Author: elibeck12

The History and Types of Whitewater Dories and Inflatables

By Peter Winn I selected all but three of these images from a 2010 presentation about global whitewater boating that I made for the Grand Junction W.A.T.E.R. Club (Western Association to Enjoy Rivers).  Many of them are of flips or wraps, but in reality it's safer to float the rapids than to drive the shuttle … Continue reading The History and Types of Whitewater Dories and Inflatables

Desert Notes: Mountain Lion Refugia

Morning coolness lingered in the side canyon, the heat of summer yet to reach into the depths. I walked the dry wash along the canyon bottom, watching the cliffs for the wrens chittering somewhere above, looking down only to secure my way – and so the mule deer head startled me, lying in my path, upside down below a cottonwood tree.

Dammed if You Do, Dammed if You Don’t

Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell: The Sediment Problem Peter Winn In 1969, I took the tour though Glen Canyon Dam just before putting in on a Grand Canyon trip.  One of the posters in the dam's visitor center explained that by holding back sediment carried by the Colorado River (Spanish for “red colored” river), … Continue reading Dammed if You Do, Dammed if You Don’t

July 1996: After All These Years… Boating the San Juan Before Glen Canyon Dam

Historical Fiction by Doug Ross Rafting the lower San Juan River in the early rubber boats, circa 1950. Note the old-style inflatable life-belts. All photographs courtesy of Doug Ross. Editor's. Note: This story was originally published by the Canyon Echo and the San Juan County Historical Commission in July 1996 as part of the ‘Life Along the … Continue reading July 1996: After All These Years… Boating the San Juan Before Glen Canyon Dam