# When were you humbled on the river?



## Bwick84 (Apr 4, 2017)

We had a bit of a humbling experience this weekend. We raft the Little Salmon every year in Riggins the first week of May during the rodeo. The stretch we do is usually around 18 miles, but we pulled out after a mile and a half. We weren't hitting the lines we wanted because the river was pushing us around. It had poured rain all night on Friday and we went the next morning. We weren't sure of the flows because the gauge wasn't working right before we left (at least it wasn't showing up on American Whitewater or the USGS sites), we just knew it spiked a bunch from the rain.

We've done this section for years and while it's a continuous class III/IV run, we have never felt like we couldn't get to where we wanted, until this weekend. After a brief swim from one of the paddlers we re-evaluated and luckily we were all on the same page and decided to end our run, we just had to get to the road side of the river. A big thanks to Bob for letting us go through his property and giving us a ride.

The swim was around the 7:00 mark if you don't want to watch the whole video.






Here's what last year looked like if you want a comparison.







So when did you get in a little over your head and get humbled on the river?


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Discretion is the better part of valor, and you lived to boat tomorrow.

Every time I have an unplanned out-of-boat incident that precipitates a bootie beer, I've been humbled.
Swim in Eagle Pack Bridge rapid on the Lochsa in about 2011, first swim in 15 years of kayaking. Missed breakfast, had not enough blood sugar and bonked.
Another raft flip on the Lochsa in 2010 at 10' in Termination. Humbled.


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## Bwick84 (Apr 4, 2017)

MT4Runner said:


> Discretion is the better part of valor, and you lived to boat tomorrow.
> 
> Every time I have an unplanned out-of-boat incident that precipitates a bootie beer, I've been humbled.
> Swim in Eagle Pack Bridge rapid on the Lochsa in about 2011, first swim in 15 years of kayaking. Missed breakfast, had not enough blood sugar and bonked.
> Another raft flip on the Lochsa in 2010 at 10' in Termination. Humbled.


Definitely, I figured my wife should be able to celebrate Mother's Day the next day so it wasn't worth it. Lochsa swims can get nasty real quick and would definitely be humbling.


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## Norcalcoastie (Jan 4, 2019)

Thanks for sharing. I got humbled on the Middle Fork Eel river in California on a trip I shouldn’t have gone on. Normally we’d run it from 1500-7500, but the info we had said 10k was the upper limit. The water was 11500, so we thought, “close enough”. We had drysuits, good pfds, helmets, swiftwater rescue - so we’re good right?

Immediately after launching we found ourselves in VERY pushy water. It was all I could do to keep the boat on a safe track. When we got to one of the few class IIIs, Island Mountain, we scouted and couldn’t believe how much bigger the rapids were. However, you are able to scout very well from up high and we ran it clean. The problem is that the next rapid, Kekawaka Falls (normally II/III) has no scout and is around a sharp corner. Your boat scout is very quick! The falls had developed a pour-over from damn near right to left. A tiny sneak on river right was all there was. The boats in front of me had figured this out and saw me come around the corner, fresh off my high from running the last one clean. The furiously signaled me to go river right, but it was to late. With no options left, I squared up the boat to the falls and ran it. Initially, I thought we had made it! A second later the hydraulic pulled me straight backward like a tractor beam, spun the boat sideways and I was ejected from the boat! The swim was complete beat down.

As I came up, I saw that my buddy had somehow stayed in the boat and it had not flipped. He managed to get it under control, but there was a yard sale and me floating down towards more rapids. Bob Stanley, a river ranger on the T, was just down below in his brand new Wing raft and quickly pulled me in as he had set a safety.

Yeah, I guess it wasn’t that bad, but it’s very remote and rescue is on yourself. Decisions have to be made quickly, and at that point and I kept thinking - we probably shouldn’t have launched at those flows. I could have waited a week for better flows. We learn best when we’re honest and take criticism.


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## jgrebe (Jan 16, 2010)

Back in '74 I was in AK for a couple of summers. Had a cheapo plastic raft - no PFD or other gear. A buddy ( Ray Hodge) and I were driving up the Kenai and saw a section of a river that looked fun,so being 18 young and dumb decided to put in without a full scout. I'd grown up on the Arkansas and had run whitewater all my life so wasn't too concerned. Turns out it was called Six Mile creek and a solid class IV. Entered a Gorge we didn't know about and promptly swam. Should have died but got really lucky and was strong and luckily knew how to swim whitewater. Never ran another river without knowing what was there


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## Bwick84 (Apr 4, 2017)

Norcalcoastie said:


> Yeah, I guess it wasn’t that bad, but it’s very remote and rescue is on yourself. Decisions have to be made quickly, and at that point and I kept thinking - we probably shouldn’t have launched at those flows. I could have waited a week for better flows. We learn best when we’re honest and take criticism.


Glad you made it out. I've definitely had a couple times where I thought after the fact, we probably shouldn't have launched at those flows. Definitely a good learning experience.


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## Bwick84 (Apr 4, 2017)

jgrebe said:


> Back in '74 I was in AK for a couple of summers. Had a cheapo plastic raft - no PFD or other gear. A buddy ( Ray Hodge) and I were driving up the Kenai and saw a section of a river that looked fun,so being 18 young and dumb decided to put in without a full scout. I'd grown up on the Arkansas and had run whitewater all my life so wasn't too concerned. Turns out it was called Six Mile creek and a solid class IV. Entered a Gorge we didn't know about and promptly swam. Should have died but got really lucky and was strong and luckily knew how to swim whitewater. Never ran another river without knowing what was there


There is some wisdom that comes with age. If I was 18 on this trip I don't think we would have pulled out.


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## Bigwaterforeveryone (Feb 7, 2018)

Back in the days when my kayaking skills were peaking, I agreed to join my girlfriend at the time and a few other local boaters on the Lake George to Cheesman section of the S. Platte. The first half of the day was a blur of tight slots, whitewater filled chutes, must make moves and near terror. After miraculously making it to the bottom of some beast of a rapid, I recognized I had no business being there, so I hiked the rest of the way out. I credit that big slice of humble pie with the helping me live through my late 20s/30s and still be boating today.


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## Ripper (Aug 29, 2012)

I swam Royal Gorge (ARK) somewhere around 5800 - 6k CFS a few season back. I came off the couch from loosing the season prior due to back surgery, and thought it would be like riding a bike. Hell, I had been hardboating for well over a decade at this point with stouter runs on the resume. I had been in there once before at a slightly lower level and figured I still had it... A lateral blew me up, and I couldn't hit my roll. I came out of the boat and swam river right before the narrows area. My two buddies went for my boat... I proceeded to hike to where it walled out, and as suspected there was no boat. Suited back up and jumped in to swim to river left (crew was waaayyy downstream at this point). I made my 2nd mark on the left bank and proceeded to hike around 6 mi. out on the train tracks. I knew if I didn't hit my 3rd spot on the left bank it was going to be a horrible swim through the narrows w/o a boat...

I got to the take out, and no buddies were around with my truck. They had gone back in to look for me, and I hadn't stayed put... borrowed some random dudes phone, and met back up with them. Strange dude hugs for sure when we met back up as we were against daylight at this point. They were about 30min. out from calling in search & rescue on me. They asked if I had my boat that they had stashed about a 1mi. upstream... I did not... We hiked back up and got the boat, and I was exhausted to the point of having to have a buddy paddle my boat out.

Humble pie was served up cold and stout that day... Several lesson learned for sure... the irony is that morning we got moving late and almost bailed on that lap. I convinced the crew it would be a good story to tell about getting in there at that level. Little did I realize that hung over morning I would become the story that would be told... I now do family shit on Father's day ILO of running highwater without them...  Proceeded to spend a bunch of time in my playboat dialing my roll back in at the playpark and letting the high runoff come down following that swim. Took a bit to get over the head game on that swim more so than previous aquaman adventures.


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## LZMJRAFT (May 3, 2021)

Couple years ago 3 catarafters got complacent, didn't scout Husum Falls. 3 faceplants and carnage, thank you White Salmon for the lesson we had forgotten.....


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## DidNotWinLottery (Mar 6, 2018)

Some background. Only 5 or so trips rowing a boat, but hey, it takes 33 years to win a Grand Permit, right? So I better start entering the lottery...won a trip my first try for 2021. Wayyyy in over my head!

I ended up falling out in Crystal. Got knocked off the side on my down stream ferry and right into Crystal hole, hydraulics shipped my right oar and snapped it and the spare off. That force knocked me out and I swam to the island, but my boat and passengers eddied out with out issue. LOL Then I jumped back in for another swim to get picked up by another boat. Put me on edge for the rest of the big rapids, especially Lava...for no good reason.

Now if we want to talk about IKs....They might still have that bone headed flip in Zoom Flume on the website.


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## upacreek (Mar 17, 2021)

Did Desolation Canyon with a buddy during peak flow (22k) that year (2017) in small, narrow cats that in hindsight were def not rigged to flip. Scouted everything major, but the water was real pushy and there were still some surprises...like almost getting pinned and rolled against the boiling left wall trying to sneak Steer Ridge. We camped just above Wire Fence, after a tricky run through Joe Hutch...where I probably psyched myself out from too much time spent there staring at the huge hole among hearing the rapid roar all night. Low and behold, the next morning I rowed apprehensively slow into it and stalled on the huge standing wave, flipping the boat and desperately trying to right things before swimming right into Three Fords. Good times.


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## cupido76 (May 22, 2009)

Looks pushy for sure.

About 7 or 8 years ago I was paddling a section of the upper Red Deer river in Alberta that I hadn't done before.

I actually did a different section the day before with a paddle crew of 5 and it was spicy but manageable.

The next day the river almost doubled overnight and I came around a blind corner on a fast and pushy river to see this feature... a river wide flat ledge but about 4 times as much water in it as this pic. We had no time to try to find the best line but honestly the entire thing was basically a raging recirculation. 

When I saw the feature I screamed at everyone to paddle hard and we launched over the drop and ALMOST cleared the recirculation... but it dragged us back in and didn't flip the boat but we pitched 4 out of 5 Including me.

We swam for a while over some smaller broken ledges and finally got everyone back in the boat. We were all soaked and pretty cold so agreed to pull the plug but we still had to get a ways down to where the road came close to the river.

In that last stretch I was screaming commands and my relatively rookie crew were paddling gods! We made some moves that were very impressive... fear and adrenaline I guess! 

When we saw the road we pulled over and dragged the boat up through the woods and I hitch hiked back to my truck.

Humbling for sure but also a lot of fun in retrospect. 

As you can see from the pic, at low flows it's a walk in the park.

I'll add that I didn't flip or lose a passenger on the Grand the year before but this one got me.


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## wack (Jul 7, 2015)

I'll admit I was a noob. Colorado River on the Moab daily @ 22k cfs Had the whole fam in the 13.5' old NRS boat. Everything was fine until I started to follow the commercial paddle boat which was going for the 'sporty' line against the cliff wall. I realized too late I didn't want that line and it was too late to take the inside line. I hit a mid-river curler head on in a smaller boat with 4 people. I fell out, but the whole family stayed in the boat . I lost a $300 oar and submerged a brand new iphone ($$$) Lesson learned...when with the family, take the easy line on new water and have oar tethers on at all times.


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## Whitewater Worthy Equip (Dec 11, 2013)

When I left my spleen on a rock. Trip report is available on AW and I’m a case study for trauma conferences. If you push it long enough you’ll get the opportunity to witness some shit, sometime from the first person.
Stay safe and boat smart.


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## Pinchecharlie (Jul 27, 2017)

Need a link please!


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## greenwave77 (Feb 14, 2020)

Browns Hole Middle Fork Flathead at 20k in 2008. Thought I could punch it but I couldn’t. Dislocated shoulder and swallowed A LOT of h2o. Finished the trip down to WG and didn’t get back into a boat for a month.


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## azpowell (Aug 14, 2014)

upacreek said:


> Did Desolation Canyon with a buddy during peak flow (22k) that year (2017) in small, narrow cats that in hindsight were def not rigged to flip. Scouted everything major, but the water was real pushy and there were still some surprises...like almost getting pinned and rolled against the boiling left wall trying to sneak Steer Ridge. We camped just above Wire Fence, after a tricky run through Joe Hutch...where I probably psyched myself out from too much time spent there staring at the huge hole among hearing the rapid roar all night. Low and behold, the next morning I rowed apprehensively slow into it and stalled on the huge standing wave, flipping the boat and desperately trying to right things before swimming right into Three Fords. Good times.



Hmmmm... did you camp with a group from CO and AZ on that trip?


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## sarahkonamojo (May 20, 2004)

Poudre 5.5' Paddle raft. Carnage at 3 Way. (Not us, but 2 other boats with swimmers everywhere.) Took out. Ran Bridges instead. Short and sweet.
And numerous other adventures over the years. The river has a way of changing my perspective.
Be safe and smart.


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## upacreek (Mar 17, 2021)

azpowell said:


> Hmmmm... did you camp with a group from CO and AZ on that trip?


Sure did...and played some lively games of Kubb. Wondering perhaps if you've got a video of that flip?


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## Elvez (Mar 29, 2005)

Ooh ooh, me next! My first year kayaking ('98?) I was borrowing a friend's Eskimo Topolino. Our local creek (Potlatch) has a canyon section that's class 3-4 at normal flows. I ran it for the first time with a good friend at low flows... 2.7-ish on the gage. It was the best time of my life up to that point. My friend had to be away for the following weekend, and it rained on snow that whole next week. His words to me before he left were, "Don't run that canon this weekend."
I met up on Saturday with a couple other guys from work who were much better boaters than I was at the time, with class 5 skills. I told them how much fun this run was and they were in. We got to the put-in and the gage was at 5.5 and rising. We shrugged our shoulders and figured, let's see what's up in there. We cruised through the first couple miles on this brown frothy roller coaster until we got to the entrance of Coleman falls, the first rapid that starts the canyon section. Eddied out and I told them that after the next right bend things pick up a bit. They let me lead, and I got absolutely destroyed in a river-wide hole above the main drop. In a Topo. I tried so hard to get out, but it was a no-go and I pulled the skirt. The next minutes were the worst thing I've ever experienced. Class 4+/5 flood-stage, no drysuit, caught in whirlpools mid-river, dragged over rock ledges and into swirling eddies with nothing to grab to stop myself. Somehow got to shore (I don't remember this part at all), and looked downstream to see a 3' thick river-wide strainer just downstream. I was in wool socks because my Tevas were carabinered in the back of my lost Topo. Started post-holing upstream through crusty snow, dogwood bramble and slippery basalt in a steep narrow canyon to try to warn the other two, but I never saw them until much later. I did find their boats on shore though, right below where I swam. I found a first aid kit with a gauze pad and a pencil, wrote a note for them that I was okay. Eventually re-connected with them and hiked out. Worst swim I ever had. Found my boat a week later miles downstream.

ETA to OP: Looks like you put in a little below Hazard Creek? That 16mi. stretch from there to the rest stop is no joke. The river bed is so messed up and artificial from highway construction over the decades, the water doesn't know WTF to do sometimes. There's a braided-stream section with various cobblestone islands and exposed roots in there somewhere that's messed me up a couple times.


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## Acheron (Apr 5, 2021)

On a run I've done quite a few times I got too comfortable one day. I was fishing in my one person raft (U-shaped, open front, legs dangling) and thought I had passed the last lowhead dam. I was wrong and didn't notice it until I was way too close. I had no time to grab the oars and it was all I could do to kick myself towards the main flow...however it wasn't enough and I got sucked between rocks. The rear pontoon on my boat got stuck and stopped on a rock as the front of the raft pitched downward over the dam, the forward momentum kept me going straight out the front of the raft. Luckily, I had both arms on the side pontoons grasping handles and as I slid into the water I did a dolphin kick and was able to pop back up onto the seat of the raft. Took me a few minutes to shimmy off the rock and inspect everything made it. I didn't even get water above my waist, but the situation was not lost on me, my heart was racing and I knew I was an inch away from a swim and my raft would have been stuck on the lowhead dam!

I felt like an idiot for letting my guard down. What probably upset me the most was that I simply wasn't paying attention and that's a Darwin-esque sin on the river. 

I've almost flipped on low head dams several times, or at least been stuck in the suction for longer than was comfortable.


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## jbLaramie (Feb 1, 2021)

Humbled, but not by a rapid. Paddle day trip on the New River in WV with a bunch of others. Rained 2 inches the night before and things were rocking with IVs that may have become Vs. Spill outs here & there in the rapids without issue getting people back in and going again. Problem happened when we jumped in to swim a a section with just a few riffles in a calm spot. Wife got disoriented under the raft when it floated over the top of her. I was on the side of the raft & didn't notice. When she finally came up it was clear something wasn't right but she was conscious & still breathing. Got her into the raft & she spend the rest of that trip on the floor of the raft hugging the thwart. So many ways things can go south in a hurry.

Edit - I was also out of the raft swimming at the time it went over her : /


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## Paco (Aug 3, 2007)

My first and only time trying to IK slaughterhouse, I didn't pay much attention to flows. I had rafted it a few times and figured it'd be all good. What I learned that day was- when someone, who was just on the cover of the local paper r2-ing Crystal Mill Falls, seems impressed that you're IK-ing slaughterhouse at the level, mayyyyyybe you should reconsider.

I'd still like to try again at a "friendly" level.


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## Pinchecharlie (Jul 27, 2017)

Man I tell you what's freaking me out, I haven't really been spanked yet...fuck...I ve been pretty leary to go but iam having fun and want to! Knock on wood, salt over shoulder (what else?) It's not funny but I think running over my wife would be great fun lol!! Sorry I bet she was not happy! I ran that last year and it's pretty steep and juicy. All the Colorado stories seem fun too! Let's go !! Woot woot! Of course after it comes down !!!


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## jbLaramie (Feb 1, 2021)

Pinchecharlie said:


> Man I tell you what's freaking me out, I haven't really been spanked yet...fuck...I ve been pretty leary to go but iam having fun and want to! Knock on wood, salt over shoulder (what else?) It's not funny but I think running over my wife would be great fun lol!! Sorry I bet she was not happy! I ran that last year and it's pretty steep and juicy. All the Colorado stories seem fun too! Let's go !! Woot woot! Of course after it comes down !!!


LOL - did you get your wish from your wife the day you learned you were a lottery loser this year? That post cracked me up. Took a few years before my wife would get into a raft again. Coincided with when our kids were very little so wasn't a huge net loss.


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## Roseldo (Aug 27, 2020)

Many years ago, as a first year guide, I guided a float down Brown's Canyon at very low water (350ish according to memory) with a very fully loaded paddle boat. I managed to get the boat badly stuck on a rock. I hopped out and began yarding on the bow line while standing on said rock. I managed to rip the D-ring off the boat, which led to me punching myself in the face and falling over backwards off the rock into the water.

No tips were forthcoming.


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## Idaho_ski_bum (Jun 22, 2018)

Last year. Main Salmon. Launched at -4 feet on the Corn Creek ramp. Lowest I've ever seen the Salmon.
I stuck my 16 foot fully rigged raft on a rock in Growler. The current wag pushing hard against my right side and to the left was about a 3-4 foot drop into a hole on the down river side of the rock I'm stuck on. I have myself, wife, 15 year old son and 9 year old daughter of friends stuck in the middle of the river. We were a 3 boat trip, I'm last on this section. Our other 2 boats eddy out and tie up, then hike up with throw bags. We attempt 3 or 4 throws, but it's too far. I had been prying with my oar, pushing and pulling to no avail. We were STUCK. I dig into my pin kit and pull out a long 8mm rope and nearly get it to shore. One more try and we got this I'm thinking, but as I get ready to throw another group of boats rounds the bend and enters the rapid. I don't want rope in the river with boaters coming, but I do try and signal to other boats that I could use a tug. I'm ready with my throw bag, one end tied to my oarlock. 4 or 5 boats pass us up, just managing to get by and avoid rocks themselves. I make eye contact with dude in a blue Hyside who is locked on and headed right for me. He's going to give us the bumper cars save. I drop my rope and jump back on the oars right as he bumps us hard off of the rock. We slide over and now blue Hyside has taken up my position as "Stuck Boat". I holler at dude and toss him my throw bag, which he quickly wraps around his oar tower (this is where things got extra scary). As rope comes tight tied off between boats, it spins my raft away from the direction of pull effectively raking a clothesline across the front of my raft and pinning wife against the side tube. It was only a second or two before I corrected and blue boat was off the rock and ropes were free, but I learned a lesson that day about how quickly things can get scary with ropes in the river. Rope burn across the lady's back below her PFD was the only injury. We camped early that night at an unexpectedly cool spot (Easter Egg) we were all ready to be off the river after that.
I'm going back for redemption this August.


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## mfinco (Oct 18, 2020)

Yuba River - North Fork, guided trip. We had just paddled our asses off to get out of the hole in Maytag - class V (after 15 minutes of scouting). We were so exhausted and thrilled, we were high fiving and flying high. Guide didn’t tell us that Son of Maytag class IV was just a few hundred yards past Maytag. Unprepared, we entered sideways. Full ejection. Guide was the only one able to hold on to the flipped raft and was gone. I spent a solid 45 seconds under water. I learned what “life flashing before your eyes” meant that day, as every second spent under water there were visuals of various family members appearing (literally flashing) as though it was the end. Survived and made a pact with myself that I would never get on the river again. A few years later I gave the river another chance and discovered just how fun class II/III can be. So I modified my pact.


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## Whitewater Worthy Equip (Dec 11, 2013)

Been there but no guide, just Guy. Serious piece of water. There is so much big whitewater in that area it will make your head spin.


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## upacreek (Mar 17, 2021)

These are great stories and hope they keep coming...as there's no shame whatsoever sharing an experience others might appreciate or perhaps even learn from. I especially appreciate the sense of levity for a sport/hobby that can often be taken way too seriously.


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## mkashzg (Aug 9, 2006)

I was on the local backyard run Slaughterhouse (IV/V) a few years ago with my buddy and his wife in a 9' Mini Mi at about 1200 cfs. It was higher than we thought as our gage was down for a few years and had come up dramatically from our previous run a few days before. We 'made' it through Entrance Exam and ended up flipping and swimming in the falls not long after. They recirculated in the hole for awhile and I spit out with the boat headed down stream and was able to catch it just before it went over the weir where Maroon Creek enters before it headed to Glenwood Springs. When I finally got out with the boat I had a golf ball size bump on my shin but they were ready to continue on. I knew there were much worse rapids ahead with much more consequences so I was able to convince them to pull the plug and we walked the half mile back to the put in humbled but alive. That is the only time in 30+ years on the river I have not finished a run.


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## lisacanoes (Nov 6, 2012)

Bwick84 said:


> So when did you get in a little over your head and get humbled on the river?


Several years ago I lucked out and got to run the Grand Canyon, then join some kids on Westwater (3,600cfs) in my slalom C-1. To my Grand River-acclimated eyes, the water was tiny and great fun to play in. The kids had been paddling Lyons at low flows, so it was huge to them.

I was having such a grand ol time surfing and playing that I got a bit cocky. I eddied out river left at Sock It To Me to run safety for the others. I got to looking at the hole there at Sock, and was seized by a sudden impulse: to surf the hole. After the last of our group had safely navigated the hole, I confidently paddled onto the wave. After the 9th unintentional cartwheel, sending huge ends into the air, I was starting to worry. How would I get off of this thing? I looked back to the river left Eddy where one of the kids waited for his turn to surf, and as I made eye contact, I saw the fear I felt reflected in his huge, saucer eyes. After a few more involuntary cartwheels, I made some moves and forcibly ejected myself from the wave through some combination of luck and sheer determination. None of the others, who had been so eager to surf, followed my lead into that monster. 

I was a different boater after that, and have learned since to temper the wild urges I sometimes get with the remembered taste of that humble pie.


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## Pinchecharlie (Jul 27, 2017)

Man... you guys are awsome!!


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## Gchapman (Feb 26, 2018)

North Umpqua, Trip Leader on a commercial trip. Last trip of a 2-week long stint running daily trips on that river. I’d been guiding for a few years and was possibly a little more confident than I should have been. Toilet Bowl rapid involves an S-turn around a semi-sized boulder on river right. My normal conservative line keeping the bow of the boat pointed at the rock was abandoned on the day I had a strong paddle crew and felt confident they could pull the boat out of the hole before hitting the rock. We dropped into the rapid, I pointed the bow river left and called a forward paddle whereupon everyone froze at the sight of this huge boulder rapidly approaching. We demonstrated a picture perfect high side, dumping everyone out of the boat except for me and the 10-year old. Collected everyone in the pool behind the rock and finished the day feeling like a rookie.


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Got MIGHTY humbled on Saturday.
The Lochsa flat-out SPIKED last week...from 9k to 18k in two days. Warm weather and sunshine.

Went up for the Madness weekend and most of my crew wasn't coming up for another couple weeks. Buddy of mine and I decided to R2 my 13' boat...on the Upper.
Launched from White Pine, everything was fine down the first couple 3+ wavetrains but Lost Creek got us. We were ferrying to the right and caught the wave at the top left. Figured we'd slide off the top and surf toward the right, but in spite of high-siding, it flipped us. We both came up near the boat and hung on. We proceeded to bang our way all.the.way.down the holes on the left. I had my left fingers in the floor lacing and my right on my paddle and the chicken line, and I was unable to pull myself up onto the boat. The kayakers we were with bulldozed us to shore and luckily the eddy ripped us in before we got to the logjam below it. My adrenaline was spiking and I was getting shocky. Arms were cold and numb. We sat for about 10min, warmed up, and made the wise (wiser would have been to run the Lower or stay in camp) decision to get off. We ferried across to the right, drug the boat up the embankment (used the guardrail as a belay point) and sat on the boat for about 45min and drank a beer, exhausted. Hitchhiked back to camp and spent the rest of the weekend on shore.

Sunday was sunny and lower flows (only about 14k) but we just watched stupid human tricks at the Falls. More rain and Monday spiked again at almost 17k.

Found a low-res video on Youtube. This is exactly what it looked like:


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## Riverlife (11 mo ago)

Great thread! I have been trying to remember a good story myself. There have been so many! My humble factor might resemble the diurnal fluctuation of a hydrograph in a high year!

Let’s see, starting from the beginning river humblings were pretty much just part of a day on the river. I say this with no pride whatsoever, but back when and where I learned there wasn’t much support for a newbie kid; so I made innumerable errors almost every time I paddled. I made all kinds of stupid errors, some of which I hesitate to even admit in such a public manner! 
-First time getting surfed and flipped by a hole. I had literally no idea what that was, or why it kicked my ass so violently!
-First (and last!) time surfing a low head dam hole. It looked like such a gentle “mini waterfall”. “What could possibly go wrong”? In the winter, at high water, solo, with zero understanding of river hydraulics…. (Spoiler; I got VERY lucky!) 
-first impact with current in my new (ancient!) hard shell kayak! WTF was that; someone just tried to tip me over for no good reason) 
-first 3way! (Not that kind) Missing my roll, swimming, and seeing my buddy miss his second…and third roll attempts; my other buddy was already swimming by this point.
-first hike back to the car in the snow (yes, uphill, BOTH ways!), car keys and warm clothes spent the night in a logjam 

Ok, now we’re getting dangerously close to the stuff I hesitate to admit…

In my defense, the absolute only thing that I can say…is that at least by having such regular ass kickings on class 1-2 whitewater (mostly), we got a lot of experience dealing with rescue stuff in less hazardous situations (mostly…). Well that, and the fact that I have learned a ton from each and every one of those humble moments. I have learned and improved and changed in more ways than there is space to tell. And yet…I still find myself being humbled from time to time. Countless hours, miles, and days on the river and it still teaches me something every time I go. These days the lessons aren’t as often about river skills or safety; moreso they are about life in general. But yeah, pretty much always humbled, one way or another, from my wonderful days on the river. Hope that I never outgrow that…


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## Paul_Beckford (Jun 12, 2010)

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sarahkonamojo said:


> Poudre 5.5' Paddle raft. Carnage at 3 Way. (Not us, but 2 other boats with swimmers everywhere.) Took out. Ran Bridges instead. Short and sweet.
> And numerous other adventures over the years. The river has a way of changing my perspective.
> Be safe and smart.


Mad respect for aptly named Killer Bridge on the Poudre, seen a ton of carnage there. Not a big rapid but bounced down Ansel Watrous Falls on my head seeing stars and blacking out. Nearly paddled the Narrows at high water, ferried across river at the top to wait for my friend and broke a paddle peeling out of the eddie to drop in. Got pulled back across via throw bag, went back into town to buy a paddle, and noped out of a second attempt.


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