John cruisin' through Twenty Stitches
Bev catching air in Twenty Stitches
The club taking over Breaks Interstate ParkThat night, the crew rolled into camp & caught some shut-eye before undertaking the gorge the next day. All together, it was Edgar, Trevyn, Eric, Justin & myself heading into the RFG that morning. I remembered vividly looking into the gorge one year ago when getting out at garden hole & planning to run it one day. Little did I realize I'd come back to run the gorge at low water six months afterwards and at release a year to the date after that first trip to the Russell Fork. It was a nervous anticipation, but I was ready to go.
Unknown boater flyin off the left of Towers
My unconventional line at TowersWe took a good bit of time scouting at Towers. After watching multiple boaters run various lines, I decided to go for the far left line of this rapid. Obviously, I did not clean it as the unknown boater above. Rather, I nearly got flipped by a submerged rock, hit a hard right brace and had to power through Tower's juicy hole running left to right. Continuing down river all but Edgar & Trevyn in our group portaged Fist. This was the first of many rapids I've been glad to set down my ego, pick up my boat & walk. We finished out the river enjoying the classic drops of the RFG....Triple Drop, Climax & El Horrendo.
Edgar punching through at Triple Drop
Trevyn walking back for more @ El Horrendo
Trevyn running the left line
Justin firing up El HorrendoOverall, I had fairly good lines the rest of the day and the exhilarating feeling of nailing my boof at Climax. Truly enjoyed this gem of a river and amazed at how far I had come in one year's time. It was also a turning point in my paddling. While I continue to challenge myself, I am no more heedlessly firing up any big drop I find. As they say, there are old boaters & there are bold boaters; however, there are no old bold boaters. It's o.k. to walk now & then.
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