Life’s Little Discomforts–or How we are more adaptable than we thought

Living outdoors for 15 days presents some challenges such as weather, and the need to address all those other little concerns of daily life. I had first thought that a 15 day trip was pretty ‘ambitious’ for us. After all, the longest that we had ‘camped out’ before was 7 consecutive days. I was pretty sure that at some point we would think “OK, this was fun but that’s enough!”  Surprisingly, we never reached that point. In fact, at the trip’s end, we both felt like we could have continued on for another 2 weeks or more. (Though I would have had to take some time to shampoo my hair!)

“This is a land of fire and ice” the guides kept telling us. By that they meant that on a sunny day, we could be hot  and sweltering, or if the day was overcast or we were in shade, we might be worried about getting too chilled.  Everyday brought the need for sun protection. Sunscreen, of course, and a hat with a brim was a must. As were sunglasses to combat the glare off the water. I often wore a long sleeved t-shirt to keep my arms covered. The guides usually wore long sleeves and would cover up with capris or long pants for protection from the afternoon sun. When we got too hot, we could dip our shirts, bandanas and/or hats in the water to keep us cool.

Hydration was another serious concern. We kept 2 quart sized water bottles filled at all times. There was always a big thermos of water to refill our bottles, and Gatorade to flavor the water and to replace electrolytes. In an arid environment (the bottom of the canyon is a desert), a person can get dehydrated without realizing what is happening. So, “Hydrate for happiness”  and drink, drink, drink was our motto.

On a rafting trip, one would expect to be wet…..and wet we were for the better part of each day. This was, after all, the Colorado River, famed for its rapids. Everyday we would encounter a number of rapids which would be big enough to completely douse us with 55 degree water. Yikes! It made me think of the ice bucket challenge which had become so popular. When the weather was sunny and hot, the cold water was welcome. But if we were in shade or the wind was blowing, it could be cold! We had been given these nice yellow splash jackets which we wore to keep our upper body dry. The day might be spent with wet britches and cold legs and feet, but with our core dry, we could keep from getting too chilled.

One whole day and another afternoon, we had rain……Life on the river did not stop for the rain. We just covered up with splash jackets and maybe rain pants, and kept on going. Fortunately, the rain began after our breakfast (I hate soggy food!) and stopped before we unloaded for the evening. But, on the water, the rain was COLD!

After spending one soggy morning on the river, we were all feeling pretty miserable and wondering what we were going to do about lunch, when Matt pulled the rafts over at this beach with a large rock overhang. It was a bit of a scramble up from the beach, but the guides hauled all the lunch gear and food out to fix us lunch in the shelter of the canyon.

They even fixed us soup……warm and delicious for a very appreciative group. We hung our wet jackets up to dry and huddled near the rock wall which shared with us the warmth that it had stored from the sun.

Every evening when we set up our sleeping area, we changed into dry clothes and shoes and laid our wet things out to dry on a rock, or tree limb or bush…whatever was handy. In the desert air, our things would usually be dry in a couple of hours.

We had been so limited on packing space that we only took 2 sets of river clothes and 2 changes of dry camp clothes. We wore the same clothes day after day, rinsing things out in the river water in the evening. I don’t know if this really helped to clean the clothes……as the river water was brown with silt.

Washing ourselves was another concern. On the first part of the trip, before the juncture with the Little Colorado River, the main river water was greenish and not too muddy. We could wash up in the river, using soap and shampoo, which I did several times. It felt so nice to get even partially clean!  Once the river turned brown, it no longer was inviting. On the side hikes, we would wash ourselves in the clear creek water every chance we would get. No soap or shampoo allowed, but it felt so good to wash off the ever present layer of river silt. Though I do have to say, in this desert environment where we were not sticky with sweat, we really did not feel as ‘gross’ as we thought that we would feel going without baths or showers for 15 days.

Another major part of personal comfort at camp has to be addressed……the toilet. Every evening, the ‘groover’ would be set up in a private (even scenic?) location on the edge of camp. It would be available for use from about 5 pm until about 8 am the next day. You could spot the groover by the hand wash buckets and the line in the morning - just another opportunity to socialize   ; )

The Grand Canyon is a ‘carry in- carry out, leave no trace’ site. And that means everything! A typical toilet set up would include a large ammo can fitted with a toilet seat (used for solid waste), a smaller ‘pee bucket’ which would be emptied into the river when the groover was taken down in the morning. A Tupperware container with toilet paper served as the ‘key’. It was kept by the hand wash buckets and when you needed to ‘go’, you took the TP with you, indicating that the toilet was in use. This insured some measure of privacy.

The groover was to contain only solid waste, though one could use the ‘pee bucket’ anytime one wanted some privacy. During the day, however, the need to pee was handled pretty casually. “The solution to pollution is dilution”…..so it was encouraged (actually required) that one pee in the river rather than behind a bush. This was pretty easily handled by the men in the group, but the water being cold required the women to use the ‘hover’ technique. It is commonly noted that at the beginning of each trip the guests would all seek out some distance and/or a sheltering rock for privacy. As the trip goes on, the distance that people were willing to walk decreased. I thought that it was particularly funny when, after a side hike, Fred and I came down a bit in front of the group and headed to a somewhat more private location, when suddenly it seemed like everyone else had the same idea. There we were, suddenly surrounded by half the group….all casually taking care of business.    What really was the purpose of heading off behind the rock if everyone followed you?!

Another issue of camp life was how to deal with all one’s personal gear. This always presents a challenge. At first, we had been frustrated trying to fit everything into our 2 dry bags that we each were given and trying to devise a system for keeping everything in place. We managed to keep all of our ‘stuff’ organized in the dry bags …... Clothes were contained in Ziploc plastic bags and smaller things were organized into stuff sacks. This system worked well and we had everything that we needed (and a number of things that were extra).  We were glad each evening to have dry clothes and dry sandals to change into when we got into camp. All of our stuff ‘lived’ on the edges of our sleeping area - always organized in the same relative position - within reach if we should need anything.

Sleeping out on the ground was another ‘little discomfort’ that we seemed to handle without a problem.

The sleeping pads that we used could have been a bit ‘cushier’……They seemed a bit thin, but we slept pretty well on them. Our sleeping bags always seemed to border on the edge of the sand. When we rolled over, I know that we were practically sleeping in a bed of sand.This, however, seemed to be not in the least bothersome. I guess you just give up fighting it or just get used to it.

I have to say that I was pleased and proud of us for the way that we adapted to the little discomforts of camp life. Far from being desperate for a shower and a bathroom and a bed, Fred and I both felt sad to see the trip come to an end.

Camp Life–Learning the Routine

Note- I want to give credit up front to our friend Becky for using some of her photos and to Jeff and Dawn and others on the trip who so generously shared their photos on Shutterfly. There were parts of the trip that I was so busy experiencing that I forgot to take pictures!   : ) You can follow also Becky’s posts and pictures about this ‘Grand Adventure’ on her blog at Kinexxions.

When we first started out, we felt like everything was unhandy and that we would never get comfortable with the routine. It did not take long, however, before we settled right in.

 

On this trip, with Outdoors Unlimited, we were asked to pitch in and help with some of the camp chores. Every afternoon when the rafts would land at our camp spot for the night, we would help to unload the gear.

We would form a ‘bag line’ for unloading all the dry bags with our personal gear (each person had 2 bags, one for clothes, etc, and one for our sleeping gear) and the yellow ‘pocco pads’, as well as the kitchen gear and misc other stuff.

Sometimes the bag line would have to stretch quite a ways, as the rafts were some distance from the flatter camping area. Everyone pitched in, and it was good fun as well as a way to be useful.

Much of this gear would be unloaded to the blue tarp. This tarp was put out first thing in the afternoon and picked up last thing in the morning. All of our gear would be picked up from this tarp for the evening and brought back to the tarp in the morning where the bag line was reversed as we helped to load up the rafts.

The guides were responsible for loading the gear on the rafts. Everything had an assigned place. Lots of smaller gear was stowed in rectangular ammo boxes which were watertight. All of the equipment was incorporated on the raft…….tables over the storage area became a bench seat and our sleeping pads were used as seat cushions. Our dry bags and most of the other gear was stowed on two gear boats that did not carry passengers. All of the food for the 2 weeks was packed at the start of the trip and stored in large ice chests. It was truly a marvel of organization! And we always had fresh food and great meals.

Our day would start with a blast on the conch shell horn and a call to coffee around 6 am or first light. The guides had already been up for about 20 minutes or so. A table was set up with coffee and juice and fruit to enjoy while breakfast was being fixed.

First we would wash our hands…….We used a two bucket system where bleach treated river water was pumped by a foot pump into a dirty water collection bucket (these guys had a whole stack of buckets used for so many different things!) I really appreciated the attention towards sanitation. We were instructed to wash our hands before ever going to the food tables, then to use utensils to serve the food, not our hands. In a group of this size (there were 17 passengers and 6 guides) a stomach bug could spread through the group like wild fire.

Breakfast was my favorite meal. We had pancakes or French toast,  sausage or bacon. Some mornings we had eggs or a breakfast casserole. A couple of mornings, when things were a bit hurried, we had toasted  bagels and cream cheese. There was always cereal for an option, too.

After breakfast, we would load the rafts and decide which guide and raft we might want to ride with for the day. Our personal gear and clothing  was stowed in a gear raft where we could not get to it during the day, but we could keep some stuff in a day bag on the raft where we were riding.

Our days varied with time on the river interspersed with short stops for a quick hike up to a point of interest, or a longer hike of a couple of hours. The water also varied with sections of calm that may last an hour or more, then a section of rapids where we had to really hang on. (More on that in another post)

Lunch time came about 12:30 pm where we would pull up to a beach ……..

The crew would hop out and quickly set up a table full of deli meats, cheeses, breads and other sandwich fixings. We would each make our lunch….though we were surprised on the first day that we were supposed to just fix a sandwich in our hands…..no plates or napkins. It did cut down on dirty dishes!

One lunch break, we took advantage of the relatively clearer water and the sunshine to soap up and wash off in the river. Oh – that was a different thought to get used to…..the Colorado River flows with such a volume that you can use soap or throw out sudsy water into the river. and it will just be diluted and dispersed.

The afternoon would hold much the same activities as the morning……rafting and maybe a  hiking opportunity. By about 4:30 – 5:30 pm we would be off the river at our camp spot for the night.

After the raft was unloaded, we would gather our gear, pick out our personal campsite, and start setting up our ‘nest’. The blue tarps were laid out with our sleeping pads on top. Our wet clothes and rain gear would be hung on the handiest limb or rock to dry.

Each spot was different and each person or couple had their own system of making ‘home’.In this picture, Sarah and Jason are setting up camp.

Our tarp became our personal space where we could sit and relax…..

Or stretch out, perhaps……: )

Fred would take an opportunity each afternoon to record the river miles that we had covered and note the hikes that we took and the beaches that we had camped at.

Before too long, the conch shell horn sounded the call that let us know that the afternoon appetizers were set out. Usually we had cheese and crackers, veggies and dip, maybe some chips and salsa, but one day they had cooked egg rolls . Yum!  In this picture are Sue and Jeff, a couple from Pennsylvania and Pricilla who was there with her daughter, Elana (not pictured).

Each afternoon, the ‘chair bags’ were unloaded and chairs were set up in a circle near the kitchen area.  This was social time where we got to know and visit with each other.

Pictured here - Becky who traveled with us, and Nancy and Tom – a 78year old couple from California.. And ‘the girls’, Susan, Ashley, and Dawn – nurse friends who work together and began taking adventure trips together. Susan, we found out, was on a roller derby team!

Dawn is sitting next to one of the guides, KJ, who was reading to us from a book about some of the livelier characters who were a part of the Grand Canyon history. Then Jacque and Dave, who were traveling with their friends, Jeff and Sue.

On the second half of the trip….Sarah and Jason joined us. I did not get pictures of everyone in both groups…..but it surely was an interesting group of people, which I will try to describe in a later post.

Back to camp life……..

Supper was always a fairly elaborate affair. The kitchen was set up using 3 tables and any number of buckets and cooking equipment.

Sometimes the guests were allowed to help out. Here Patrick ( a Frenchman working in Virginia for the NATO offices) helps Allison make a fruit salad. Note – the ‘apron’ hung in front of the table was where we placed our washed plates and eating utensils to drip dry.

Dinners were always pretty yummy……We had steaks, Ahi tuna, pork burritos, grilled chicken,  hamburgers, grilled fish, spaghetti and lasagna  and other amazing entrees. Each night we had fresh vegetables and a salad and every night we looked forward to cookies, or brownies or a cake for dessert that had been baked in a Dutch oven.

The only complaint that we had about dinner was that it was served a bit late for our liking……usually around 7 – 7:30 but occasionally as late as 8 pm. Almost every dinner was eaten in the dark using a headlamp for light. Our headlamps, with their white lights attracted bugs (moths?) which would drive us crazy! Some people had a red light on their headlamps which worked better.

After dinner, each person washed their own plates and utensils using a 4 wash pan system to rinse, wash, rinse and sanitize.

Pretty quickly after dinner, Fred and I would get up and get ready for the night with teeth brushing, etc., then just enjoy the quiet time, watching the stars before we fell asleep.

Each camp site was different, but our set up was similar….tarp, pads, dry bags, etc. Our trip leader, Matt, would try to pick a site that was large enough for all of us to spread out, but there were several private trips on the river, so there was competition for good campsites. One evening we settled on a small beach which had a cave. The beach was small, but there was plenty of room just within the cave opening for all of us to get ‘cozy’. I think that it was one of the most unique sites that we had.

 

Most nights we did not bother to set up a tent…..just sleeping open air under the stars was really magical!

The stars were so bright that I tried to take a picture of them. If you expand this picture, you can actually see the stars. Without the light pollution from cities, we could see the hazy Milky Way. It was an awesome experience! and we slept much more comfortably than we had anticipated.

On a few occasions, when we were afraid of rain, we set up a tent. Sleeping inside the tent could be pretty hot, so we would set up our sleeping area outside of the tent, with a plan to  just crawl into the tent if it started to rain. One night, we did just that….and it rained….and THUNDERED! The thunder echoed through the canyon with a ROAR! The next night, we slept inside the tent to keep warm, as the rain had brought a cold front with it.

A third night, we crawled into the tent when we felt a sprinkle of rain, but the rain never really materialized, and neither did the cooler temperatures. Instead, we spent a stiflingly hot night being pelted with sand as the wind blew through the open tent flaps. On this particular night, several tents had to be relocated to this grouping because they had been set up in a wash area that had the potential to flash flood if it rained hard enough.

Fred and I would only set up our tent when we felt the threat of rain, but others set their tent up each night. It did give one a place for changing clothes, etc..

Here are Sarah and Jason  with their tent…..

After a night’s sleep….we would wake to the sound of the conch announcing coffee, and start another day on the river.

Lees Ferry–The Beginning of a Journey

Note - I am sorry that it has taken me so long to get the pictures sorted and the posts written for this trip. It really was “the trip of a lifetime” and processing it just could not be hurried.
On Sept 16th, 2014, Fred and I and Becky drove from Chandler, AZ, to Lees Ferry. We were excited and ready to embark on what is usually referred to as  a ‘trip of a lifetime’  rafting the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon.

We arrived at the Marble Canyon Lodge, checked in, and headed off to explore……


We drove the short ways down to Lees Ferry, where we would begin our trip the next morning.

We stood looking at the river…..and bent to touch it…… trying to get familiar with what would become a very intimate part of our next two weeks.The water was a greenish color…..much clearer than it would be later in the trip.

We took our pictures….aware of the significance of the moment…..the start of a journey. (note- We look so CLEAN!)

We spotted the rafts that would be our transportation and home, fully loaded with supplies in preparation for the morning.

And we walked out over the bridge – thinking that we would be passing under it in the morning.
That night, we met up with our fellow travelers – all of us pretty nervous. We introduced ourselves all around, and it seemed like this would be a great group. We were given our grocery bag sized dry bags with instructions on how to pack. Back at our hotel room, we were rather frustrated as we tried to decide what all to take and how to pack so that we could get to what we might want. Fortunately things squashed down pretty well, and we took everything that we had planned to (and more than we needed).

The next morning, we met up bright and early, all packed and ready to go!

At the beach, we were given life jackets and safety instructions……then we loaded up on the rafts…..

And were off on a Grand Adventure!
……
There would be rapids ahead, and smooth water, amazing scenery, challenging hikes, great meals, and time for socializing. Before long, we would find ourselves settling into the comfortable routine of life on a Colorado River rafting trip.