"That Pee Bucket is a Game Changer"

It has been three weeks since I boarded a helicopter out of the Grand Canyon. Words cannot express the majesty of the Grand Canyon seen from a raft on the Colorado River. The white-water rafting trip was both exhilarating and incredibly peaceful. The camping, well that’s another story – let’s just say the views of the canyon and the time on the raft made the camping tolerable.

That last day I had four different views of the canyon. The first was from the boat we’d been on all week long. At 7:30am we boarded that boat for the last time to go two miles further down the Colorado River to the helipad. The people from Bar 10 Ranch coordinate the order in which we get on the helicopters. I was # 1 – which meant I sat right up front next to the pilot. That was view # 2 and THAT. WAS. INCREDIBLE. The helicopter took us to Bar 10 Ranch where we’d board our charter planes. Everyone else was taking the flight back to Las Vegas – but I had to fly back to Marble Canyon where I left my car. Flying back to Marble Canyon meant flying back over the Grand Canyon. View # 3 from the charter plane was equally amazing. I have to say – getting in my car and driving after being on the boat all week felt so strange. (I was knocked back into reality when I gassed up my car … >$5 a gallon though). From there I stopped at Desert View Watchtower in Grand Canyon National Park for my fourth and final view of the canyon on my way back to Chandler, Az. Desert View Watchtower (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)

Rafting through The Grand Canyon was like nothing else I’d ever experienced. So many times, when not holding on tight through the rapids, I found myself in awe of everything I was seeing. Throughout the 188 mile trip down the river our Boatsman/Guide, Wade, explained the history of the canyon, all the different types of rock that make up the canyon and the stories behind the named rapids. (If a rapid has a name, it’s usually after someone who died there.) Wade’s knowledge of all things Grand Canyon was remarkable. We learned so much from him throughout the week.

The trip began with an orientation meeting on Sunday, June 19th. I drove to Marble Canyon that day from Chandler, where I’d been for a little more than a week. That night I met the group I’d be with for the 6 day, 5 night camping / white water rafting trip down The Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. I knew two of the ladies, Merrie and Donna. I met them last October at a fancy spa in Carefree, AZ. (Yes, I met them at a fancy spa and then we went camping!) Since booking the trip I seriously contemplated canceling… at one point I didn’t care if I lost all the money I paid for it. I probably should have been nervous about the white-water rafting part of the trip as The Grand Canyon has the largest rapids in North America. Nope, that was not my concern, I just could not wrap my head around being without a shower, a toilet, running water, or a roof for six days. I didn’t buy one thing to prepare for the trip until one week before it began. That may have been because everything I buy is added to my luggage that I transport everywhere I go; but it was probably because I was in camping denial and up until the last minute I was thinking no, I just can’t do this. But I did.

At orientation that night they told us everything we needed to know about the trip and gave us two dry bags each. The larger one had a tarp, sleeping bag, and sheet – it was also where we would put our duffel bags. The smaller dry bag was for whatever we wanted to have access to during the day. The next morning I took and extra long shower, knowing it would be my last for six days. After breakfast we loaded up our bags and hopped on the vans for Lee’s Ferry. There we boarded the boats that we’d be on the rest of the trip. We had two boats and 15 people on the trip, plus the five people from Tour West who took amazing care of us all week. Our trip consisted of 11 ladies and 4 kids (ages 11-16) … we split up 8 and 7 on the boats. I could not have asked for a better group of people to be with. Every day we grew closer and closer, by the time we left I think we all knew we had new friends for life. We are even planning to go back next year to do the three day trip that takes you to the end of the canyon.

So what was it like? Every day was pretty much the same, we woke up and went to sleep with the sun. The day started with coffee, tea, a hot breakfast, and packing. After we ate the boats were packed by 7:30am and we were headed down the river for another day of rapids (of varying levels) and amazing views. It was hot every day. The water in the river was very cold but so refreshing when sitting in the hot sun all day. Usually around noon we’d make a stop for lunch. Our guides would put out a spread of cold cuts for sandwiches and snacks. Then, mid afternoon about 3 or 4 we would stop to set up camp for the night. When we pulled over to the shore, they would tell us how things would be set up at that site, where they’d put the kitchen, bathroom and living room. They also pointed out where we could set up our cots. Then everyone would form a fire line to unpack all the gear from the boats and figure out where we wanted to set up our cots for the night. There were no tents. If we wanted one they would have set them up but it was way too hot to sleep in a tent. We would put down our tarp first then set up our cots on top of it. We had pads to put on the cot to make it a little more comfy. We also slept on top of the sleeping bags and just used the sheets. There were only two nights of the five that I actually slept inside the sleeping bag. Again, just too hat for a sleeping bag. The sheet was actually enough.

My first night was rough. I don’t think I slept more than a couple of hours. And it was obvious on day two. I barely spoke two words that day. Merrie was convinced that was the end of our friendship. Not gonna lie, after night one of no sleep I really didn’t know how I was going to get through the rest of the week. The only thing that made the camping tolerable was the rafting. It’s really impossible to describe what it’s like to be riding down the river in the Grand Canyon. Now that I’ve done it, camping aside, it really is the best way to see it. Aside from the lack of sleep I was very preoccupied with bathing, or the lack thereof. The water in the river is extremely cold but that was the only option. I just didn’t know what to do, that was what bothered me the most. Yes, I did bath in the river but I still think there was a better way … I just never figured it out and the big package of biodegradable wipes became my best friend.

Then there was the bathroom situation. That was the least fun of all. During the day you did # 1 in the river and when we got to camp they’d set up the bathroom somewhere behind bushes or trees – usually a little bit of a walk from the rest of camp, because well, you know. The hand washing station was set up a distance from the actual bathroom. There was a piece of wood at the hand washing station that was blue on one side and red on the other. If it was turned to red that meant someone was using the bathroom. The bathroom had two buckets – one to pee in and the other for pooping and toilet paper. Remember, I said the bathroom as a bit of a distance from where we slept which presents a problem for people who may wake up in the middle of the night and need it. I made it through night one without having to go. But for night two I asked for a pee bucket. Which is exactly what it sounds like … it’s a bucket you keep by your bed and if the mood strikes you in the middle of the night, you get up, squat on the bucket and do your business. By night three almost everyone had one. And to be honest – they really were a game changer. It just made it easier and took the worry of walking to the bathroom at night with just a flashlight away. And yes, I really did think the pee bucket was a game changer ... I still can believe those words came out of my mouth. It’s not that I never thought I’d ever say those words in my life – it’s more a matter of I didn’t even know there was such a thing as a pee bucket. Who knew that was a thing? But it is, and I used it. I didn’t need it every night but the security of having it nearby definitely made a difference. I think that’s all I’ll say about the bathroom … that’s enough.

If you’re reading this it means you know me pretty well and I bet you’re wondering what I ate all week. Rest assured, I did bring some Cliff bars as a back up. Our guides made breakfast, lunch, and dinner for us. On the boats they had a bag of different types of bars and another bag of candy so we had snacks a few times a day. For breakfast I did have my cliff bars a few days but they had pretty good variety, even had pancakes and French toast if I remember correctly. Every day was a sandwich for lunch and at dinner we had burgers, spaghetti, pork chops, steak … it was all good and plain – so I was good! I think all the cookies they had helped a lot!

I’ve been trying to figure out how to decide which of the hundreds of picture I have I am going to post. I think I will have to just do a bunch of different posts with pictures so I can explain what’s in those attached to that blog post. This blog post will be dedicated to the wonderful people I spent my week with. My absolute favorite part of the trip was on our last full day on the river – there was a point where all eight of us were huddled together at the front of the boat talking and laughing. You’ll see us all in that picture here… (L-R) back row: Kathy, Donna, Me / 3rd row: Carolyn, Andrea / 2nd row: Claudia, Merrie / 1st row: Jody. Also in this post is our group shot of all 20 of us. As in all things, it's all really about the people you spend your time with that matters. It was wonderful spending the week with them and I still miss them all.

More to come!