YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/gOZDYDI7tzw
“For us, there is only the trying. The rest is not our business. ― T.S. Eliot
Over the coming days I’m posting excerpts from the journal I kept during our recent Team River Runner Grand Canyon kayaking trip. I was honored to be chosen as one of the safety boaters to help guide five blind military veterans on this amazing 12-day, 226-mile journey.
Friday, August 31, 2018
I’m sitting at the gate at the Green Bay airport waiting for my flight to Chicago then on to Phoenix and Flagstaff. I was awake at 2:30 a.m., thinking about additional things I may need for the trip. Then up for good at 6:30. I kissed Mary good-bye before she left for her morning run.
Have I forgotten to pack anything? Did I pack too much? Dave Robey advised to bring my own paddle, life jacket, spray skirt and helmet, so I have to use our largest suitcase.
I drive to brother-in-law Dale’s house near the airport and he drops me off so I don’t have to pay airport parking for the next two weeks. At check-in, my suitcase weighs 59 pounds. So a little redistribution – putting things into my paddle bag: cot, poncho and other stuff. Next weigh-in: 53.5 pounds, so a few more transfers – binoculars and other stuff. Next weigh-in: 51.5 pounds. The agents feel sorry for me and say “close enough” to 50.
My flights go as scheduled and I meet up with some of the TRR team at the Phoenix airport, where we wait together for the final leg to Flagstaff. Joe Mornini from TRR National, Jeff and Bill from the TRR chapter in Johnson City, TN, and Rachel from Nevada.
After arriving at the hotel in Flagstaff, we learn that the flight for TRR members from Boise to Phoenix was cancelled, so they have to catch a late flight to Phoenix but they will miss their connection to Flagstaff. A few phone calls later, and a local TRR volunteer – not part of the trip – picks them up in a rented van and drove them to Flagstaff. They arrive sometime after midnight but at least they make it in time for the bus ride to the put-in the next morning.
In Flagstaff that evening, we also learn that Brian Harris, one of the blind vets from Chicago, was scheduled to ride a bus from Gary, IN to Indianapolis so he could travel with Lonnie Bedwell. However, the bus station agent tells him his smartphone ticket doesn’t work and he needs to provide a printed ticket. The agent sends Brian to a public library several blocks away to print his ticket. Oh, and besides being blind, Brian has only one leg. By the time he gets back from the library with his printed bus ticket, Brian’s bus has left and he has to wait for another. As he waits, a panhandler approaches him and asks for a handout. Brian pulls out some cash. The son-of-a-bitch panhandler grabs it all and takes off running! Unbelievable. Just unbelievable.
At 7 p.m. AZRA (the company that will outfit our trip and support us by transporting our food and gear on two motorized rafts) holds an orientation for us at the hotel. There we are given two large dry bags for our personal gear, a burlap bag for beverages we want to keep cool, and an aluminum AZRA mug for the trip. We each also receive a book “The Colorado River in Grand Canyon” by Larry Stevens, which includes detailed map pages of the river, the rapids and other helpful information. 
Following the orientation meeting, TRR executive director Joe Mornini and I make a beer run for ourselves and other members of the group including the Boise crew who are still on their way to Flagstaff. Joe and I are chauffeured by local Flagstaff resident Lee, who volunteers to take us wherever we need to go that evening. He isn’t part of our group but he learns about us from his wife, Kendra, who just happened to be seated next to Joe during our flight from Phoenix to Flagstaff. An amazing, generous thing for Lee to do!
I am up until midnight sorting my clothing and gear, deciding what to leave behind in the hotel and packing the remainder into the two dry bags supplied by AZRA. My roommate, Russell, does the same.
Saturday, September 1
We launch on the river from Lees Ferry around noon today after our three-hour bus ride from the hotel. My “pod” consists of blind vet Steve Baskis, his primary guide Eric Carlson, safety boater “Big Mike” Plourde, and me. We are one of five kayaking pods on this trip. Add in our trip leader Steven Mace, AZRA raft crew, volunteers, and the photo/video crew and we are 32 adventurous people.
We paddle 12.5 miles today and experience our first taste of big Colorado River rapids – Badger Creek and Soap Creek. I roll at Badger but am able to roll up quickly. Steve has a swim at Badger. He isn’t happy about it but his spirits pick up after his great run through Soap Creek. It’s such a great feeling of teamwork when we attack these big rapids and come out smiling at the bottom. Water temperature is 54⁰F at the put-in and 57⁰F where we camp tonight. The water level varies from about 7,000 to 10,000 CFS each day depending on the size of the release from the Glen Canyon Dam.
YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/Zjo5R1CNb50
We stop at a sandy beach about 5 p.m. for our first night of camp. Here, trip leader Steve Mace gives our final orientation – how the kitchen operates and protocol for using the “groover” which is the Grand Canyon nickname for the two portable outdoor toilets transported on the rafts. The term “groover” dates back to earlier times when GC river toilets were simply army surplus ammo cans that left an imprint on the user. Today’s groover as supplied by AZRA includes a comfortable toilet seat. Not exactly plush but a memorable part of the total Grand Canyon experience.
I pitch my tent up on the hillside. Even though it’s cozy inside, I’m always restless first night of camping, and especially so tonight. Some of our TRR group are sleeping under the stars. Before calling it a day, I sit outside and talk with Travis, Bill and others. I’m one of the last to turn in tonight and it’s not even 9 p.m. We have a camp full of tired paddlers. So happy to be here!
Sunday, September 2
A long day on the river. We launch from mile 12.5 and paddle 32.5 miles to mile 45. Only seven of us paddle the entire distance today. Other kayakers put their boats on the rafts once we left Redwall Cavern at mile 33. Our big rapids today are House Rock (I capsized but rolled up, as did Steve) and Mile 24 Rapid. Our meals have been excellent! Dinner tonight is tacos – hot tortillas with chicken, rice, beans and cheese. Bill Finger and Jeff Vannoy each tell their versions of their swims. Pretty funny. They have everyone laughing. Then they both drink bootie beers.
This campsite is beautiful. Tonight I have a level site for my tent so I hope to sleep better. The “band” is still playing, led by Timmy O’Neill. A few minutes ago we formed a conga line and marched to serenade Joe who had already racked out and was reading a book on his paco pad. Timmy grabbed Joe’s book (A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold) and handed it to me to read aloud as the band played on. Hilarious.
Monday, September 3, Labor Day
Another great day! Breakfast was French toast with raspberries, cantaloupe, bacon and yogurt.
Our morning paddle is mostly flat water and we are a little behind schedule, so Mace asks all kayakers to ride a raft to make up some time. Rachel and I ask if we can paddle instead of ride, and Mace agrees. The two of us launch at 7:15 a.m. It’s a nice morning paddle, giving us a chance to chat and get to know each other. We talk about what’s going on in our lives, and relationships past and present. The quiet of flatwater in the Grand Canyon offers time to listen. To think. And to take in the majesty of this place.
There are a couple of fun medium-size rapids along this stretch. Mace soon catches up with us and the three of us kayak the nine miles or so from last night’s campsite to the hiking trail at mile 53 called the Nankoweap Granaries, arriving there by 8:45 a.m., about 15 minutes ahead of the rafts.
The Puebloean granaries are basically holes built into the canyon wall that once provided food storage for The Anasazi people, who lived and farmed in the Grand Canyon from roughly 800 A.D to 1200 A.D.
The hike to the granaries is a switch-back trail that winds 500 feet up the side of the canyon. There’s little room for a misstep, but it does offer some of the best views of the Colorado River in all of the Grand Canyon. Our hiking group, including blind vets Lonnie and Kathy, stops several times for photo ops on the way up. The other three blind vets – Travis, Steve and Brian – and their guides go on a different hike that is supposedly shorter and flatter. We learn later it was a grueling experience, especially for Brian with his prosthetic leg. Brian’s hiking companions are amazed at his perseverance.
After the hikes, lunch is served back at river’s edge. Beef sandwiches with lots of fixings. Cookies too.
This afternoon we paddle from mile 53 to mile 63 and tonight’s campsite at Crash Canyon. I finish setting up my tent just as it starts to rain. Now I’m in the tent waiting for dinner, which will likely be delayed because of the rain. Time for a beer.
8:15 p.m. Dinner is shrimp scampi. I realize I left my rain jacket behind at the hotel. I get chilled during after-dark dinner in the light rain, so it feels good to be here in the tent in dry clothes for some “alone” time.
