Boy, what lengths some people will go to in order to have a party!

After yesterday’s successful day in Westwater Canyon, I said good bye to most of the group and headed for Grand Junction where brother Dan and wife Joan hosted a party complete with a miniature kayaker on a Birthday cake.

There were between thirty and forty friends and relatives there, some of whom I hadn’t seen in a long time. A grand time was had by all, especially me-thanks Dan and Joan!

With the largest contingency yet of fourteen including Kathy, Alex, Joey, Kyle, Dave, Derek, Thatcher, Greg, Holly, Carl, Alley, Stephanie, and Tamara, we waved good bye today at 10:30 am to Marilyn, Torrie, Ruthie and Doug. Since she could not join us in the rafts, Marilyn had the bright idea of having a photo taken with me as we dipped our toes in the water. She said she wanted a picture of her with me “on the Colorado River”.

The water was slow and our two oar rafts, one paddle raft and one inflatable kayak had to contend with the ubiquitous upstream wind in the afternoon. If you know your geography, you know that we are now in Utah. But, at a time like this, do you know in what county? You guessed it-Grand County!

We made it fourteen miles to historic Dewey Bridge by 3 pm, where the river enters a gorgeous area known as Professor Valley because of large rock formation resembling a professor lecturing a few students. The current speeds up noticeably in this section, which was a welcome change.

After a couple miles, we were able to see brilliantly colored vistas of the deep red Fisher Towers and the snow-capped La Salle mountains. By just after 5pm we stopped for the night at Hittle Bottom, a well-maintained public camping area which also is very popular with local rafting companies as a put-in point.

The weather was perfect for what we did-sunbathing and enjoying the rhythm of the river and scenery beyond compare. Of course a few jokes were shared as well, most of which could eventually be traced to Joe M. Lacy.

Even though there was virtually no white water on this section, everyone enjoyed themselves, the weather and each other. Seems like not only the fun, but the types of fun to be had here, are endless.