Soon I was bouncing down dirt roads in an overstuffed van full of boats, paddles, coolers, and friends, I couldn't have had a bigger smile on my face. There were more than a few occasions we thought a hole in the gas tank would develop from bottoming out the van and rambunctious rocks flying off the tires. The only damage the van sustained was getting the spare tire ripped off the bottom of the van when we got slightly high centered while powering up a steep hill where no road was found. By the time I got to sleep it had been a solid 24 hours of pure driving, but well worth the adventures to come.
The first day the brothers and I prepped the gear and tied it all down while we waited for the others to arrive. Driving from the take out to the put in took the better part of the day and we didn't get going till about six o'clock. I had the pleasure of guiding one of the boats and made great time, in about an hour and a half we covered 12 miles on the taseko, which is roaring fast.
Right before we eddied out there was a class 4- rapid that takes about a 60 yard river and narrows it to a 12 foot wide shoot, so we were going fast! We dodged a rock and then had to immediately turn so we didn't smash into the canyon wall and flip the boat, great fun.
We camped Saturday and Sunday without a whole lot of action just resting and watching the local tribe fish the tsaeko river with nets as they have been doing during the salmon runs for hundreds of years. To my dismay I was informed that it would be a 500 dollar fine if I was caught fishing as such.
On Monday we decided to hit the river hard and cover some liquid. Just as we had passed the Chilcotin river confluence we came around the river bend and there was a truck in the river, so we eddied out and decided to investigate.
As we were tying off a Mountie popped his hat over the thick river reeds and boy was he glad to see us. He had Kolby kayak over to the truck and make sure that there were no bodies inside. I can only imagine how long he had been standing on the river bank scratching his head figuring out how he was going to do it without getting wet. Fortunately there were no bodies so we decided to shuv off and call ourselves heros anyway. Along the trip I saw countless bald eagles, golden eagles osprey, black bears, fish, moose, and deer kind. We went through some good rapids that day but unfortunately they were just class 3. By the end of the day we had covered no less than 50 miles. Set up camp and cooked some A class grub, and were set for a solid nights sleep.
Tuesday was one of the best days, David a friend from Hawaii spotted something moving in the water and dove in after it, it turned out to be a 45 Lbd salmon making it way up the river to lay its eggs. No sooner had we saw it then David had it bear hugged and was swimming it over to the boat!! David tossed the fish up into the boat but it flopped out, no worries, David then proceeded to swim under the boat after the fish and throw it back in. If I had not seen it with my own eyes I might not have believed it. We strung a NRS strap through its gills and hung him off the boat to keep him cool and fresh for the nights feast! Delicious.
Also tuesday was the first time I had ever tried white water rafting, which was mint I must say.
The first time I was pushed out to hard and flipped, the second I was pushed into a rapid and flipped, the third time as is always the charm, I was able to keep upright and work on my balance in some flat water before I got to some rapids. By the end of the day I ended up going through a 2 mile consecutive stretch of class 3+ water which was brilliant!! I absolutely loved it! Paddling like a mad man through the wave train trying to keep balance all the while water was splashing in my eyes and being forced down my throat. Kayaking is one of the ultimate rushes, I am now convinced. I plan on getting into it in the near future as soon as my situation allows.
Wednesday we definitely went through the biggest rapids that were only class 4 but still very fun. Rapids that are in a narrow canyon are very fun to navigate through and can also be very tough. The other boat almost flipped, and they lost Alyssa out of the boat,luckily she was able to hang on. After these rapids we hit the Frasier river and proceeded to the take out point. But only after maliciously attacking the other boat with buckets of water, and proceeding to call them a bunch of scalawags. We hauled all the gear up to the cars and washed the boats down while turning it into a nice slip and slide.
By the time we had all the gear loaded on the cars it was pretty rediculous and we realized this would never fly in the states.
That night I drove all the way back home and made it to mount Shasta where I would spend 5 days with the family before flying out to Utah to go to orientation for Jerusalem.
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