Steve, A friend and associate of Betsy’s, was on the waiting list for 15 years before his Grand Canyon permit came up recently. By then many of his original rafting buddies had other priorities and were no longer boating – which was good news for us as we were invited along. We had kayaked it years before but we hadn’t been kayaking a heck of a lot in the past 5 years, so could we really do it again?
We signed up and then jumped back on the South Fork American river this past winter to get back into boating shape. Then in early May we loaded up the plane and Betsy, Ney-J and Mikey (a Tuolumne River guide and friend of Belyn’s) flew out to Flagstaff to meet up with the rest of the group. Betsy and I would kayak and act as safety boaters, while everyone else would be on rafts.
Most others drove to the canyon, and while we were nearing our overflight of the canyon on the way on our three hour flight to Flagstaff we texted Steve’s family of four that was driving. They were passing through Bakersfield with another 8 or 9 hours to go and they texted back, “Can you see our four middle fingers from there?”.
However you can’t fit kayaks in my plane. Fortunately there is a healthy industry of rental, shuttle and food services for rafters and kayakers, so it was easy to find kayaks to rent for the 16 day trip.
It was an awesome trip, and it turns out (after a wobbly first day in the rental kayaks) that we could kayak the Grand again. I have included more photos than usual for this trip because it is hard to capture all the canyon has to offer in just a few.
Sunset on put-in dayMoonlight on the rim as the moon risesMikey and Blythe rowing House rapidCamping in the canyon – the bestBoatman Ney-JOur rafts and two kayaks waiting our return from a hikeNey-J in Red Wall CavernMikey showing us how it’s doneSteve tossing a football in Red Wall cavernSometimes its busy, and sometimes its peaceful.Redbud CanyonIt’s a magical placeNey-JThe Little Colorado River – warm water, great funLots of smiles on the LCRYes, it dropped straight down the river hereHilltop Anasazi ruinsClear Creek falls. Nice for a soapless shower.Rocks. Lots of fantastic, sculpted, fluted rocks in the canyon. You’ll see more.Look carefully – I’m on the left, Betsy is on the right.Gene leading the way for the raftersEthan getting his mom wetMore rocksBetsyBetsy againUpper Elves Chasm, after an easy but terribly exposed rock climbing move to get thereUpper upper Elves Chasm. Easier climbing to get here.Shinumo WashStill more rocks.Betsy in the natural climbing gym called the “Doll House”More rocks, but nice rocksThunder River, appearing right out of the side of the canyonThunder River FallsThe only shade on the hot Tapeats – Matcat loop hikeSunsetMorning coffee overlooking campBetsy climbing up Matcat canyonThere are a lot of calm, peaceful sections between rapidsHavasu CreekConfluence of the Colorado and HavasuNey-J doing a BIG layout backflipThere were lots of Bighorn Sheep aroundScouting Lava Falls (we all ran it together, so no pics!)We drank most of the liquor by now, but we still had beer and wine to celebrate our successful runs through Lava FallsDry air and rock scrambles take a toll on Betsy’s legs.Having fun at Pumpkin Springs (warm and muddy, more fun to jump into river)Gene in the fluted rocks – fun climbing!Last one of rocks…The gang at take-out
West Coast Flying Adventures 
Oh wow, that looks unbelievably awesome. What an amazing trip, and a great blog.
Your blog is awesome too! Your photos of Iceland are beautiful. Good luck with your travel list.