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RIDGES & RAPIDS
COLORADO, UTAH: Adventure Expedition
Backpack South San Juan Wilderness, Colorado
Rock Climb Estes Park, Colorado
Whitewater Kayak Desolation Canyon,
Green River, Utah
Whitewater Raft Desolation Canyon, Green River, Utah
Explore Rocky Mountain National Park
Time is precious, so we are wise to spend it in the right places. The Great Sand Dunes National Park is the place to go. Here we take the time to answer questions, sort out food and gear, and prepare to backpack for four days through the South San Juan Wilderness. Our trail takes us up hills, through meadows, alongside lakes, where, sometime in the middle of June, the summer sun briefly melts the snows, allowing us to travel through the alpine landscape. The land of rolling hills surrounding the vast plateau offers plentiful wildlife, excellent fishing, beautiful scenery and few people. Thick stands of aspen and pine meet fields of wildflowers.
Our next stop is the Green River in Utah. For five days we whitewater raft and master kayaking skills in both hard-shell and inflatable kayaks on Desolation Canyon. Don't let the name fool you - the reality is anything but desolate. Each bend in the river reveals a progressively more difficult rapid within the 90-odd-mile whitewater crescendo that peaks on the final day's run through Gray Canyon. The river's plunge pools - where each rapid is followed by a stretch of calm ripples - offer us a chance to regain our composure before diving into the next wave along the winding corridor. Lining the river gorge are traces of the Fremont Indian culture preserved in petroglyphs, stone ruins, arrowheads and pottery. We camp along beautiful, clear-water side streams and canyons, and on pristine, white sandy beaches, many conveniently shrouded by clusters of tall cottonwoods.
Finally, we work our way to "Jurassic Park" for two days of expert instruction in rock climbing, knot tying, belaying, rappelling, and setting anchors. Soon we're climbing top-rope, moving to multi-pitch rock climbs and Tyrolean traverses on some of the best crags in Estes Park. Climbing through off-widths, overhangs, cracks, and faces, we learn laybacks, finger-locks, hand-jams, and toe-jams - and find there's no other sport quite like this.
We cap things off with a sensational farewell banquet. Escorted by our trip leaders, we board a homeward-bound plane, tired but content, filled with memories of an amazing summer.