Kayaking Adventure in the Black Canyon
Written: Nov 15 '99 (Updated Nov 15 '99)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: AWESOME KAYAKING OUTFIT
Cons: none!
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| saby's Full Review: Arizona |
I just got back from a phenomenal kayaking trip in the Black Canyon on the Colorado river in Arizona. A friend, who is lucky enough to be close friends with the owner of Pacific Coast Kayaking, organized the trip. Between these 2 guys they put together a dream trip kayaking in an incredibly beautiful portion of the Colorado River.
The trip started Thursday night when we all flew into the Las Vegas airport. Andy, the owner of the Pacific Coast Kayaking picked us all up at the airport and drove us out to base camp: The Railroad Pass hotel. This hotel is on the way out to the Colorado, giving us easy access out of the Vegas traffic to get to the Canyon to start the trip.
The Railroad pass is not by any means a luxury Vegas hotel. But the rooms are clean and the casino is friendly and low key. Andy had already checked us into the hotel and upon arrival we were handed are room keys and told to meet up in the lobby for a 7:30 am departure.
The next morning we were ready to go at 7:30 am. Those of us who had actually slept and not gambled into the wee hours were I think a little more ready… but nonetheless semi awake and ready to get to the river. After a relatively short 45 minute trip we were at the marina on the river getting ready to go. Andy and his team had everything orchestrated so the rest of us did not have to think about a thing. We merely had to follow directions: "Put on your sunblock"… "Put you gear by the boat" …."Make sure you have water" … "Please wear a life jacket" etc. It was great- you could really just slip into relaxation mode while Andy and his team took care of everything!
Within an hour we were on the river kayaking upstream…. yes upstream. This trip is not for those looking for a calm ride down the river. The first day we faced a 6 mile paddle up river, as the Hoover Damn slowly released more and more water. So there was definitely work involved, but with the guidance of Pacific Coast Kayaking, some juice and mars bars, and a fully catered lunch, we had a beautiful day in 75-degree weather, paddling upstream. We reached the campsite at about 3:00 in the afternoon, tired a little sun brunt but very happy. There is no better feeling in the world then the feeling you get after all day in the sun, in the outdoors doing exercise, with not a care in the world except get this kayak to the next snack/food stop.
Once into camp it only got better. PCKayaking had already lugged all of out equipment on a boat up to the campsite. All we needed to do was set up our tents and set off to the hot springs. The springs were about a 5 minute walk from camp, and were the most incredible natural hot springs I have ever been to. The water must have been about 105 degrees, all collected in a sand bagged pool that resembled an outdoor hot tub that fits 20 people. What can I say- after all day paddling you cant imagine a better feeling then a soak in a hot tub - in the black Canyon, watching the sky turn red as the sun went down.
And it only gets better. We returned to camp to find a fully cooked delicious meal- BBQ chicken, salad, mashed potatoes, and of course smores. After all this food, a little wine (well ok a lot of wine) and lots of (loud) singing around the campfire we all dropped off to bed fairly quickly.
The next day only gets better. After a good breakfast we set off on another day of 80 degree sunshine and more kayaking- this time all the way to the Hoover dam. Right before you get to the dam Andy took us to the sauna caves. These are exactly what they sound like- caves in the side of the canyon where extremely hot water drips and creates the effect of a sauna. I have never seen anything like it, but as David and Andy say - its most definitely the 8th wonder of the world!
The rest of the day continued with 2 more stops at hot springs. Each one magnificent in its own way. We again were treated to a great lunch, and then moseyed on down river to our camp site just in time to hit the hot springs there before dinner. Again after the hot springs we were treated to a delicious dinner, some drinks, a lot more wine (we could not very well drag the wine down river with us … it just had to get drunk). Good thing that the next day was a simple float down river!
The last day of this magnificent 3 day trip was a pleasant and beautiful day floating down river, letting the current do all the work. I have the feeling that all of us went a little slower, and purposefully lagged behind as we knew that once we got to the marina- the trip would be over.
If you are thinking of doing any sort of kayaking- and you have never done it before (providing you are willing to do some exercise) I very much recommend Andy Lukei and Pacific Coast Kayaking. He can be reached through email at pckayaking@hotmail.com. He and his right hand Reed have an incredibly well planned operation - and on top of it are blast to hang out with. I am not saying you can ever reproduce the trip I was on- as the people make the trip, and the people on my trip ROCKED! But if you are tempted to do something outdoors and want to experience a kayak adventure,Pacific Coast Kayaking is the way to go!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
saby
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Reviews written: 11
Trusted by: 32 members
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