Inaugural canoe run

Today (Sunday) John and I took our canoe out for its inaugural float. This canoe was a wedding present from some of our dear friends and we were really excited to finally get it out on the river! We have had alot of rain recently and the river is higher than it normally is. The daily discharge of the river today was 20,300 cubic feet per second (cfs)!! The normal discharge for the river this time of year is around 12,600 cfs. The low flow was in 1977 when it was at 1240 cfs, with the high flow in 1957 at 50,800 cfs!!!! [data from here]! So, needless to say, I was a bit nervous to go out on the river, due to the fact that it is still very high. We decided to just float the short stretch between Grand Junction and Fruita (around 12 miles?), which took us about 2 hours (if that). We had never floated this stretch before, but checked it out on satellite pictures to make sure there were not drop offs or other hazards.

It was a great float. we had a good time and did not have to paddle very hard, as the river was flowing pretty fast. We saw several stranded inter-tubes. Every year we see news stories about people who took cheap wal-mart-esq inter-tubes out on the river and (usually drank to much beer) flipped it/wrapped it around a tree/bridge/and generally drown. This is the Colorado River, not the little stream running though your pasture or the lazy river at your favorite water park. People die on this river. Its not a place to take some cheap piece of crap and float down stream, especially when the river is high.

Anyway...We also saw a deer, lots of cliff swallows, and even a whole flock of Herons nesting in some dead cottonwood trees. It was really cool as neither of us had ever seen how they nest before and we were surprised to see so many nest so close together (we counted 19 birds that we could see in the trees, not counting the ones in the nest and ones that may have been on the ground). Things made John and I wonder if pterosaurs would have had similar nesting behaviours and thought it would be cool to see some art based on it.

It was a really nice day - warm, but not hot, not to many bugs, a nice breeze. We picked up the typical 2pm warm breeze that blows up the river every day it seems, but the river was moving fast enough that it was not an issue (usually you have to paddle hard against it to get down river). Everything was going great - till we went to take out.

Since my car is still broken down we did not leave it a the take out like we normally would (and we would have normally checked out the spot also). It is a spot we have been to many times so we did not think much of it. We knew the water was flowing fast and that we would need to get close to the bank and turn in fast to the spot or we would miss it and have to take out at the next spot. We got to the spot, I paddled hard towards the area as John went to steer us in, and, with the water moving as fast as it was, we missed it (but only by a foot or two). We went in sideways and got swept under the branches of some tamarisk trees (the most annoying trees that grow along the river - a mature tree can use 200 gallons per day!!). Lucky for us the water was low enough that we did not get trapped under the branches. Unlucky for us the branches were at the right height to tip the canoe over. If the water had been lower/slower it probably would not have been such an issue.

Disaster ensues.

The next thing I know I am in the water. Picture this - a mildly hydrophobic girl hanging from the branch of a tamarisk, (lower half of her body still in the river) while she sees her husband being swept downstream with a nearly submerged canoe (near a bridge with large concrete pilings that look forward to crushing trees, canoes, whatever gets in the way). I could not hold onto the paddle so I had to shout out to John that the paddle was coming his way, and then he was gone. I could not see him any more.

I am beginning to panic! About John. About being in the water. About not being able to touch the bottom. I have three options: 1) let go and hope that I can catch the next branch that is closer to the bank and pull myself in, 2) holding onto the branch I am currently dangling from and pull myself to the bank, or 3) let go and float downstream to wherever John has gone.

Not sure what you would have done, but I go with #2. Why? It was a sturdy branch, my arms were not tired, and I wanted to get the hell out of that water. John is better swimmer than I and was practically born in the ocean, so deep down I knew he would be ok (not that I was still not totally panicked about him). I, on the other had, am not a world class swimmer, so I go to shore. I walked hand over hand on the limb until I could feel ground under my feet and I pulled myself to the bank.

I immediately head down the trail next to the river looking for John and shouting out to him. I could not see him or hear him and I was beginning to panic! I was nearly running though the tamarisk (which makes it hard to see what is going on near the bank edge). I finally hear John, much to my relief, and make my way over to him. He is alright, quite scratched up, but ok. He was upset because he lost his hat and the paddles, but he knew that if he had to choose the paddles or the canoe, the canoe would be #1. I am really glad to see he is ok, and a little disturbed to see the area where he has come to rest is right near some relatively fresh looking bear scat. I really did not need that extra factor at that moment (not that John knew it was there). John said he was happy that I did not float down stream. He knows my non-love of water, and my swimming ability, and he knew if he saw me float by he would have to go after me and ditch the canoe. I am glad I was able to pull myself out of the river so he did not have to worry about me too!

John decides to wade upstream to see if he could see the paddles or if there would be a way to pull the canoe back up stream to the take out. We call out to a few passing rafters to see if they saw the paddles, but most are indifferent. One group ask us if we were ok (which we were) so they went on, and another couple in a kayak said they would look for them. One jerk said "we have ours." I felt like saying "Thanks asshat. We can see that."

John triumphantly comes back to the canoe (which is currently in mosquito heaven at this point, and I am their buffet) with BOTH paddles! Sweet! John decides it is best to take the canoe out where we found a break in the tamarisk and I wait while he goes to get the truck.

I am really happy that this day turned out ok. It could have been much worse! I am thankful for the new life vest my sister-in-law bought us - they work well. I am thankful that we got away from all of this with only a few scrapes, bruises, and one lost hat. The canoe came away with no damage, other than a few gouges, but none the worse for wear.

If anything I think it has made John and I want to be more careful and make sure we know what to do if these things happen. We know we made mistakes: we did not check the take out, we did not take the canoe on flat calm water for the first run, we went down the river when it was high. But we know we did some things right: we know how to use a canoe to start off with, we know what to do if you do fall out of the canoe in fast moving water, we know not to panic (even if every neuron in your body is screaming at you to get out of the water or to stay in the boat).

The best thing about the day is that John and I had a great first float, we never fought once about things (but we never fight to start off with), and we came away with a good appreciation for each other (not that it is new).