River a Mile Deep

Travel Stories: Michael Shapiro rafts down the Colorado in the wake of Captain John Wesley Powell

Even rainy days are magnificent in the Grand Canyon. (Photo: Michael Shapiro)

Every day my sense of wonder grows, I write in my journal, as the walls around me start to glow deep red in the dawn light. I appreciate the perfect balance of water, desert, cliff and sky, and find myself agreeing with desert gnostic Edward Abbey, who wrote: “There is no shortage of water in the desert but exactly the right amount, a perfect ratio of water to rock, of water to sand, insuring that wide, free, open, generous spacing among plants and animals, homes and towns and cities, which makes the arid west so different from any other part of the nation. There is no lack of water here, unless you try to establish a city were no city should be.”

We take a day off from paddling and layover at Nankoweap, the first place we’ll camp for two nights. High above us native peoples built granaries to store their grain. I hike a few hundred feet above the river to explore what appear to be windows in the Canyon walls. I sit alone among the spirits and feel gratitude for this trip, the bounty in my life, and the iconic vista that captures a stately bend in the river and the sheer walls—ranging from green to orange to red—that frame the waterway as it turns to the right and disappears from view.

The iconic Canyon image: the view from the Nankoweap, near where the Native Americans kept granaries. (Photo: Michael Shapiro)

With limited rations, “an unknown distance yet to run” and “an unknown river yet to explore,” the mood of Powell’s party turned serious at the confluence with the Little Colorado. For us, the Little Colorado is another gorgeous canyon to explore. The sky-blue river is brightened by chalky mineral deposits which have ever so slowly created tiny (a foot or two high) travertine falls, little steps in the river over which the shiny water fans. I sit mesmerized by the sounds of dozens of these falls and their gentle music accompanied by the singing of canyon wrens.

Back on the water, upstream gales hit us full force. The strength we’ve built during a week of rowing helps, but despite paddling hard we still gain only 1 mile per hour compared to our average speed of 4 or 5 mph. At camp we play bocce among the stones, thickets and sand. We make s’mores. Kristin’s boyfriend, Jason, who’s so pretty I call him “Boy Band,” tells a story and gestures so excitedly that a flaming marshmallow vaults off his stick and lands on my leg. The burn is mild and easily remedied with cool water.

As we break camp on a cold rainy morning, I put on my Neoprene hood for the first time. It makes me look like a dorky aviator from the 1930s. I can’t picture Powell or his rugged men in one of these, but I gladly put vanity aside for warmth, adding my fleece top, nylon splash jacket and Neoprene booties.

Pulling hard, Anne Peick rows against the wind. (Photo: Michael Shapiro)

After 10 days I feel in tune with the cadences of the Canyon, but our isolation is interrupted by a stop at Phantom Ranch near the bottom of the Bright Angel Trail. A popular lodge and campsite for those hiking deep into the Canyon, it’s where we bid farewell to three members of our party, who hike out to return to commitments above the rim.

Though I’m tempted to eschew Phantom Ranch’s conveniences, I go to its pay phone to tell my girlfriend, mother and brother that I’m safe and having the time of my life. Also, it’s my birthday and I want to hear the voices of loved ones. It feels strange to pull out a credit card and money. When an operator asks for my zip code to authorize the card, I can barely remember it. I reach my mother and she recounts the story she tells me every year: how at my first Thanksgiving, when I was a week old, I was placed on the table as the centerpiece and the turkey was bigger than me.

On the way back to the boats I catch the eye of a mule deer, a young buck who lets me get within a few feet of him. I meet a couple of tourists from South Korea, who are astounded that we’re in the midst of a 24-day voyage. The young woman touches my shoulder in farewell; it seems that a part of them wants to connect to our journey. We refill our water jugs and get back on the river.

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19 Comments for River a Mile Deep

Sean 05.02.12 | 7:11 PM ET

Epic Michael.  Thanks for sharing this journey in this format.  I’m going to go find Powell’s notes now.  Cheers to you and hope all is well.

Mark Halbert 05.07.12 | 7:51 AM ET

This looks like a great adventure——are there many tour operators who take people down the Colorado River and Its Canyons ?

ecothreesixty (Barnes) 05.07.12 | 9:59 AM ET

Sounds like the trip of lifetime.  Also like the mixture of old friends and total strangers.  It can be really nice to meet and make new friendships with old friends around. 

The pictures of you as Lilliputians at the Redwall Cavern is impressive and the pictures I could find online of Glen Canyon prior to the damn look absolutely stunning. 

Hugely envious.

Michael Shapiro 05.08.12 | 3:34 AM ET

Mark: yes, there are many tour operators on the Canyon. You want to go with those who use human-powered boats, not motorboats. Trips typically 7 to 18 days - go for the full trip if you have the time and money. The shorter trips are just segments.

Also thanks to Tom McKinnon, who gave us permission to use that killer Lava Falls shot (on p6 of this story). That images shows better than my pictures how ferocious Lava is. Tom asks that we dedicate that photo as follows: “In memory of Greg J. Coln, 1956-2009.” Coln was the owner of Mountain Man Rafting in Creede, Colorado, and his wife and grandson still run that business, McKinnon told me via email. Coln died of natural causes, not on a river.

Trip to India 05.08.12 | 6:07 AM ET

Oh boy, I have been dreaming about rafting since I was a kid. Unfortunately, I could only get to raft on quite slow, boring rivers… seems like you had so much fun there. Excellent photos mate! Made me kind of envious, the place was perfect! My favorite picture was the canyon’s sculpted walls. Cool site!

Cheers
http://www.atriptoindia.com/

Laura Read 05.08.12 | 11:11 AM ET

Nice story, Michael! My parents did the trip back in the ‘70s. I’ve never forgotten their stories of adventure and beauty, but still haven’t rafted the Colorado, myself.

Laura Read 05.08.12 | 11:13 AM ET

Nice story, Michael! My parents did the trip in the 1970s. I’ve never forgotten their stories of adventure and beauty.

Nicholas Marks 05.12.12 | 7:40 PM ET

Sounds like an incredible adventure. The water looks very calm, must be fit to do it, can’t just float with the current.

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