Paddling the John Wesley Powell Route by Mike Bezemek

Author:Mike Bezemek
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781493034826
Publisher: Falcon Guides

In the Quarry Exhibit Hall, which you can access at the Dino NM visitor center, you can view fossilized dinosaur bones preserved as they were discovered in a cliff face, including these femur bones from an apatosaurus (top) and diplodocus (bottom). There will be a quiz later on.

The next day, we floated past the commercial group, and I apologized again. We’d never been to Dino—nor any river with assigned sites. We’d be more careful the next time. All was forgiven with friendly waves and smiles, so we floated onward to an amazing 3 days. The mishap was entirely my fault. I should have been more careful when reviewing the permit. But a few friends did wonder why we’d spent over an hour during our launch inspection dealing with spare life jackets, without so much as a reminder of the campsite situation. And speaking of next times, it didn’t seem like most of them were excited to come back.

At take-out, before we’d even secured our boats, a ramp attendant came asking for our permit. When the commercial group arrived a short time later and was asked the same thing before touching land, the older guide nearly went full boot camp again. Run for your life, I thought. While we put away gear, three rangers arrived. One approached for a post-trip inspection.

“You look nervous,” she boasted.

“You don’t know the difference between annoyance and nervousness,” said my buddy under his breath.

Before we could start, a stiff wind struck the ramp, which soon picked up into a sand-strewn microburst. In an instant, our unloaded raft was violently barrel-rolled across the river surface a hundred yards upstream. Paddles and dry bags flung across the ramp onto nearby boulders. One friend ducked behind my truck, nearly impaled by a flying oar. I’d never seen anything like it. Never seen a group of rangers laugh harder in my life, either.

While I swam into the river to retrieve the boat, I heard the rangers joking about how common these winds are. Upon returning, I considered inviting them to a hilarious hilltop I know that’s frequented by lightning. But instead we just packed up after a final long day in Lodore.

I don’t imagine most of our crew will ever go back, though I hope to myself. And I don’t imagine too many of them would raise much of a fuss if the corporate-industrial complex ever comes knocking at Dino’s door, talking about shrinking the monument with designs on short-term exploitation. And that’s a shame because Dino protects about 100 miles, on the Green and Yampa Rivers, of the most unique canyons in the United States. Plus, with all the cultural artifacts and historic sites, it more than satisfies the Antiquities Act.

But at some point, if nearly every river runner shares the same concerns, it seems reasonable to ask, What’s the deal with Dino? Certainly, the problem is not the very concept of regulation, but perhaps the application? Due to entrenched bureaucracy? Poor training and leadership? Do they just need

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