I awoke to the sound of the guest’s thunderous laughs; I lifted my head slowly to face the tents green opening. The inside of the tent seemed much colder then when I had fallen asleep to the sounds of crackeling sparks made by the fire, but it looked as if it were going to be a beautiful day. I sat up in my sleeping bag already taking notice in the change of temperature. I was wearing only a t-shirt and shorts and goose bumps began to appear on my arms and legs. My ponytail had swayed to the side of my head and was a tangled mess. I desperately needed a mirror. Ignoring my hair for the moment I turned to rummage through my bag of clothes. The “Jumbo Zip-Lock Bags” I had packed my clothes in made a loud cracking sound as I shifted my luggage around in my attempt to find my second river-rafting outfit. I pulled out my checkered swimsuit top and then a light blue t-shirt to slip on over the swimsuit. I was having trouble finding my blue cross-stitched sweatshirt, which provided me with all the necessary warmth I would need on the trip. I lifted a couple items in my bags but wasn’t having any luck. I finally located my old blue sweatshirt lying underneath a pile of clothing sitting on the tents grey floor. I slipped on a pair of old shorts that were now slightly faded and neutrally colored.
I walked out to the campfire and pushed my hands out in front of me starring at the chipped purple nail polish on my fingernails. As I stood in front of the fire I could hear the guides calling for breakfast. I sat in one of the black sandy camping chairs and waited for direction from the guides. There was a distinct smell of food that floated through the campsite. One of the guides walked in front of my view of the fire and asked if I wanted scrambled eggs for breakfast. I was contemplating on whether or not I wanted the eggs; I didn’t have much of a stomach in the morning. The smells that floated from the cooking food convinced me that I was making the right decision by trying the eggs so I politely answered the guide and told him that I was going to give them a try.
After breakfast and a couple minutes of socializing while holding our warm hot chocolate drinks to our chests for warmth was always one of the most stressful times for the guests. We were told to complete a certain amount of tasks each and every morning of the trip. We were briefed by the guides that we were to try to leave the campsite by 7:00 a.m. so we had a lot to do in a short period of time. We needed to disassemble our green low-rise cots that we had slept on, repack our day bags, and then proceed to help with the other tasks that needed to be completed around camp. The Adventure Sun Valley river rafting trip had and still continues to withhold a firm no littering policy. There were to be no human traces left at any given campsite. This means no trash is left astray and we were required make an effort to preserve the natural beauty of the wildlife that may be found on or near a campground.
We were finally ready to load onto the red rubber rafts. My friend and I choose two seats in the back of the raft of our previous guide. We sat in the back for almost a ten-minute stretch, before the guides planned to launch for the day. The rafts left the campsites in a certain order, and almost everyday was different. However our raft was once again the second to last raft to leave the loading area, never the less we pulled out in the water and we were ready to begin our new day on the river.
We rafted down the beautiful river a good 3-4 miles before stopping for a lunch break. The river was filled with surprises and wonder. The trees were tall and gleamed in the sunlight. I remember looking at the small streams that rushed into the main river, as if they had always meant to cross one another’s path. The river was never ending and a rapid only occurs once, the history of the river actually lied within its currents. I sat on the red raft and thought about this concept for quite awhile. I could see the unremitting water pushing against the boulders that’s tops pointed out over the now chocolate brown colored river due to a blow out the night before. Our lunch spot had a wonderful view of the river where we visited a near by cave. The cave was small and dark. It had little character other than small portions of colored rocks; even the colored stones and their beauty were scarce.
My friend and I ate lunch on a log; its bark was beginning to peal, which left a contrast in the logs wooded pattern. The lunch offered to the camp was a taco dish made with simple ingredients. The food was very nicely displayed on a lunch table where we quickly formed a line to garb the delicious food. After lunch we returned to the rafts to continue our day down the river. The day that followed passed quickly and was an ongoing adventure.
We reached camp at a slow rate, but just as the day before the campers were ready to have landed on a campground. The fire was being prepared and the food was already being prepped. We had the options to take showers but no one was really up for one. The guides came to the kids with a new river rafting game. They showed a couple of us how to play and then left us to fill in there positions in the game. We played for a long time each kid took a turn at playing the game until dinner was ready for the camp. I quickly ate my dinner the second night. I was in a hurry to go to sleep mainly because I was already extremely tired. I socialized with a number of the guests and took multiple pictures of the scenery. As it became dark I ran to my new tent and changed back into my pajamas that were so comfortable. I again slipped into my warm sleeping bag and quickly fell asleep.