It was in September that Sudarshan mentioned about the UCSD Outback Adventure Club's Black Canyon Kayaking Trip that he was interested in going to and that it was open to non UCSDers as well. I had done some kayaking in the past, mostly for a few hours here and there, and had loved it. A multi-day kayaking adventure sounded fantastic and a perfect way to spend my Thanksgiving break.
Day 1, Thur, 22 Nov 2012, Lake Mead Recreation area
Its been more than a year since I went camping. The last time I did, we had a crazy adventure in Zion with half of our crew spending the night in the canyon unintentionally, completely lost. Camping means adventure and I am very excited and looking forward to be back in the outdoors, spending a few days away from civilization.
I get to REI Rancho Cucamonga which is the meeting spot where the Outback van from UCSD will be picking me up. I get there early and have an hour before they arrive, so I decide to hang out at Starbucks and get myself some coffee. The Outback group is supposed to provide us with food for the next few days but I am sure I won't be getting hot Starbucks coffee. So might as well get a good caffeine dose when I have a chance. The REI happens to be right next to the Best Buy and its funny to see Black Friday shoppers in tents camping outside Best Buy spending their entire Thanksgiving day there waiting for the Black Friday sales to open. I look at them and wonder how crazy one must be to do that? Spending a day out in a tent on Thanksgiving for some discount? But then they probably think I am crazier, spending my thanksgiving in the desert inside a tent with probably no water supply and no flush toilets. And at the end of all this, I don't even get any discount on anything.
The UCSD van arrives and they get out. Its packed like a can of sardines. I didn't realize the adventure part of the outback adventure would begin with getting all my stuff in the car. But, hey, there is a spot saved for me and that's all I need. We stuff in my sleeping bag and backpack and head off.
 |
| The UCSD van with the kayaks. |
After a long drive with a couple of stopovers for lunch and a bathroom break we are at our campsite. We pitch our tents and then make dinner. Its a full thanksgiving meal for dinner. Very impressive considering we are on an adventure camping trip. After dinner, some of us decide to take a walk in the moonlight and watch the stars. We find this place called the amphitheater, essentially wooden benches out in the open, next to a canyon, where we sit for a few minutes identifying the constellations. We have clean flush toilets, running water and the weather isn't too cold. This is easier than I thought. I am thankful for all the luxuries and hope we will be as lucky the next couple of nights. That night we decide to sleep under the stars with Orion, Jupiter and the inverted W constellation watching over us.
Day 2, Fri, 23 Nov 2012, The Colorado
We head out at around 11 am and drive over to Willow Beach, the starting point for our kayaking adventure. We takes the kayaks on to the river bank and get all our sleeping bags, cooking equipment, tents, personal stuff, onto the kayaks. That is a real challenge especially for some of us with big sleeping bags and probably too much stuff. While the space in the kayaks is pretty big, the problem is the bottle neck, literally. I wish they had put more thought into designing this storage space and made the openings a little larger.
 |
| Willow Beach. Our kayaks lined up, ready to hit the water. |
 |
| We had to fit a lot of stuff in the kayaks – our sleeping bags, personal items, cooking equipment, tents. |
While most kayaks can be pushed into the water from the shore, one of the kayaks, a tandem, requires special care and pampering which involves all of us getting wet in really cold water. We hate this activity because thats the only time we get wet and cold. If you are lucky you get to be at the end that is closest to the bank which means you are wet only up to your knee. If not, you are in the water up to your hip.
 |
| The high maintenance tandem – getting it in and out meant getting wet and cold. |
Once we have all the kayaks in the water, we set off - paddling away upstream in the Colorado. Its a beautiful morning and life is perfect.
 |
| Paddling upstream in the Colorado against the current with Arizona on our right and Nevada on the left. |
We have Arizona on the right and Nevada on the left as we paddle in the river between. Its interesting to think that a month ago, we could have moved our kayak a few feet in one direction and change the clock by an hour since Nevada follows daylight saving time and Arizona does not.
 |
| Some weird construction from a long time ago. |
We kayak for about seven miles with one stop for lunch. We have sections where the current is really strong pushing us back while we paddle hard to keep moving forward. Its a good workout and a chance to experience the fury of a river that seems so calm on the outside. We get to the campsite just as it is getting dark. While last night's campsite was nice and luxurious, we don't have any such luck tonight. Its a very basic campsite, just a pit toilet, no drinking water, no fire pits, no dumpsters, no toilet paper. Its adventure time.
We decide to go check out a hot spring cave near our campsite. Its just a few hundred feet from the river bank hidden from the river. Its an amazing natural sauna with the water temperature around a 110 degrees. The best hot spring I have ever been to.
We are all pretty exhausted by now and ready to hit the sack. We have dinner and go to bed, once again under the stars. Its nice to see the constellations change positions when you wake up in the middle of the night.
Day 3, Sat, 24 Nov 2012, Paddling upstream towards Hoover Dam
 |
| The AZ Hotsprings campsite was right next to the river. |
 |
| Early morning as we all get ready to hit the water again. |
We have a relaxed morning as we set off upstream again around 9 am. The current is very strong and we are paddling with all our strength to just stay in place and not be swept downstream. The trick is to paddle for some distance along the bank away from the center and hold on to rocks and each other while taking a break. You leave the rocks and all your effort from the last several minutes is gone as you drift downstream.
 |
| The current was strong and kayaking upstream was very hard north of our campsite. |
 |
| Hold on to the rocks and each other while taking a break to avoid drifting downstream. |
After a few miles we come to a region that is too shallow for the tandem kayak where we decide to turn back. We can see the bridge near Hoover dam at this point - a sign of the world outside.
 |
| We turn back a little before Hoover Dam |
On the way back, we stop at the Boy Scouts campsite for lunch and to check out the hot springs there. These hot springs are tiny and the water's luke warm and we are cold. We realize that the hot springs back home in our campsite are way cooler (and warmer by 20 degrees). So we decide to head back.
 |
| The Boy Scout campsite hot springs were tiny in comparison to our campsite's and a little too cold. |
Kayaking downstream is a little too easy. We are back at our campsite in no time. The only challenge is to stop at our campsite and not go further downstream because that would mean paddling back up against the current. But by now, we are all pro kayakers and we have no trouble. We head straight to the hot springs near our campsite for one final dip.
We spend the rest of the evening making and eating Garo garo (a Thai dish with peanut butter!) which was really yummy unlike what it might sound. We end the evening playing cards (a Danish game called Olson) in headlamp light.
Day 4, Sun, 25 Nov 2012, Heading home
This is the final day and we need to get going early. We wake up at 5 am when it is still dark. Getting out of a warm sleeping bag in the cold is always a challenge. Getting out when it is cold and dark is even worse. But we all manage to get our stuff back into the kayaks and are in the water by 7 am. The 7 mile journey downstream goes by very fast since we are riding the current. We hardly need to paddle. In some cases we are paddling in the opposite direction just so everyone catches up. The trip which took us an entire day on the way up is over in three hours going downstream. The sun rays are entering the canyon as we ride through it. Nothing is more peaceful than sitting in the kayaks drifting downstream watching the morning rays strike the water through the canyon.
 |
| View from the campsite |
 |
| Nothing is more peaceful than sitting in the kayaks drifting downstream watching the morning rays strike the water through the canyon. |
We are back at Willow beach by 10 am bringing to an end our wonderful adventure on the Colorado.
 |
| Map of our kayaking trip on the Colorado |
