River Running

I'm so glad to finally be back out on the river again. It has been a rough semester for me and it's good to be back to a place I feel completely at home. I ran with USAFA yesterday, a full day Parkdale & Royal Gorge trip. The weather was unbelievably beautiful and the water was kicking. We were running in 16' NRS boats yesterday. They're like barges on our smallish river, the Cadillac of boats. We were hitting holes sideways and rolling right over 'em. In smaller boats we would have been toppled so many times. But with the big boats, we were just playing around.

It was a spectacular morning and start to the afternoon. But at the bottom of Sunshine Falls one of our boats had a couple of swimmers. Two customers fell out. Both managed to get to shore at the concrete slab below Sunshine, but one slipped on the concrete and fell back in. She ended up swimming all of Graveyard before being pulled out. Unfortunately, because of her rough swim, she was unable to complete the day in the Gorge. So, like the good, responsible guide I am, I walked her out using the trail that photographers use and got us a ride to Pink House. I was so bummed to miss out on the rest of the day in the Gorge. We had an awesome crew in the boat and were having so much fun. But the upside is that there is always more time on the river for me. I can't wait to get back out there again.