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Raft Grand Canyon, 22 to 28 August 2004 Day 7: Gneiss Canyon to Spencer Canyon to Pearce Ferry by Jet Boat We had been warned that breakfast would be a continental affair so I was pleased to have eggs in addition to pastries although by this time all of the protein was really affecting my system and my morning trip to the Duke was quite unsatisfactory, as it had been for several days. In short order we came to Separation Canyon on the left bank where in 1869, on August 28, 135 years ago to the day (thank the guides for not pointing that detail out!) Powell lost 3 of his 9 men when they decided to hike out rather than face the rapids below this point (the rapids have long since been drowned out by Lake Mead). They had been on the river for 97 days and had enough. The three men left and were never heard from again while Powell and those who remained reached a small Mormon outpost near the junction of the Colorado and Virgin Rivers only 2 days later. The six ragged men had 10 pounds of flour, 15 pounds of dried apples, and 80 pounds of coffee. It is interesting to note that only the last 1/3 of the Powell expedition was spent covering the section of river that we rafted through. It took them about 2 months just to reach what would later be the site of Lee's Ferry. For more information on the Powell expedition I recommend Down the Great Unknown by Edward Dolnick. We did not stop at Separation Canyon and the next time we did get off the Canyoneers boat we would not get back on. It was on the right bank, across from Spencer Canyon, where we transferred our gear to a jet boat and at 9:30 am left Ken, John, and Jamie for good (I must say that once we all were on the jet boat they looked really happy). Around 11:30 am we reached Pearce Ferry and an air conditioned bus waiting with lunchboxes from Subway and cold drinks. Prior to getting on the bus Emily and I rinsed off in the clear waters of Lake Mead and changed from our synthetic river clothes that we had worn for 7 days into nice and clean cotton attire. The bus drove us up from the boat landing to the bathrooms and by noon we were on the road. The bus took us south to Kingman and then east to Flagstaff such that we arrived back at La Quinta at 3:30 pm. The 146-mile or 2-1/2-hour long bus ride from Kingman to Flagstaff was especially grueling for Emily and myself since once we were packed up we had to drive to here parents house, 450 miles away in Rowland Heights (LA area), via Kingman. However, back at the hotel was a time for goodbyes, always a sad affair, especially when kids like Spencer and Taylor are involved. With hugs exchanged, we headed out of the hotel, at least I did, for Emily was being mauled by the kids. Andrew and Maria were also driving back to the LA that night, and we had to pass them in the right hand land near Williams despite their head start. I suspect that if Maria was driving we would not have seen them again. Once again in Kingman we had to stop for gas, and moments after getting back on the freeway at 5:45 pm, what did we see, none other than a truck hauling a Canyoneers boat in the opposite direction. By 6:15 pm we passed over the Colorado River and into California. As the sun set behind the Shadow Mountains we zoomed through the desert and had a "beauty alert" and sometime before 10:00 pm we arrived at Emily's parents house. 2-1/2 days later we would drive another 400 mile back home to Berkeley bringing our grand total up to 1,606 miles or more than halfway across the United States via the 2,943 mile route on Interstate 80 from San Francisco to Ocean City, Maryland.
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