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2011 Winter Run – Day 11

 

All’s Well that Bails Well

Day 11 on the river and a long one. For me (Maria Coryell-Martin) it was my first full day on the river and exciting as we covered 17 miles and bounced through 14 rapids. The day began at 91 Mile Camp and ended at Lower Bass Camp and I spent the day with Cece in the lovely wooden Flavell wooden boat. It was a wet ride and I was grateful to be wearing a drysuit! At one point, the Flavell was so swamped, that water was literally flowing out of the boat. It was a relief, I suppose, to learn that the boat was not likely to sink.

The three big rapids were Granite, Hermit and Crystal and through the roiling and boiling waters, the boats endured some collateral damage. On Granite, the Susie-R was guided left, but a little too left by Ian and we all heard a BAM! as the stern fitting collided with a rock. Fortunately, only the metal was bent and the boat was otherwise undamaged. Crystal rapid left two boats with battle scars- Hazel hit the rocks in the middle resulting in a large tear and Cece and I were hit by a wave head-on and the left oar torqued around and cracked the splash guard. In the Flavell, I was pumping water out after every rapid, but my work was easy compared to Hazel’s boat. Yoshie and young Natalie(9) were dumping buckets of water out of the raft with Hazel as they made slow, waterlogged progress down the river.

Lower Bass Camp was a relief for us all to reach! We had a quick dinner buycbdproducts made plans for today- Day 12- a day off! For many folks this meant laundry, showering, and some personal time. I took off on a hike to sketch, Hazel’s boat was successfully patched, and Yoshie and Natalie even did some fishing.

For me, it was great to have some stationary time for my art. Sketching while rafting is pushing my speed-sketching to new levels! It’s easiest on land, where at least the scenery stays put! I’m building my canyon “palette of place” and having a grand time. It’s great to share this river experience with such an enthusiastic team of folks.

 

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