River Chronicles #4

Well I gotta say....I had more fun on this trip then I've had in awhile. It was over the fourth of july and it was really cool to be in the canyon with people from all over the country. We didn't even miss the fireworks. The day was great and I don't think anyone really missed all the noise and smoke that usually comes with the holiday. Nate Haldeman even said, "The stars that night were our fireworks."
     Everyone was great and with a younger crowd I was able to make some good friends. The trip was like almost any other but I was with my dad. It was nice being with him although I realize in my old age I'm just as hard headed and stubborn as he is. We usually got past our differences with little issue though and the trip went on. A few highlights were great scenery, lots of rain, good crew, and 28 really great passengers. If any of them read this, thanks for the great trip! You all made it awesome! Come see us again!
The major highlight for the trip was the massive rain storm that hit us on our fourth day. We had just finished a stop at Havasu and the clouds began to close. We motored for a while and the clouds slowly began to look a little more threatening. I thought, "I'll just get my coat out just in case it rains." I got out my rain coat and no sooner had I put it on a massive gust of wind came up the river and smacked us down. Then came the rain! It began to pour and with the major gusts of wind the drops stung if they hit your bare skin. We pulled over to the side of the river and waited for a bit to let the storm pass. After a while, the rain mellowed and the wind calmed. We went down river only to find waterfalls coming out of every drainage and off of almost every cliff. We passed two canyons that were gushing mud and water out into the river. The spray that came from the massive waterfalls spread all the way across the river. The air smelled like mud and silt. It was an incredible sight to see, and I believe that everyone knew they were getting to see something special. We ran lava falls and came through clean and safe and had a great last night together. The trip ended up without any issue and afterward Nate and I went on to Cataract Canyon to run our next, hopefully just as successful trip!