floating the san rafael river

June 23, 2010

Exploring Utah on snow, water or dirt never gets old.

Spring run-off fills the 'Little Grand Canyon' just enough to make it float-able. River is visible in the lower right of photo.

Waking up to the full bareness of the desert

We stashed the moto in the bushes at the take-out.

Awe and wonder

Inflatable duckies packed and 'put in'

Smiley first mate Riley

The large walls rise quickly on both sides and you become small

Escaping the sun at this 'rest area'

Dwelling

The heart of the canyon

Cave

Farewell to the sun

Summertime and the living is easy

Best 'Take out' food around

Some moments are easier to find perfection than others

Intoxicating fire

Beautiful day to be alive

This must be where lazy rivers go on vacation. These were as big as the 'rapids' get.

Winding and gliding back out into open country

Taking out at the bridge

A pretty simple little weekend in an otherworldly landscape. The river float is roughly 18 miles (in blue) and the car shuttle is 17 (in red).

Tags: San Rafael River, San Rafael Swell

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010 at 4:34 pm and is filed under Near Life Experiences, Summer 2010. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

11 Responses to “floating the san rafael river”

JOHANNA says on June 23rd, 2010 at 5:10 pm :

OK THAT LOOKS LIKE SO MUCH FUN!!
GORGEOUS GAL, AND AMAZING SURROUNDINGS-GOOD TIMES

I LOVE YOUR NEW BLOG!
noahhowell says on June 23rd, 2010 at 6:05 pm :

I thought of you guys and how much fun it would be to go together. Maybe in a year or two?
Hayduke says on June 23rd, 2010 at 6:21 pm :

Did you ride two-up on the bike back to get the car?
Derek says on June 23rd, 2010 at 6:36 pm :

Looks really fun Noah. Hope I can do it next spring.
noahhowell says on June 23rd, 2010 at 6:37 pm :

No, solo back to the truck, seemed faster and more safe. 1hr for the car shuttle if you rally it (hit 65 on the moto on some of the dirt sections).
Andrew says on June 23rd, 2010 at 8:14 pm :

Damn you Noah – floating rivers, updating websites, riding motos. GET BACK IN THE BASEMENT AND START EDITING! Or, have some children. You are having too much fun.

PS – very cool looking trip!
andy says on June 24th, 2010 at 9:34 pm :

great trip, did you see the petrogliphs at virgin spring canyon? the little grand is a great place, i have done that float and it’s a good one. i was half shitfaced by the time i made camp. haa haa.
noahhowell says on June 25th, 2010 at 10:40 am :

No, we didn’t see the petrogliphs at V-spring. How far up the canyon are they? That is where we found that really small ‘dwelling’. I’d like to go back and do more exploring, especially the caves high up on the canyon walls.
andy says on June 27th, 2010 at 7:16 pm :

they are not far up canyon, high on the right a short ways from the mouth. In virgin spring canyon there is a impassable dry fall (unless you walk the rim and drop in after the dry fall) that has a large clear spring at the base of the fall. I have never seen the petroglyphs you photographed, I know of others in the canyon but i have never seen that one. I have been on 3 backpacking trips in that canyon and one boat trip, good gawd it a great place, and close to SLC. I would love to get an idea where they are. If you want to see some pictures from my trip and exchange beta shoot me a e-mail.
Mikell says on May 4th, 2011 at 3:33 pm :

Hey do you know what the flow rate was when you did this trip?
noahhowell says on May 4th, 2011 at 3:41 pm :

Hey Mikell, it was just over 200 I believe. Sounds like that’s the recommended level.