Zizumara Runs the Colorado

Sept 28 - Oct 15 2010
Constant 8,000 CFS ...we thought.

Fueling up at Late for the Train in Flag.  Then we hit the road toward Fredonia to pack up for the trip.

Before the Ziz was dipped in the Colorado she was christened with Martin's favorite.. Sheep Dip. -I think it may have stripped a little of the paint off!

At the ferry the weather was perfect.  In the evening we were treated to incredible music from the fine men of Can-X.

We started the trip with clear water and high temps. Gorgeous!

The Ziz is a dream boat.

Though its so loaded at this point my footwell has 5" of water in it.  The hatches are full to the top and I feel like it wants to take off on its own.

Luckily I am carrying produce so it should get lighter.

 At Saddle we really started getting into the groove.

 Everybody had sweet lines through our first big drops.

The Ziz is loving the Canyon's currents.

 Dory sleeping is nice.

Around Lava Chuar the sky starts looking a bit ominous.

 Above Unkar we are treated to a light show.

Then it comes... Wind and rain, flash floods, camp goes airborne, the river goes red and the rapids get mean.

Overnight the river rises 3ft... possibly 3,000 more cfs.  Just in time to run Hermit and the inner gorge.  Yippee?

Things get a bit wild and I forgot to take pictures from here on out.  Hoping the clients will fill in the gap!

Crystal Rapid officially breaks in the Ziz... literally.

We went into the left wall and hit the 2nd fang.  The sound was horrible but luckily we hit directly where a thwart meets the hull.  The gunwale was scratched and about 1 inch below the gunwale and the hull has a hairline crack.  Everybody stayed in the boat too.

A piece of duct tape took care of the fix. Whew!  Got lucky.

They say its good luck to have a clean boat.

Uh-oh.

Still in one piece below Lava Falls... I can breathe now.

...Until 205 leaves its mark.  Had a huge hit at the bottom of the steepest drop I've ever run.  There was plywood floating in the footwell... I was sure we were sinking.

Somehow we didn't flip.  I hope someone has a photo of me trying to row an underwater boat.  The Ziz was going back to her dolphin roots.

She's a sturdy boat! Just a big compression buckle. Not even a hole.  Patched with epoxy putty during lunchtime and back on the water towards our last night's camp.

The trip was incredible.

Wild weather, an awesome crew and the Ziz was a dream come true.

Can't wait to do it again.

The Ziz is back above Lava!