swallow you and your 18ft raft. Just thinking about it makes my heart race with adrenaline. I can say that the Erin on Day 1 had no idea what she was about to get into. And I can say proudly that I was my best self in every hard situation. I pulled out courage and resiliency that I didn’t even know I had to get through the tough moments. More photos and stories to come…

Rigging Company Link: https://www.ceibaadventures.com/parts-pieces-rentals 

Grand Canyon Permits: https://grcariverpermits.nps.gov/index.cfm 

***You need boaters with serious whitewater experience to do this trip privately. You can do this trip commercially with zero experience. There are several great commercial companies to choose from. Do not attempt this trip without experienced whitewater boaters or it will be extremely dangerous and life threatening.***

Rigging Day at Ceiba

The First Group Photo: (Top Left to Bottom Right) Erin, Jeremiah, Jack, Renee, Kayleigh, Blaine, Emily, Jordan, Hutch, Lexi, Ryan, Sara, Anne, and Luke

Hutch making his dream come true

The rafts anchored for the night

Jeremiah and I, sporting our Tutus - Tutu Power!