Now that we had a permit and the group set, we had to make this trip happen. Planning the logistics of a 3 week trip is toch enough, but a 3 week trip on a river totally cut off from civiliation was frightening. Luckily, a friend of mine used to be a commercial raft guide on the Grand Canyon. As soon as I got my permit, I started pestering him with questions. His best advice was to go with an outfitting company for the raft gear and food. Not only do they do a ton of work for you, they also know all the regulations. So you're less likely to forget some important piece of equipment. We ended up going with Professional River Outfitters (PRO). They are probably the most expensive, but only by a little, and they have a very solid setup. They will help you figure out what gear you need and have pre-written menus to choose from. However, I don't recommend the Powell Meal Plan. Their staff walked me through everything, and I felt very well taken care of. With all the planning I was going, I was getting pretty burnt out, so I asked for help from the group. In the end, we had coordinators for the following:
Everyone did a great job with their tasks and I felt a lot better about this trip actually being pulled off. Since there was a ton of information to deceminate amongst the group, I started gathering it in a single document that I called the trip's God Book. The idea was to take a couple copies on the trip, so we wouldn't have to remember anything. PRO also gave us 2 binders with our menu and their Primer, which was invaluable. With the addition of the trip God Book, we definitely had all the information we needed at our finger tips. Now that most of the planning was either completed or well on its way, I had to figure out my own personal gear to bring. I definitely wanted to kayak, even though I had heard that the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon was mostly flatwater. Because I knew my back wouldn't be able to handle kayaking every day, I wanted to share a kayak with someone else so that the unused boat wouldn't be a burden to the group. In the end, I worked out a deal with Chris, one of the rowers, to bring his boat. That way he'd have one if he wanted to take a break from rowing for a while. I had all the kayaking and on river gear I needed, like a wet and dry suit, but I didn't have a lot of viable camping gear. Both the PRO Primer and the Grand Canyon Private Boater's Association's (GCPBA) personal gear list was very detailed and complete. I ended up buying most of my personal gear at CampMor.com. They have a great selection and are very competatively priced. Now that everything was paid for, my gear was packed, and my heart racing with anticipation, I headed to the airport after work on Monday, March 3rd to begin an amazing journey down the Grand Canyon.
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