Kayaking the Colorado

As if we hadn't pushed ourselves enough on  Saturday, Mouse and I decided to add a little more excitement to the weekend.  That's how we found ourselves paddling fiercely up the Colorado River  as the sun was setting behind the Arizona canyons, desperately hoping our riverside campsite would show itself before darkness enveloped us. (Yes - we actually were headed upstream.) We had made this trip before, and knew we were close, but were becoming slightly more nervous with every stroke.

We hadn't intended to push our luck like this.  We had had every intention of getting an earlier start. As soon as we got back to Vegas on Sunday afternoon, we switched out our gear, grabbed our kayaks, and headed past the Nevada border to kayak the portion of the Colorado River just south of the Hoover Dam.  But, of course, one thing always leads to another, and we ended up putting in at Willow Beach Marina much later than we had intended.

Initially, I was thrilled we had launched at the later time.  The heat of the day had passed, making our paddling much more comfortable.  After battling the blistering climate of Zion the day before, I welcomed the lower temperatures afforded by the shaded protection of the canyon walls.  Even better, the upstream current was almost negligible, making our paddling a breeze.  But my excitement faded as the daylight diminished, and we passed mile marker after mile marker with no campground in site.

True to form, we spotted our intended destination as night was quickly closing in, and skimmed our kayaks up along the sandy shore just as the last tidbits of light vanished from the sky.  If we had been a moment later, we would have had to navigate the river in complete darkness.  Leave it to us to arrive just in the nick of time.

The Arizona hot springs is one of our favorite little hideaways.   The only way to reach this semi-remote camping area is either by boat, or a fairly long hike from the highway, so it often feels like our own private getaway.  Unfortunately, we weren't so lucky this trip.  A very large, loud, and boisterous group of girls had already set up camp by the time we had arrived, their music and shrieks of laughter dashing our hopes of a peaceful night.  Fortunately, we were still able to find a secluded spot tucked back into the canyon, which allowed for a little solitude and some sense of tranquility.  We sipped our wine, chilled by the fire, and welcomed this chance to relax after such a strenuous weekend.  It's moments like this that remind me how lucky I am to live the life I do.