The title of this blog post comes from part of sentence my wife said to me last week. As to everything there is a back story. As the meteorological summer (June, July, and August) is in its last month, we had planned a camping trip to the National Forest Campground, Laura Lake, about five or so miles northwest of Armstrong Creek, WI. We have camped at Laura Lake for many years, and it is the favorite of the campgrounds that we have used. That is why we keep going back. This year, it was a short three night stay, most of our stays have been five to seven days.
We always enjoy spending time at the beach on nearby Gordon Lake. On both lakes we watch loons, and for many years would see an eagle to two. This year I had the idea of doing something different. I suggested we do a whitewater rafting trip on the Menominee River. The trip I had selected involves a class IV rapids. There are six classes of rapids and the route, apparently, is classified based on the highest level rapid encountered, in this case class IV. My wife is rather diligent and did her research on class IV rapids. Her research basically narrowed down to my being nuts for even suggesting such a an idea. "Do you know what a class IV rapids involves? " she questioned, and went on to say that neither of us have any skill in doing such a rapid. I guess my tubing down the Crystal River as a teenager did not count. She then noted what would happen if one of us fell out of the raft, would we be seriously injured? That is when she pulled out her trump card, and said something to the effect of: "If anything happens to me you are going to have to explain this to the kids." Wow! I took that as a "probably not" on her desire to do the trip. Two things surprised me. First, she did not even suggest that I was possibly too accident prone for such a trip. Second, I wondered if this is the type A personality I married, a woman who jumped out of air planes and scuba dived? Probably knowing what was in my head she had noted we are in our 60's. She often comments on what she calls my ability to find an accident where none existed. She knows my history back to childhood. Back to whitewater rafting. The American Whitewater organization, on its web site describes a class IV rapid this way:
When I noted that the outfitter web site says: "This trip is appropriate for all skill levels, so bring the whole family." She quickly rejoined something to the effect that they expect people to use their heads. We both had limited experience years ago with some whitewater on the Ontonogan River with my brother Joe and his family. I recall Joe going down Burned Dam falls, now also known as Meximine Falls, on the river a few times in his soft-sided blow up kayak. My thinking was that the Menominee River course contained only one class IV rapid, known as Piers Gorge, it was not as bad as if there were several. If it had, say, five in a row, I may have re-thought my capability. Plus, I pointed out, there will be a trained guide in the raft. What I thought, but verbalized only after the trip, was that hey, Andrew several years ago fell down 18 Foot Falls in a Marinette County Park, and he survived. (Yes, when we saw that occur we both wondered whether he would pop his head up, and after many seconds, that seemed like many minutes, he came up, much to our relief.) This fall drops only 10 feet (by Michigan waterfall standards).
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Our raft disembarking from the shore
Guide is at front standing and giving instructions |
So, it was last week Friday or Saturday that I booked the trip during a phone call to the outfitter after asking a few basic questions. They indicated that they would send over the waiver forms by email to be completed. Now, I have to say (although of course I did not tell my wife this), I began wondering what I got us into when I read the following line in the waiver form: "1. The risk of injury from the activities involved in this program is significant, including the potential for permanent paralysis and death." I had already paid the not inconsequential fee and I knew no refund was possible. If it was once, it was a dozen times, my wife commented this past weekend and Monday on the 52 degree water temperature, the cubic feet per second (a budding hydro-geologist) the water was running as of Sunday morning, and other aspects of our upcoming adventure, such as did you know you can die doing this? Did I tell you she told me that one could die doing this? As I write this, my wife tells me a man died in 2012 when he fell out of his raft going through Piers Gorge and got stuck in the rocks. Yes, it can be dangerous. Lucky for me she found this out after the raft trip.
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This raft is not our raft, but was in our group of five rafts
It will give you an idea of going through Piers Gorge |
When we take a road trip we have kept the tradition my parents had us do and say a few prayers, followed by "St. Christopher protect us." As we left our campground this past Monday for the 50 minute ride to the outfitter, I am sure the prayer had more meaning in our minds than a simple road trip. We arrived at the outfitter, and when I saw others awaiting the rafting adventure, any trepidation I had went away. I thought, although I may be older, none of the others looked extraordinarily fit or more adventurous than I. As we waited, I ended up talking to another man, who mentioned that his kids and wife were concerned about doing the trip, and I noted it sounded a great deal like my wife. I then commented the absurdity of waiving negligence, which was on the waiver form. I noted I was not an attorney but knew enough that this would probably not hold up. He agreed with my comment and it turns out he and his wife are lawyers in Illinois. I was about to tell my wife our conversation, when she said, "don't worry, I heard you and so did everybody else." Oh, insurance companies.
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| Different raft in our group on July 30 |
After probably about an hour of floating and having rules, safety, paddling instructions, and rescue procedures explained we were coming to our first major test. A few things I took as crucial: first, the best way to get through a rapid is to do it fast, and to do it fast all paddlers need to act as a team, both sides of the raft doing the same stroke at the same time, unless one side is given, by the guide, a different direction, such as "left all back" (where the left side of the raft back paddles, while the other side continues forward. Second, was the need to act as a team if a rescue is necessary; everyone in the raft may need to rescue someone who fell in. Although it was in calm water at about 3 or 4 mph, he demonstrated a rescue to us. Third was if you fall in keep hold of your paddle and point nose and toes to the sky and go feet first as you head downstream. As we moved along he explained that we would first come to a boulder field, then Piers Gorge, and that would be followed by a class III rapid. While I began on the left side of the boat, the guide asked for a strong paddler on the left to switch with someone on the right. No one seemed to want to move, so I switched with my wife (not that she was the weakest paddler). What we both experienced was that the paddlers behind us, even though both said they have whitewater rafted before, did not keep with the timing set by the front paddlers.
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Different raft in our July 30 group of five
Imagine doing it backwards |
The boulder field was negotiated, and then as we approached Piers Gorge we paddled to the side to let out our less than aged 12 passenger and to beach the extra raft we were towing. As we approached Piers Gorge another raft, about 100 yards or more ahead of us, quickly went out of view. First, it is was there and then it was not. We listened to the roar of the water, possibly pumped by rain the prior day, and prepared for our descent into the wild water that makes up Piers Gorge. The raft successfully navigated the gorge, albeit through large waves from which we could not see or discern what was really going on. The raft made it through with all persons in tact.
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Monday Sunrise over Laura Lake
Author photo |
We then pulled to the side, disembarked and made our way a short distance up the bluffs and back to the area just before Piers Gorge. We would load in the boat we had towed, so the father who stayed with his child could get a ride and the mother now stay with the child. The problem is when the guide said to load up, no one was wanting to get in first, so my wife says get in, and I promptly got in which was the front left seat, my wife on the right side. As we approached the gorge, the guide had my wife and I switch sides as we once again headed once again into the raging waters of the gorge. The guide, appropriately, but reminding me of a financial adviser (past results are not a guarantee of future returns), said, that just because we made it the first time is not a guarantee we will all make it through the second. So, with my spouse and I in front we entered the gorge, rocks and water causing waves water parks at Wisconsin Dells could only dream about. As we enter the swell of water the raft turned around, so we were going down backward. Yes, backward. There was so much water in my face, I have to say I did not know this was happening. Listening to our guide we followed our instructions, and promptly turned the boat back into position.
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Monday Morning moon set over Gordon Lake
Author photo |
So, yes we had survived the famed Piers Gorge, not once but twice, but the class III rapids approached. What I quickly noticed, with de-laminating 12 year old glasses two prescriptions old ( I was not going to wear my new pair), was that the waves at the rapids were actually going up stream. The waves were heading toward us. Rocks and water can do funny things. The guide explained the need to keep paddling since the raft can easily stop, but if it stops the people keep going. We knew what he meant. Were some in the raft thinking this was going to be easy? I don't know, but it provided the most horrifying experience of the trip. We literally hit a wall of water at the front of the boat, that means me and my wife. It was probably less time than it seemed, but I am inside this massive wave, and my first thought is to look over to see if my wife is there. But, being in this large mass of water, I cannot see anything but the tannin colored water of the Menominee River. The next thing is I feel is her literally land in my lap. The wave, even though she had her feet properly locked in position including using the one foothold each front person gets, and the other locked under the side of seat lifted and swept her a few feet on to my lap. I guess she wanted a break from paddling. While it was likely short in time, all I could think about is if she got swept outside the raft I would never hear the end of it, hence my quick reaction to look for her. I mean, I would have to explain it to the kids. Luckily (or by the grace of God) for her, me, and the group, she was swept up and over on to my lap. I wonder if the she had been on my side of the raft and I on hers, would I have been swept over to her and by chance knocked her out of the raft and into the water?
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View of Laura Lake from our campsite
Author photo |
We survived in one piece. My spouse would say in response to when Andrew asked how it was that it was wet, wild and intense at some points. When we got back to the outfitter, the photos of us going through Piers Gorge were quite phenomenal. However, at $50 they were too pricey so they live in my memory. During times of high water flow, at about 5,000 cfs, this is a class V rapid. Summer water flow is normally about 1,000 cfs, but this year, due to more consistent rains, the water on Monday was running at 1,600 cfs. There was much less paddling than I anticipated, which given some in the raft, was probably a good thing. Yet, when you had to paddle, you had to paddle. When going through the gorge and the class III rapids, sometimes you paddle and hit nothing but air, given the position of the raft compared to the water. Our first time through the gorge most, if not all of the craft, was airborne. What also occurred, to me is that my wife termed our retirement as an adventure, and so it is now time to be adventurous, and I viewed the raft experience as one adventure. I realize that for many the experience would be old hat or not sufficient, but for a couple of retired persons it was a good experience, a good adventure. Talking with someone who lives in Armstrong Creek, I noted that we did white water rafting and went through Piers Gorge. He sounded surprised and said, "You went through Piers Gorge on a boat??" I even think my wife would not be against doing once more. When I suggested that I should try it in a kayak, she quickly shook her head side-to-side. She would not want to explain that to the kids.
Source: Whitewater photos from Wildman Adventure Website (notice the word Proof).
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