May 2004
Guides
Passengers
Pre-trip
Day 1 - 5/13/04
Day 2 - 5/14/04
Day 3 - 5/15/04
Day 4 - 5/16/04
Day 5 - 5/17/04
Day 6 - 5/18/04
Day 7 - 5/19/04
Day 8 - 5/20/04
Day 9 - 5/21/04
Day 10 - 5/22/04
Day 11 - 5/23/04
Day 12 - 5/24/04
Day 13 - 5/25/04
Day 14 - 5/26/04
Day 15 - 5/27/04
Day 16 - 5/28/04
Trip dinner
Hints, tips, & links
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| Jason and Robert, packing gear in the Flagstaff hotel room |
Most commercial Grand Canyon river trips leave from Flagstaff, AZ, and Can-X was no exception. The information we'd gotten from the company said we needed to be in Flagstaff by the afternoon of May 12, so we could attend an evening orientation. Robert and I carpooled with Jeanne & Jim from our home in Colorado, deciding to drive down rather than fly since flying was quite expensive. We left after work on Tuesday May 11, taking I-25 straight south and making it to Las Vegas, New Mexico before stopping for the night. The next morning we continued on to Flagstaff on the 40, arriving about 2:30pm and checking into the hotel (the Radisson Woodlands).
We wandered around Flagstaff for a while. It was suprisingly chilly, but we made sure to take the opportunity to enjoy eating some ice cream (our last before the trip). We met up with Jason at the orientation - he'd come to Flagstaff by bus, and being a super-thrifty sort of guy, was camping in the woods near the hotel instead of paying for a room.
The orientation was in a hotel meeting room and was run by a nice lady from Can-X named Michelle. First we all introduced ourselves, one by one, to the other passengers. There were 20 passengers total for our trip. The majority were from the U.S., but there was a Canadian couple (Alan & Marite), a lady from England (Hilary), and three Germans (Gunter & Kristin, and Goetz) - and of course my husband Robert is Australian. I was the youngest passenger at 29, and the oldest was well over 70. Robert and I were surprised at first at how much older most of the other passengers were; Jeanne, Jim, Jason, Robert, and I were definitely the "younger crowd". But upon thinking about it, it made sense - older people are more likely to have the vacation time and money for a trip like this. But what was really cool was that it didn't matter - even the oldest passengers were still quite fit and adventurous people!
After the introductions, Michelle explained to us how a "typical" day on the river would go, covering everything from sanitary facilities to how the hikes would be run. She told us that our guides were already down at Lees Ferry, preparing the rafts for the next day, and told us all their names. We had all been given numbered waterproof bags, and a small mesh bag when we arrived at the orientation. She explained that the waterproof bag would be like our "checked luggage" - once loaded on the raft, it would be inaccessible until we reached our evening camp. The mesh bag was our "carry-on" luggage, which we would be able to access on the rafts during the day. So, we needed to have everything we would want to use during the day either in that mesh bag, or worn somewhere on our person. I eyed the seemingly very small mesh bag and felt dubious!
After the formal part of the orientation, we were given the opportunity to buy any last minute items that we needed (Robert and I got some moisturizing salve and "hat keeper" clips). Then Robert and I went to dinner with Jim and Jason at a Mexican place, after which we returned to the hotel and started the rather daunting task of fitting all our stuff into the waterproof and mesh bags. (I didn't find it hard at all to fit stuff into the waterproof bag; but since I wasn't totally sure what clothing I would want, I found it very hard to fit everything I thought I might want during the day into the mesh bag!)
Eventually we packed everything to our satisfaction, and went to bed. (We'd been told there would be a very early start the next day!) I was so excited about the trip that it was really hard for me to get to sleep!
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