Dwight, a passenger on a 6-day Upper Canyon Oar Trip in July 2014, sent us this short story of a fun afternoon on the river…

“It was a quite cove.  The boatmen and passengers had finished lunch.  While children played in the water, trying to catch fish barehanded, the rest of the passengers watched from the beach.  One by one, the passengers closed their eyes.  Realizing it was an opportunity for a quick nap, some of the crew began to drift off …

After a few minutes of solace, I noticed John was up to something.  He filled his bucket and squirt cannon up with water.  A mischievous look in John’s eyes told me, grab the camera.  

John made his way across the sand.  People were not aware of his actions, because they were enjoying their afternoon nap.  One toss of the bucket and one squirt of the cannon changed all of that.  A snapped photo captured John’s target, Grant (AKA Turbo) in action and reaction.  The photo is priceless as it recreates the exact second one is awakened by frigid water.  

A common phrase heard while running the rapids, is “this will wake you up better than coffee.”  Turbo is well aware of this now.  Of course, the story usually would end there, but something had to be done.  John would need to suffer.  Retribution was on the mind of Turbo.

Next stop was camp.  The boats were unloaded, and the hikers were ready.  John led the group on the hike.  Meanwhile back at camp, vengeance was in full force.  Upon returning to camp, John walked down to the motorboat.  He began a conversation with Riley.  While looking down the river, he noticed something.  Dropped his sunglasses and said, “whose boat is that?” He did not need an answer, because it was obvious by the only wooden oars on the trip.  It was John’s boat, half deflated, resting on a sandy beach just down the river 200 yards.  The pump was placed on top of the sandy knoll, mocking him.  He hiked over, pumped up his boat, and rowed back to camp.

The entire day was awesome.  Views were amazing.  The river provided experiences never imagined.  Passengers were blessed that day, not just from nature, but also from the boatmen.  The camaraderie was evident in the teamwork.  Their love of one another was evident in their pranks.   The experience of the trip would not have been complete without our crew.  They made the experience of a lifetime even better.  Thank you Brock, Ted, Chelsea, Grant, John, Riley, and Scott (Riley’s dad).  This trip would not have been complete without you.”