Day 18 - Friday 7/17/2005 -  A Crevasse of Sky...

The sun was well up by the time I was ready to great the day.  We had originally planned to wake about 6 am and get an early start to avoid any flash flood potential from thunderstorms.  (You can encounter a flash flood in the canyon with blue skies and no clouds - the storm can be over 20 miles away and feeding the canyon from the headwaters.)  Due to my late night bout with the heat (and Hunter being a teenager) we both slept in until 9:30 when the heat awoke us again.  We decided to go ahead and hit the canyon since the weather advisory was for LOW flash flood potential.  We ate some breakfast and snapped some pics of a little visitor to our campsite.

We packed all of our gear in waterproof (divers) bags and set off for the mouth of the canyon.    The first step into the water was the toughest.  While the air temp in the canyons was expected at 109 degrees, the water temp was in the low 60's.  All was well as we reached the waist-deep pools, but we soon hit a "swimming pool".  Once we were completely wet, the combination of cold water and hot sum made for a delightful combination.  We trudged upstream in water-logged boots and packs that added an additional 20 lbs to our hike until we noticed the extra load and dumped out the water.  The river is mostly easy, but its easy to twist and ankle on the shifting rocks under the flowing water.  Some of the sections involve crossing the river on wet rocks through rapids.  That was where we were glad we had brought old-fashioned wooden poles.

 After about two hours, we trekked up a side canyon - Orderville.  This is named for a nearby town which id near the headwaters.  Orderville is a very narrow canyon, and we did not have time to explore far.  This is on our revisit list for the future.

We slogged back to the main canyon and headed back upstream.  After another 30 minutes we reached our destination - "The Narrows".  This is the title given to a part of the canyon where it narrows to approx 23 feet.  This may seem wide, but considering you are looking up hundreds of feet on each side it is very impressive.  At this point I will also apologize for the darkness of some of the photos.  There is such a huge contrast between light and dark in these canyons (even at noon) that a digital camera has a rough time.

After a few pics, we started back on the two-hour hike.  While we hiked through water most of the way upstream, we took advantage of the current and deep pools wherever we could on the way back.  Swim, hike, swim, hike.  We spent so much time in the water on the way back that Hunter started getting chills.  Finally, we made it back to the main trail, and then caught a ride back to the Visitor Center.  We were both a little cool, so we stretched out in the hot sun to dry out.  After 15 minutes, Hunter was pale, and feeling sick.  At first I though it was the beginnings of heat stroke, but then I remembered that we did not eat lunch (NOTE: Lance Crackers do not come in waterproof packaging, and they may be the most unappealing "wet" snack you have ever seen!)  We got Hunter some water, food, and shade, and he was back to normal in 5 minutes.  We were both starving and fixed a pound of spaghetti, with a jar or sauce and a pound of beef.  We ate almost every bit!

Later that night we went into town for the best glass of Italian Soda (orange) I have ever had!

Tomorrow it is off for Bryce Canyon!