Green River - Day 1

Sunday, September 23.  We departed Tex's Riverways in Moab for the last forty miles of the road portion of the trip after loading up all the boats, gear, food, and water for 6 days & 5 nights on the Stillwater section of the Green River. The aluminum box behind the trailer is one of the most important pieces of equipment since all solid waste must be hauled out.

This portion of the trip involves a fair amount of dirt road, including this section of steep hairpins. The road is pretty nice when dry, but the clay gets very slippery when wet! Last year, the road was washed out for six months, forcing them to move launches to a different canyon further upstream with a much worse road.

Our river trip started at Mineral Bottom (every flat piece of ground on a turn in the river is a bottom) about 52 miles upstream from the confluence with the Colorado River. We had 2 sea kayaks, 3 sit on top kayaks, 1 short recreational kayak, and a tandem canoe in our group. The canoe got some respect because it hauled the groover (see aluminum box in first photo.) The river flow was the lowest we'd experienced in the years of doing this trip although it came up some during the week.

We stopped for a quick bite of lunch at the arch at the lower end of Woodruff Bottom. A lot of the bottoms are named for people who tried to settle the land. This arch is perhaps the finest example on this section of the river.

BJ always have a wide variety of goodies in her lunch containers. Everything from fresh fruit and veggies to high energy nuts and other things that would not be approved by some of my co-workers.

Camp for the night was a sandbar near Fort Bottom, named for a masonry ruin on a high point across the river from our camp that was apparently constructed as a lookout by the Anasazi. This was the northern edge of their range. (For some reason, none of us took pictures of the "fort" this trip.)  We were amazed to see headlamps moving around the "fort" ruin throughout much of the night this trip.

We did have one short section of strong wind today along Hardscrabble Bottom.  It was sure nice to have Kelli paddling bow with me.  Needed the power to keep the boat headed into the wind and making progress.

When is a Road Trip not a Road Trip?

Generally, I love to hit the road and see what is around the next corner, but sometimes the drive gets in the way of other priorities. With four boats and gear for five people for six days on the river, and just a week off of work, the 540 mile drive to the launch is sometime to get out of the way as quickly as possible. The 6 am departure on day one was part of the plan.  The load looked like Jed Clampett helped, but at least it's secure.

A stop for fuel and the anticipated Navajo taco in Kayenta.  We've done this trip enough that we're starting to develop traditions.  The 1/2 serving is a smart addition to this developing tradition!

A quick stop at the north end of Monument Valley to marvel at the landscape before continuing on. It was smoky so the picture isn't spectacular, but the landscape is!  Someday we'll come back and spend time in the area instead of just passing through.

Ten hours later, we arrive in Moab, Utah for an overnight and a chance to catch up with the other members of our motley crew. The rustic facilities have become part of the experience - hot showers and a low traffic parking lot gives space for last chance sorting of gear.

We'll post the the remainder of the trip next weekend when we get off the river.

Packing and Toe Tapping

This is the part of a trip that I find both fun and frustrating. Fun because packing leads to anticipation of what the trip may bring. Frustrating because I'd like to move the start date forward - can we go now?? Some of the boats that will be making the trip have displaced BJ's car so we can start sorting out paddles, PFDs, throw bags, etc. Meanwhile, the trailer is left home this trip.


The house is sporting three small piles of packed gear that will join the boats in the garage in a couple days. Her stuff, my stuff, and our stuff - aka kitchen and food stuff. Everything gets loaded in and on the truck Friday after work for a sunrise departure Saturday morning.

Her Stuff

My Stuff

Our Stuff

This is the tenth time we've launched a flat water trip on the Green River in Utah.  Every trip has been different, but every one has been special.  Looking forward to another great trip with good friends.