3 Day, 2 Night River Rafting Green River, Utah

We have been talking an awful lot here at Gravel about a new tagline we want to rally around “For the Story”. 

I’m a dad of five year old twin girls. Before we had kids my wife & I were always looking for cheap flights to anywhere. After kids our trips changed from cheap flights to hopping in the van for a weekend getaway. I get a lot of enjoyment from watching my kids' faces light up just meandering around a simple campsite. I don't believe you have to go far to truly adventure & build lasting memories. Years ago I was watching a video with Renan Ozturk - a true adventure man I admire & he said “Adventure is the unknown”. I recently stepped into my personal zone of unknown & had what to me was true adventure.

Why did I go? Celebrating 10th Marriage Anniversary

Recently my wife & I celebrated our 10th anniversary & my parents were kind enough to watch our kids so we could do whatever for a weekend. My wife suggested that we do an overnight river rafting trip on the Green River in Utah. There’s a stretch of river about 45 miles long that can be accomplished in 3 days, 2 nights.

What was scary?

There is no cell service, no services, & no way out but…the end or helicopter extraction. I have almost no experience running a river although I loved the idea and I started planning.

The Green River this time of year is very slow & flat so it wasn’t really the fear of getting tipped over yet the idea of forgetting something like a lighter, water spills, you get bit by a rattlesnake…you get the idea.

River Camping Preparation

I ended up scouring the internet for packing lists. For our anniversary I wanted to take on the bulk of the planning & prep. 

The Green River Runs through a section of towering Red Rock with loads of history. Uranium mining, Native Americans, & explorers like John Powell. I bought a waterproof map of the river, packed & tested everything, & dropped off our kids to my parents.

Meeting Fear & Putting In The River

[03:00 PM] To access the river you drive through a desert dirt road riddled with washboard. Nobody around for miles, no services. We had arranged for a shuttle service so we could put in the river & the team grabs your vehicle to stage it at your take out point.

We arrived, loaded up the raft, & I checked every nook and cranny of the van four times out of some sort of I fear that I would leave something critical behind. Literally on my 4th pass I found my prescription sunglasses I had lost a couple months prior…phew little did I know that was a critical find.

Everything was in the raft and my wife and I sat at the bank of the river pretty intimidated by what lay ahead. No services, no guide or somebody to rely on. I felt a pit in my stomach as I knew there was no way to contact the shuttle service driver after I gave the go ahead. I told the guy we were good and he hopped in our van & left. That was one of the most “For The Story” moments I’ve ever experienced.

We stood there in full 100 degree sun taking it all in for a moment. There sat a quiet stillness while the meandering river softly lapped at the bottom of the raft. Gulp. We had no other option than to just…shove off. 

We both were asking ourselves “What the hell did we just do?” 

Talk about an emotional roller coaster. We were floating & nervously making jokes to break the dread. That laughter cut through the dread like a hot knife. Our confidence started to rise as we slowly floated and paddled. Our goal was to split up 45 miles of river between three days & camp the first two nights.

My wife's new Garmin watch has a speedometer we use to track our rafting speed. Without paddling we moved about an average of 1.5 mph. With low effort paddling we’d move 4.5 mph. 

The surroundings of first few miles was classic Utah desert. Dry dirt, rocks, & sand. Large sandstone rock walls quickly appeared & lined the edges of the Green River. The walls provided much needed shade for a refreshing reprieve from the hot sun. 

We checked the map and found what looked like a sandy beach that could be a nice camping spot for the night. We had covered 10 miles.

First campsite

[07:00 PM] We unloaded our gear & I ended up dragging the raft fully on land. I used my new Jetboil pot and boiled up some gas station hose water. 

Sidenote: On the way to the river we were somewhat rushed & didn’t want to put in too late. The rest stop we wanted to use to fill up 12 gallons of water was broken. So we filled up from a gas station adorned with alien decorations & they graciously let us use their hose out back after I bought one of their $5 sodas. This was going to be our only water supply…I was hoping it wouldn’t taste weird. Taste review? Cold 5/5. Warm ⅖. We kept telling ourselves it didn't taste bad, although it did taste a little bit like the hose. 

Dinner. Our first meal of the night was a dry chili packet with 8 servings. Between us there was 1-2 spoonfuls left…super delicious. We played a nice round of Monopoly Deal on our little camp table & my wife kicked my butt. We were wiped so we both laid down in our tent & slept. 

Day 2

[06:00 AM] I woke up to caw sound of crows echoing off the rock walls. I made some protein heavy oatmeal and coffee.

My wife woke up & we quickly ate. We gathered up our camp & shoved off so we could paddle in the cooler desert morning shade. Today's goal, 20 miles of river length. With each passing mile the walls continued to get larger and the views more majestic. Lush green bushes lined the edges of river. 

There is a high correlation to how close you are to the bushes & how often horseflies would find you. We just floated down & decided today we’d be casually paddling as much as we could. The nice thing is whenever we got hot we would just hop into the water to cool off. You just float alongside the raft in your life jacket…it was magical. We just enjoyed each other's company. 

[12:00 PM] It was lunchtime and my wife and her good wisdom brought a premade mix of tuna fish, cottage cheese, capers…& I’m not sure what else but it was bomb. We ate the mix with fresh crunchy lettuce. 

For the first few hours I kept thinking I’d maybe see somebody in the distance, but every time it ended up being a legit mirage. 

We started to hear some voices. This time, no mirage. We came around the bend and saw a group of people hopping in their canoes after finishing a hike. 

They ended up paddling not far ahead and stopping to swim as a group. Maybe a boy scout group?

We passed them playing in the water & that would be the last time we would see anyone else for the rest of the trip. With our bellies full we figured we’d get in some milage. 

[01:00 PM] By now we had covered about 14 miles and we figured if we continue to paddle we could hit our 20 mile goal rather quickly & might be able to go further.

We saw we were approaching a part of the river the map pointed out as an old abandoned uranium mine. 

We saw a craggy cliff with old equipment used to mine Uranium during the big Uranium boom in the 1940’s. [In fact Utah has had a project running for the past ten years, disposing of the uranium mining tailings. After I got home I researched the Uranium mining & learned that in the next five years the cost to cleanup & contain the tailings will total about $1 billion.]

[05:00 PM] We hit 20 miles & at our pace we figured we could actually get another five miles in before we start looking for a spot to set up camp. We pressed on through a large section where I spotted a vulture nibbling on half of a catfish. I don't think I had ever seen a vulture like that up close. It really felt like the wild, wild west. 

Second Campsite

We hit 25 miles of paddling and started poking around on the banks for a good camping spot for the night. After a few stops, we came across what is likely the coolest campsite I have ever seen in my life. It sits at the base of desert tarnished red rock cliffs. We put another dinner on the pot and while that cooked, I took a little walk with my camera.

For the photogs…I brought my Pentax 645 w/75 millimeter f/2.8 lens. I brought a couple rolls of 120 film. I also brought my Rollei 35 millimeter. 

Here, I snapped a few shots of the river and our camp spot. We were wiped and hopped back into the tent. Were a little further from the river than the first night and we could feel the heat emanating from the ground like we laid down on a hot stone. My camp pad became a little insulative buffer keeping the heat off my back but I slept in nothing but my unders. 

At night it does get cool so I did sat my UltraPack blanket off to the side knowing at night I’d throw it over myself. Sure enough I woke up in the middle of the night chilly and used it as my blanket. 

Yes, the UltraPak is a product we make. I think the river industry would enjoy learning about this blanket. I'll let you check it out. It’s crazy packable, lightweight (8oz), breathable, and puffy with just right amount of warmth. A pretty perfect summer rafting tool. 

Day 3 & 10 Year Anniversary

[07:00 AM] Today marked 10 years of marriage for my wife & I. I woke up refreshed and walked around the bank of the river to take in the sunrise in solitude. Today we were a little less pressed for time as we had put in so many miles the two days prior. So…I made eggs and sausage. 

We packed up & shoved off once more. At the start of the rafting trip my wife and I joked about what we would even talk about with so much uninterrupted time together. The hustle & bustle of life keeps us on our toes yet the whole trip nothing ever felt forced. We bonded & were able to celebrate our anniversary in what I think was the absolute perfect setting.

In fact….we came across a massive heart-shaped rock!

We reached our takeout point. We pulled out all our gear, loaded up the van, & drove home. This trip was one of the best experiences of my life. We both went outside of our comfort zone & I will forever remember the feeling of the start of the trip vs the end. Standing at the edge of the river with all our gear all alone with three days ahead of mystery was gut turning. When we pulled out of the river we were already planning about coming back this summer.

If you've read this article to this point I hope you are inspired to try something new that is outside of your comfort zone. It doesn't have to be something absolutely crazy yet I challenge you to plan a trip that challenges your comfort zone. 

Thanks for reading!