As I’ve aged and my menisci have degenerated, I’ve had to give up backpacking, a pastime I really enjoyed. I can still do day hikes but can no longer carry a 70-pound pack up a hill. I’ve a lot of great memories of trips that were primitive and beautiful, and I’ve missed camping in the backcountry away from traffic and city noises, under skies filled with a million stars. I considered “ultralight” backpacking, but it doesn’t appeal to me.
I’ve drifted to a different way of enjoying a backcountry experience that’s physically much easier. I’ve started traveling on multi-day whitewater rafting trips. These trips offer many advantages. I don’t have to plan the trip logistics — campgrounds, routes, meals, supplies, etc. I just pack my personal gear and get to the launch site. A crew of youthful professional guides packs up the boats, does most of the work, explain the sights and natural history of what we’re seeing, and I just sit back and take it all in. Traveling through rapids is exciting and fun. Best of all, the raft carries my gear, not my wobbly knees. We’re well fed, camp in remote areas beside a roaring river, and I’m surrounded by friendly like-minded people. It’s a great way to get back to nature.
(Location of our rafting trip)
Recently I went on a whitewater rafting trip to Hell’s Canyon. This is a fairly remote place, not at all easy to get to by car. The Snake River provides access to Hell’s Canyon, which is the deepest canyon in the United States — deeper even than the Grand Canyon. The Snake River originates in Wyoming, traveling largely through Idaho before entering the Columbia River more than a thousand miles from its origin. In Hell’s Canyon you have the Snake River bordered by Idaho to the east, and Oregon and Washington to the west.
There are a number of quality whitewater rafting companies that offer trips down Hell’s Canyon. I choose OARS, a long-established reputable vendor I’d used on previous whitewater adventures.
Our meeting point was Lewiston, Idaho. We met as a group the night before departure, got an overview of the trip from our lead guide, Dan, and received 2 wet bags in which to stow our personal clothes and gears. Then off to bed for an early departure.
The following morning our group was shuttled to Lewiston airport where we were loaded into two small planes for a flight to Halfway, Oregon. The flight took a little less than an hour and was beautiful and scenic. We flew along the Snake River and Hell’s Canyon for part of the journey, before heading further south and west.
(Flying over eastern Oregon)
(approaching our landing strip in Halfway — can you spot it?)
Our landing strip at Halfway was a dirt lane in a field and our pilot did a great job of safely getting us to the ground. We were shuttled by van from Oregon into Idaho as we headed to the Hell’s Canyon Dam from which we were to depart on our whitewater adventure. The drive along the Snake River, upriver of the dam, was very beautiful, as you can see from these photos:
At the base of the Hell’s Canyon dam, our driving trip ended as we prepared to begin an 80 mile journey down the river by water. There’s a small visitor center which I explored that contained useful information about the river and canyon.
I spotted this juvenile black bear beside the visitor center. He was probably about a year old and was harmless.
We met our guides and received a safety and orientation talk before boarding our rafts and heading a few miles downriver to our first camp.
(Our rafts and one dorey wait to take us on a 5 day adventure through Hell’s Canyon)
(Captain Dan rowing the dorey)
The Snake River is in a fairly tight canyon in this stretch of the river, and the views were terrific.
(Looking back at the Hells Canyon Dam)
We encountered some easy class II whitewater in this early stretch of the river — making the trip fun and bumpy. It was a hot day, so the spray of water in the rapids was welcome.
We set up our camp and took it easy for the rest of the day. The guides prepared a great dinner — salmon and pasta. A fun part of a trip like this is getting to know new people, both guides and fellow clients.
I’ve always found that the best way to travel is to take in the journey as it happens, such as when this deer walked past my tent the following morning.
Next week’s post will feature a continuation through Hell’s Canyon, with some great whitewater (including videos), as well as many wonderful views of the Canyon.
