Just like our first day of whitewater, this day started with a bang. Shortly after pushing the rafts off we came to the hardest rapid in the canyon. After scouting the rapid from a hill on river right, I took off with the first group of rafts to drop in. Though it was a quick rapid, it was a blast. The power of these monster waves is really incredible. I did get thrown off course a bit, but made it through without much issue. I tried for a few minutes to paddle back up and surf on the waves, but was never able to get in. After watching the rest of the rafts run through we headed just downstream to tequila beach to celebrate the fact that everyone was still upright and in their boats.
What followed was completely different. The rest of the day was a relatively gentle float through calmer water with the occasional riffle. The scenery on the other hand took another interesting turn. As we continued downstream we saw more and more lava flows around us. There were all kinds of basalt columns and signs of ancient lava dams. It was quite a bit different than anything we had seen up to this point.
The day floated by quickly and before we knew it we had arrived at Whitmore Wash and our camp for the next couple days. Though we went through the usual un-packing routine, everyone was eager to relax and we ended up spending a couple of hours enjoying the late afternoon sun that shined directly down on the beach at our camp. It was a perfect opportunity to get a bath, do some laundry, and just unwind a bit. Given that this was another layover camp, I spent some time planning out some hikes for the next day, so stay tuned for more…
Taken 11/4/21
