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Day Nine, from Mile 166.5 to 194 Mile Canyon. I was with Jeff Sloss in "Hidden Passage." I rowed Gateway Rapid (3) to Vulcan's Anvil at Mile 178. The day's highlight was running Lava Falls Rapid (10) at Mile 179.5. Each of our boatmen except Jeff threw a quarter onto the anvil before running Lava Falls. I was plenty nervous in the boat, but the run went beautifully for all of our boats. Georgie White's baloney boat went through before us. We were followed by several private rafts, one of which flipped and went upside-down through Lava Falls and Lower Lava (5) rapids. After lunch at Mile 181 where I took a picture of Georgie White and Kenton Grua, two of the river's icons, I rowed the supply raft halfway to camp at Mile 194 where we played volleyball, tossed horseshoes and had a party. Steak, beans, and salad for dinner. |
"Lava has a strong claim to being the most difficult stretch of runnable whitewater in the West. . . . . There is no way to cheat Lava Falls. Right entry, the slot or the left side, you end up in the soup, the deep yogurt, fighting chaotic fifteen-foot waves as if your life depended on it - which it just may." Rod Nash, in "The Big Drops," 1989 |