Colorado River: Spanish Bottom

October 25, 2015

Day 7

It was quite a beautiful experience to actually legitimately cowboy camp for once. The stars have been my blanket several times, but never before had I slept beside hot coals. Outside of the confines of a tent, upon awakening, I could see Venus looming over the cliffs as the sun began to rise and set the cliffs ablaze. The Slide was roaring from just upriver. Moonflowers and all sorts of wildflowers blossomed on the island. After breakfast we put in once again. This would be our last day on the river. Soon we made it to the Confluence, where the Green River merges into the Colorado, and two different colors of water can be seen. This time the Green River was red and the Colorado brownish-green. We rowed into the Confluence to touch the waters of the Green. Tex's Riverways' daily shuttle was picking up people who had just floated down the Green, mainly with canoes. We passed through Spanish Bottom and took out at river left just before Cataract Canyon. The ominous roaring of its first set of rapids echoed upriver, warning us not to come near. We were wary of attempting that canyon, with its Class 4 and 5 rapids, in these dinky pool rafts. As we pulled into the beach, a mud flat, a beaver playfully swam nearby and watched us as if it were sending us off. Views of the Dollhouse were opposite the river from us. We ate lunch and deflated and packed away our rafts. And then, leaving the river behind which had been our home for the past week, we followed Red Lake Canyon trail into the backcountry of Canyonlands National Park.

Moonflower.

Cowboy camping.

Paddling into the Green River Confluence.

A small set of rapids.

The Dollhouse.

Tex's Riverways at Spanish Bottom.

Looking down Red Lake Canyon trail at the Dollhouse and the river.

Eventually we were led to Cyclone Canyon, with views of the Needles. It was growing darker by the minute and we needed to find a place to camp soon. All of a sudden we heard the first canyon wren since the Colorado River canyon, and it sounded more distinct and beautiful than any I had ever heard before. It guided us straight to a campsite behind a boulder.