Hatch River Expeditions

Full and lower River trips take out at Diamond Creek, Separation Canyon or Pearce Ferry

Hatch River Expeditions — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:59:02 +0000

Depending on the date and weather of your take out, you’ll end your trip at one of three locations. Launches after September 15th will hike out at Whitmore Wash and be transported to Bar 10 Ranch for the flight to Las Vegas, South Rim, Marble Canyon or Page.

Diamond Creek is a tributary of the Grand Canyon and converges with the Colorado River at river mile 226. The creek gains its name from a nearby diamond-shaped peak that towers over the river. This unique canyon is the only location within the Grand Canyon National Park that allows a vehicle to drive from the Rim to the River. The dirt and gravel road descends 4,600 feet and is primitive despite regular Hualapai maintenance. During monsoon seasons, flooding is common and dangerous for even the sturdiest of vehicles.

Separation Canyon marks the spot where three men in John Wesley Powell’s first exploration of the Colorado River separated from the expedition. Debates continue as to why they left the expedition. Their bodies were never found while the rest of the expedition finished the trip only two days after their departure. The three men left the expedition before the rapid, you’ll run the rapid before your departure!

Pearce Ferry is actually located within the upper end of Lake Mead National Recreation Area and not the Grand Canyon National Park. However, Pearce Ferry is synonymous with Lee’s Ferry in that it concludes one end of the Grand Canyon Colorado River experience. Pearce Ferry is named after one of its operators, Harrison Pearce, who ran a ferry in 1876.

A detailed history of the problems of silting from the Dam can be read on Durango Bill’s Grand Canyon 3-D Tour: About 1.25 miles North-Northeast of Pearce Ferry Near River Mile 280 in which he notes “The rapid will probably be submerged and disappear by the end of 2011 due to rising Lake Mead water levels and the resulting silt backup. Everything that occurred before 2012 (and everything that is recorded here) is about to become historical footnotes.”

As always, for details, download the most recent Trip Pack for your trip.

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where you sit on the raft makes a difference in the whitewater rapid experience you get

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:50:56 +0000

“I want to compliment almost every aspect of the trip. The sleeping bags are great, though unmatched by the stars dancing above you. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are to anticipate with hungry appetites. The rafts are truly ‘comfortable’. The tea room offers the best view, in my humble opinion, but not quite as refreshing as the bathtub. We arrived to the raft wondering where 16 people could put themselves and still move an arm or a leg, but there is space for all…people, luggage, and supplies. Amazing! I can clearly understand why many of your guests return for a second and third visit. I will tell everyone going to ‘hang on to their hats’ for one of the best times of their life.”

Margo C. Colorado. June 2011

photo: Randy Johnson

A video of view from the tea room during a white water rapid run and another video of the bathtub up front seeing some whitewater action.

the Colorado Mountain Club is Hatch’s guest for whitewater fun!

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 02 May 2012 16:53:54 +0000

Rosemary & Blake Clark have been coordinating Hatch rafting trips for the Colorado Mountain Club for years.

“We’ve had 3 great trips with Hatch. Our 4th one is coming up this April. We coordinate one of Hatch’s 12 day spring raft and hike trips for the Colorado Mountain Club.

Our trips are hiking trips foremost with great rafting to get us to our trail heads. The CMC is an outdoor club focusing on hiking, skiing, and climbing in the Colorado mountains.

My husband, Blake Clark, and I love being in the canyon. We have backpacked in the canyon quite a few times. Rafting with Hatch adds another dimension to our enjoyment of this World Heritage Site.”

rain adds excitement to Lava Rapid in the Grand Canyon

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 16:47:19 +0000

“The trip was absolutely incredible! Sean P is such a natural and so sweet with the many demands on him, obviously a product of good training from Ray and Joni! The food was terrific and every detail seemed to be planned out. I have never laughed so much and had such full days. Even the weather cooperated. The only real lightning, thunder, driving wind and rain came as we were literally heading into Lava rapids which added a considerable edge to the event.”

Nancy A. Bahamas. July 2011

Lava is a Grand Canyon class 10 rapid, the fiercest white water in Grand Canyon. Here, the Colorado River drops 37 feet in just a couple of hundred yards.

Little Colorado River offers color and an aviation history lesson for whitewater rafters

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 16:08:02 +0000

Absolutely everyone loves a stop at the confluence of the Colorado River and the Little Colorado River. Rafts usually anchor to a slab of rock jutting out into the big river. Guests scramble up out of the raft and onto the slab for a beautiful view of the confluence. The clear blue water of the Little hits what is often muddy water of the Big. The clear blue is an optical illusion due to the white lime from sedimentary rock layers – the calcium carbonate has built up as a white lime coating on the bottom of the Little.

Before or after your hike up the Little to go for a swim, take a moment to look up at the hills. In 1956, TWA and United Airlines jets collided over the Grand Canyon. The TWA flight mainly hit on the northeast terrace of Temple Butte. United’s wreckage was strewn over the southern cliff face of Chuar Butte. On sunny days, wreckage can still be seen (look for glints of sun bouncing off metal).

Investigators suspect that both pilots veered off course to offer passengers a better look at the Grand Canyon. The tragic event helped spur Congress to create the Federal Aviation Act to update air safety. While not a happy story, it is one of the stories that makes up the Grand Canyon.

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Hatch is at the right place to assist others during a flash flood in the Grand Canyon

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 16:42:09 +0000

“We are part of the group that was caught in a flash flood in Matkatamiba Canyon on July 9. The. Hatch crew caught our boats, gear and bags. When they greeted us that evening with cheers, hugs, food and clothes, we were so grateful and overwhelmed. Words cannot express how much we appreciate all that the people of Hatch did for us.”

Judy M. on a private, Non-Hatch trip in July 2011

We posted about this on Facebook when a Hatchling posted about it on our FB wall. Watch a short video of the flash flood in Matkatamiba Canyon – a side canyon within the Grand Canyon.

A different canyon... Havasu during the August 2008 flooding

How to pack for a Grand Canyon white water rafting trip

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 16:14:08 +0000

When you get to the launch, all of your gear must fit in a water-proof dry bag that we provide. The dry bag is Hatch orange so we call it a pumpkin. If on a full river trip, we recommend you pack your stuff in a regular duffel bag. If you’re hiking in/out and carrying your pack, a backpack is fine, but not the old-school external frame packs. And, please, no suit cases on the rafts!!! That just wouldn’t be cool at all.

order in the chaos

If you’re going on a trip with us this season, now’s a good time to start collecting proper rafting clothing and gear.

Here’s a quick list of what’s required for each trip. For full details of recommended gear for each trip type and length is included with your downloadable white water Trip Pack.

Both top and bottom water proof rain gear will protect you from rain and rapid splash. Sometimes the rain is nice and a splash in the rapids is just what you need to cool yourself down, but there are days when it’s just too cold to get wet.
Layers of synthetic or wool clothing. Early and late season trips have days that start and end cold and often have long spells of travel in the shaded canyon.
Waterproof Sunscreen – SPF30 or higher recommended.
Lip balm with SPF. Try to find one on a cord to attach it to your gear or life jacket.
Recreational Sport Sandals – open so water drains, but with a non-slip sole. They should offer good support like Teva or Chaco. Steer away from the floppy beach shoe.
Camera and an extra memory card or two. To keep the water away, a zip top bag will usually suffice (bring an extra one in case it tears). If you want to make the jump and officially own some rafting gear, you can always buy a small waterproof bag.
Water bottle. We recommend stainless steel. Please don’t bring those newfangled glass water bottles with the rubber protection.
Sunglasses with retention string.
Sun hat with retention clips to attach to shirt or life jacket so it doesn’t fly off and become one with the white water.

A great online place to shop for rafting gear is spadout.com. It’s a search engine for gear and, when available from individual sites, offers coupons so you can better compare prices for each site.

Hatch also has some cool rafting trip branded gear in the shop that’s open launch days.

Brag about your white water trip when you’re 60!

Hatch River Expeditions — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:32:44 +0000

“We were so impressed with the quality of guides. Kelly, Rico, Brian, Sean, Lena and Dom who showed ultimate skill, patience, encouragement, friendliness, knowledge, and love of the Canyon. They emphasized safety first, and then treated us to unending fun and excitement on the rapids, as well as beauty and serenity of the river and campsites. We treasured every minute, including the shore excursions and hikes into those remote and extraordinary settings. I also want to compliment your meal planner, Michelle, as well as the guides’ outdoor cooking skills. The food was outstanding: fresh, plentiful, and surprisingly varied. I had no idea we would have delicious meals. Finally, the hike up the canyon was challenging, but with good advice. walk 50 minutes, rest for 10, walking companions, we made it up – quite an accomplishment for 60-year-olds and something that we’ll brag about to our friends.”

Andrea & Tom R. Florida. May 2011

Awesome Camping in the Grand Canyon

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 16:29:03 +0000

“My family and I had an amazing journey. For “non-campers”, this was a learning process, a bit of a struggle, awe inspiring, and deeply moving. The crew was absolutely terrific. I was so impressed with their professionalism and with their hearts. They care, and that makes it better for all involved.”

Jeff M. Texas. May 2011

photo: Litus (second trip!!)

map of a white water rafting trip through the Grand Canyon

Hatch River Expeditions — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 16:54:02 +0000

All of the shuffling around sure can get confusing. It’s your summer vacation and you want it to go smoothly. So you can get a visual on things, we’ve created a google map of put-in to take-out locations along the Colorado River.

For starters, Cher and Magnolia will take care of most of the logistics, but you do need to get yourself to Marble Canyon just north of the Colorado River.

Once you’re in Marble Canyon, you’ll have a comfortable hotel night stay the day before you set off on your white water adventure. We recommend you arrive early and take some time to explore the desert.

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