House Rock Rapid

Rapids are fascinating geographical features and quite dangerous to inexperienced rafters or kayakers. In the Grand Canyon, rapids are a result of boulders and debris pushed out from side canyons during flash flooding or from rock fall. Using Badger Canyon, a side canyon, as an example, imagine an extremely intense rainfall with the water at the top of the canyon poured down the sides of the canyon walls. The water accumulating on the canyon floor flowed quickly towards its outlet picking up everything in its path. When it reached the Colorado River it tossed all the rocks and debris into the river creating a large pour over. The natural flow of the Colorado was suddenly interrupted and for a short distance it turns into a foamy, agitated flow as it smashes its way over the submerged rocks. Once passed it, the river resumes its normal meandering flow, until, of course, the next rapid. 

At mile 10 (16km) I passed what was unsurprisingly called Ten Mile Rock, a massive chunk of rock and prominent landmark that broke off from the cliffs above and tumbled into the river. Not the most imaginative name for such a towering monolith, perhaps no more imaginative than being called “Slab Rock”, so named by Les Jones on his 1963 map.

An engineer and river runner, Les was best known for his detailed river maps on scrolls of paper strips. The rivers were drawn in great detail from end-to-end. A river runner using the map would just roll the scroll removing the need to ever fold the map.

Brown’s Riffle at mile 12 (30km) was named after Frank M. Brown, President of the Pacific Railroad Company. In 1889, Frank, along with a party of men, was surveying the possibility of a train-route in the Grand Canyon to transport coal. Taking a wooden boat with his companion, Harry McDonald, he pushed off from shore and fairly quickly hit a whirlpool and capsized. Neither were wearing life vests. Frank sadly drowned whilst Harry managed to swim to shore. Two other men in the same expedition, also without life vests, drowned five days later further downriver.

Even before I rounded the bend, I could hear the roaring thunder of House Rock Rapid. Instinctively gripping the handles of the raft, I prepared myself for the first serious whitewater. As I entered perpendicular to the current, I had to navigate around the rock bar on the right, the two large holes on the left and through the huge waves ricocheting off the canyon’s wall. It was exhilarating to say the least for the few minutes it took to bounce through the rapid. Straightening up, I flowed out into the calmer water, waiting for the tension to subside. Then once more I returned to admire the red cliffs of the canyon.

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