Thursday, August 7, 2008

August 1-6, 2008 Middle Fork Trip

This last week on the Middle Fork of the Salmon was absolutely spectacular. With the water holding we went off "the top" for the last time of the season and did the rock dodging dance with little mayhem. Cove Creek, the big "new" rapid and one of three big blowouts from two weeks ago, was exciting and fun. Thanks everyone for the awesome trip, we're looking forward to floating more rivers with you in the future.

Your guides:
Tom T.
Matt V.
Andrew W.
Jason F.
Erin S.
Will V.
Mike O'M.

Your camps:
Day 1: Lake Creek
Day 2: Upper Jackass
Day 3: Lower Grouse
Day 4: Survey
Day 5: Parrot Placer













3 comments:

Unknown said...

For my once-a-year return to guide status, this trip was a real pleasure with a cordial and interesting group of guests, and a fun crew of new and old friends. I did learn a new word, paracme, which means the point at which one is past one's prime. That's how I felt on Day One, getting whupped by the rocks and rills of the upper stretch. With each stream that added volume to the main stem, my skills slowly returned, so by Day Six, I felt there are still a few barks in the old dog.

A high point for me was riding in and learning how to navigate the sweep boat, under Tom Tremain's watchful eye on Day Four. The run in the new blow-out, which took a few extra minutes than we planned due to a slight mid-rapid rock-induced pause, was very exciting. It culminated in a crash-and-bounce move off the big rock on the bottom left.

It was also a treat to hike the group up to Veil Falls, which was in fine, misty, wind-blown form.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Travelin' Bea said...

i STILL like the "read the river" lesson {thank you Michael -- i'm still clueless, but not quite 100% ignorant}

but my second-favorite memory is the graceful pirouette down Haystack rapid, due to Matt's impeccable skill and timing {thank you Matt}