It's no wonder this secret slips out more and more. With the water levels close to record levels this year it will be interesting to see how much pressure the river gets. If you are going out, preparedness is your best defense.
With the beautiful scenery around almost every turn its no wonder that it's easy to forget the details and preparation needed for such an adventure.
With the season around the next warm turn I will start to create a few straight technical details post for anyone new this year needing that hard to find information. If nothing else, a good place to start could be the River Runners Guide to Utah and Adjacent Areas.
The last thing anyone wants is for someone to get injured out there. When stopping by the BLM office in Escalante you might notice that they are very cautious even hesitant to issue a river travel permit. When I was there the first year running the river, they also didn't have staff on-site that could adequately speak about current hazards or conditions.
Back to the press... It is worth noting that although the river is listed as a Class I-II river there are enough obstacles, changing or unknown conditions and impressive currents at even modest flows. It's a great river for almost anyone with enough enthusiasm to take it on, but not to be considered lightly or attempted unprepared.
Without much delay I will publish Itinerary, Escape Route, Maps and Gear, Water and Take-Out information that will assist in your planning for the weeks to come. The flow is still low and recent storms in Utah have both added to the snow pack and kept temperatures cool, this may be a year where a mid June trip could be anticipated.
Be safe, more to come.
No comments:
Post a Comment