Rafting the Grand Canyon - Part Four

Geddy Lee once sang, "The point of the journey is not to arrive."  Well, we certainly won't be seeing the end of it in this entry.  At right, Teresa is engaging in the typical float-time activities of relaxing and taking in the scenery.  And check out those nails!  Seven days on the river and she didn't break one of them...largely due to the attentive efforts of her husband on the more rugged aspects of life as a river rat.  Very nice couple.

Water fight!!  The big rigs were a favorite foe.

With summer heat and cold water, everyone comes out "The winner!!"

A group of kayakers overtake us.  The big rig above is their support boat.

Elves Chasm

This is one of the most beautiful spots we stopped on the trip...but access was not without effort, having to negotiate a steep boulder-choked chasm.  Howie, Kat and Dennis went above and beyond in helping Kirsteen make it to the reward of a beautiful waterfall and swimming hole.

Explorers Monument is huge block of redwall limestone across from Elves Chasm.

A 20-minute moonlit exposure captures the ghostly bedding down activities at our camp on Stephen Aisle.

Day 8 is a deliberate half day of floating so that we may explore Stone Canyon all afternoon.  While it did not turn out to be my most successful day photographically, my liesurely pace left me far behind the pack of hardier hikers.  I spent several hours entirely alone...the Grand Canyon to myself.  Can't really capture that feeling in a picture.

The creek didn't provide many waterfalls to picture though waterpockets here and there provided relief from the heat.

Two takes on yucca.

An exposed outcrop of Hakatai shale...usually it is a slope-forming layer.

Dave, our brave and intrepid leader, high on the trail above.

Two exposures on Deer Creek Falls; stop action and the silky effect.

The mouth of "Matkat"

(Matkatamiba Canyon)

Hikers set off.

Working the slot...Bill is ready to lend a hand.

Relaxing in this beautiful amphitheater is the reward.

Creek pebbles in shallow water.

A twisted view of our ninth camp.

A mineral spring above camp has created a large travertine deposit.  Howie told the story of one stormy evening whereupon he warned some folks not to camp to near the otherwise serene location.  Warning not heeded...flooding ensued.

The ominous up-river view.

Down-river is the mouth of Havasu Canyon.