Grand Canyon Training on Big South Fork of the Cumberland?

About a month ago, I got a call from Adam Goshorn informing me that he had won a permit to paddle the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. Since that time, I've been buying gear to keep me warm and gear that I needed to camp. I even had to buy a new boat to fit the task at hand of paddling 226 miles through the Grand Canyon with all my survival gear onboard, since we won't be taking rafts with us. We will accomplish this feat in 7 days at 33 miles per day.

I would need a boat capable of running the big rapids found on the Colorado River while still being able to handle the multitude of flat stretches. Additionally, the craft would need plenty of cargo space including a dry cargo hold. I looked at boats from Jackson Kayak, Pyranha, Liquidlogic, and others. I studied the options carefully and ended up purchasing a Liquidlogic Remix XP10.

At 10ft 3" long and having a volume of 105 gallons, the Liquidlogic Remix XP10 would meet my needs of paddling the Grand Canyon. It has a dry cargo hold in the back, foot pegs in front so storing gear in the bow is easy, and a moveable skeg on the back to help with straight paddling across pools of water.

To stay warm on the water, I chose IR's Union Suit. It's a full body fleece suit that is very warm.
I would also need something to keep me dry. I chose the best...the Kokatat GMER Drysuit. I have never owned a drysuit before. Now owning one, I don't know how I survived the last 9 winters since I've been paddling.

Now for the test. For several years, I've been looking at a section of Big South Fork of the Cumberland that doesn't get paddled for it's whitewater. It's the Station Camp to Blue Heron Section that consists of mostly flat water with the exception of class 2 shoals and the class IV Devil's Jump. It's long been known as an overnight run with it's 19 miles of paddling through a wilderness gorge. Up until now, I had always dreaded 19 miles of flatwater. But now, I got a long boat that is fast and can carry a lot of gear. Furthermore, I would need to paddle in cold temperatures to make sure I could stay warm enough with my new warm/dry gear. This would also be a test of how comfortable the outfitting would be in my new boat.

Last Sunday, December 12, 2010, Todd Scott and I would put our boats and gear to the test. We would set shuttle the night before at Blue Heron, then camp near the put-in at Station Camp. The next morning, we would begin our 19 mile adventure on the Big South Fork in the middle of a snow storm. Weather forecasts were calling for 5 inches of snow and we did have second thoughts. But I kept telling myself, if a snow storm happens while I'm in the bottom of the Grand Canyon, I'll just have to deal with it. That is exactly what I did this past Sunday.

After cooking a hot breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon, I was slowly motivating myself to paddle on this cold morning.

The Chimney Rocks at the put-in at Station Camp.

We launched at 10:30am across pools of water with class 2 shoals along the way. It had rained all night and the river level rose to around 3,000cfs. This surprisingly kept the pools moving.

There were cliffs along the way. It is a really pretty gorge that so many people never get to see.

Paddling through the snow.

Brandon is in the lead with Todd following in his Pyranha Speeder.

It was a cold day with temperatures never getting above freezing. Ice began to form in my beard along with a 1/4" of ice on my PFD.

Our first stop was at Bear Creek where Todd built a fire and I cooked hamburgers and hotdogs.

After scouting Devil's Jump, we decided to portage due to so much flow going into some badly undercut rocks. We both agreed that we could probably make it, but if something went wrong neither of us would be in a good position. After a full day of having a great day, we didn't want to push it. There was an easy portage on river left on a horse trail.

Looking upstream at the cliffs above Devil's Jump rapid.



Looking downstream from Devil's Jump rapid. Todd and I almost didn't get our spray skirts back on our boats after our portage due to so much ice on our skirts.

We made it to the takeout at Blue Heron at 4:15pm. Todd always has to have his coffee. At the takeout at Blue Heron, he got his stove out so he could cook a cup of precious.

Two park rangers met us at the takeout also to inform us that they had closed the road but that we could still get out by driving around the signs. By this point the snow was really coming down. We came back to civilization to a world of slick roads and scared drivers with several inches of snow and ice on area roads.

In conclusion, we paddled 19 miles in 5hrs & 45min including stopping to build a fire to cook lunch and a long scout and portage at Devil's Jump. The Liquidlogic Remix XP10 did an excellent job on both the flat sections and the class 2 shoals and wave trains. The XP10's seat and outfitting were very comfortable. The IR Union Suit kept me warm and toasty while the Kokatat GMER Drysuit kept me dry. I know that the Grand Canyon will dish out much larger water and much larger rapids, but I am now confident that paddling 33 miles a day in a loaded kayak is very doable. I look forward to the upcoming adventure.

Till Next Time, Pray for Rain!

All photos taken by Todd Scott.

All gear photos were stolen from Internet sources without permission but for promotional purposes.