bumpy but beautiful

River Trip (Day 4)

The day started out clear enough, but a bit chilly. Cold, actually. And then it turned downright dreary by the time we neared the "big" rapid. Drops started falling. Again. We pulled the boats up and scouted what lie ahead. There weren't as many enormous rocks showing as there were last time we ran it, but the holes they made now were nothing to sneeze at. Everyone but the littlest ran the rapid. Everyone got a bit wet, but no one swam. We continued downriver until the second to littlest was shivering so badly that we had to stop, dry him off and warm him up before he shivered to death. Once he felt better, we continued on to our assigned camping spot for the night. Just as we did, the sun begun to tease us by peeking through the clouds occasionally. We became like the lizards, sitting on the sunny rocks to try to warm ourselves. And when the canyon walls cast a shadow on our entire campsite, we started up the gulch in search of more sun. We chased the sun, all the while exploring the pools and beautiful rocks. The dreary weather had kept us from the plunge pools that had been my favorite part of the previous trip. But this hike, the quiet, the sun, almost made up for that. As we watched the sun set behind the giant rock, I smiled to myself. Perfect. The day may have started rough, but it ended beautifully. As the light withdrew completely from the canyon on our last night, we enjoyed my camping specialty, fajitas, and another's apple cobbler. Washing it down with a few beers, as we were determined to not pack any out with us. Another amazing day on the river, despite the bumps. ****** You can see larger versions of the images by clicking on them.