MF Day 4, 6/13/2007: One longer MF day.

Mile 51.8 (Cave camp) to mile 75.7 (Fly camp).

Our longest day on the river. 23.9 miles.

Sparky had been very careful about using lots of moisturizer on her hands, being in the water so much really dries out the skin. However, she forgot to moisturize her feet, so this day one of her heels began cracking. If you've never had that happen, it is amazingly painful. Also difficult to keep sand and dirt out of. Let that be a lesson for you all: first, don't end sentences with prepositions, but perhaps more importantly (as if anything is more important than good grammar), when on extended river trips, take care of your skin! Moisturize!

By the way, "How do you fix a cracked heel?" One word, "Superglue."

A friend of ours, Shelly Becker, a quite accomplished rafter had been down the MF three or four weeks prior to our trip and had told us that the most trouble she had was in Tappan Falls, where she ran too far left and ended up surfing the hole for 15 minutes. This may have been an exaggeration, time seems a whole lot different when you're stuck in a hole, but I have no doubt it was an epic ride.

So when we approached the falls on day 4, we did it cautiously, and scouted. The run was obvious, near the right bank. But the group that had been following us wasn't worried, so they just ran it.

This guy is too far left, but the level was forgiving enough, he only stayed in the hole for a few seconds:


More bad video of Sparky:


CB hitting the correct line.

We all made it through Tappan Falls with no issues (other than Sparky dropping a well placed F-bomb), I need to once again reiterate: we floated this river at a very forgiving level.

Our next stop of note was "The Flying B Ranch." The Flying B is most notable for having a small "store" where you can buy some stuff you may have been missing from the outside world. Like ice. Or insect repellent. Or an ice-cream bar. But only if you bring cash or check. No plastic accepted.

Don't expect "Wal-Mart" pricing either, I think my ice-cream bar was $3.00, and Bama's bag of ice was $5.00.

Still, it was handy to get a cold treat in a wilderness area. There is also a "restaurant" there but only available by reservation. I think it would be kind of fun to make a reservation online, then float down to eat there. Maybe next time.

The "gate of death" leading to the store.

Haystack rapid was next on the agenda: another rapid that has been changed dramatically by a "blowout." This time, it was made easier. The blowout occurred below the rapid, backing up the river and effectively drowning the lower part of Haystack. My guidebook recommended running the left side of the rapid, which we did, but the right side sure looked easier to me. I don't really trust guidebooks.

Finally we made it to Fly Camp, where we all took a break and sat drinking some beers, hard lemonades and other cool libations (Bama used his newly acquired ice to make iced-tea, but it wasn't "hard" so the rest of us didn't partake)

That was falafel night, with carrot cake for dessert. Both quite a hit.