Expeditions: Adventure Grants: July 29 Journal

Expedition Journal--July 29

Alex Perry
Today we hiked about five miles. The going was a lot tougher than we had planned, and we got to the landing strip around 5:30 p.m. The other group had been there for some time, and came splashing through a narrow channel of the river to greet us. It was amazing how excited everyone was to see each other.

We had about two pounds of odd food left over, so we were very glad to accept some food from the other's leftovers. However, we had low pressure weather all day, and we aren't sure if the float plane will be able to make it tomorrow. On the other hand, the river is way up and even if we get the canoes tomorrow, we won't be able to start paddling due to the debris and the large number of braids in the river.

We are between the actual Gates of the Arctic: Mount Boreal and Frigid Crags, but the fog and dense, low-lying clouds don't allow us to see them. I'm very excited to be here and am very excited to see everyone.

Rachel Flood
Today was the last day hiking. We could see the river the whole way down. It is a little unnerving seeing the river up as high as it is. I don't know that I'll be comfortable on it. It is still raining and the river continues to rise. It's looking pretty treacherous.

As of now, we're waiting for the plane to come with our resupply. Hopefully it can make it and the weather calms down. Our plan is to go ahead and send our packs back and get our river gear, but after that, we have to wait and see if the river is going to go down. If it doesn't go down in time for us to have a reasonable amount of time to go down the river then we may be flown out.

I would be really bummed if this happens. At the same time, I think it would be a bad idea to put ourselves in danger and go ahead if the river's not safe.