[Awclist] Fwd: Pearce Ferry Rapid Now Class 4 Drop

[Thomas Robey]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: RRFW Riverwire <riverwire at rrfw.org>
> Date: February 29, 2008 9:35:08 PM MST
> To: trobey at cybermesa.com
> Subject: Pearce Ferry Rapid Now Class 4 Drop
> Reply-To: riverwire at rrfw.org
>
> RRFW Riverwire -
>
> Pearce Ferry Rapid Now Class 4 Drop
> February 29, 2008
>
> The once tranquil waters of Lake Mead at the end of the Grand Canyon  
> near Pearce Ferry, Arizona, continue to change quickly as the  
> Colorado River is reclaiming 50 miles of what once was the flat  
> reservoir of Lake Mead.
>
> After nine years of drought, Lake Mead has dropped 118 feet, and as  
> the river cuts down into lake sediment, it no longer follows its  
> historic river bed. The "reborn" river now channels full-force into  
> hillsides, crosses once-buried ridges and travels through rocky  
> saddles far removed from the pre-lake river bed.
>
> Approximately one mile north of Pearce Ferry, at river mile 280.8,  
> the river now flows over a saddle between hills and then straight  
> into a gravel hillside. A class 4-rated rapid (on 1-6 scale) has  
> developed near Pearce Ferry, called Pearce Ferry Rapid.
>
> A riffle at the top of the rapid has formed a pour-over along each  
> bank of the river, with a tongue in the middle of the riffle going  
> into small hydraulic waves. Just below this riffle, the majority of  
> the river passes left of a rock outcrop and makes a sharp ninety  
> degree turn as the full force of the Colorado slams into a rocky  
> hillside.
>
> A large outcrop of cemented rocks sits in the middle right of the  
> rapid, dividing it. On the left of the outcrop is a tongue dropping  
> into a sharp reverse-current hydraulic, and a chaotic eddy on the  
> far left side of the reverse. On the right of the outcrop, a fast  
> channel with a sharp drop has developed.  A larger photo of the  
> rapid is online at the River Runners for Wilderness list server  
> website homepage here:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Rafting_Grand_Canyon/
>
> Members of the Rafting_Grand_Canyon list server have additional  
> access to three albums with 24 photos of the rapid taken February  
> 18, 2008. Membership to the list server is free and easy to set up.
>
> This rapid poses a threat to river travel, as a boat could wrap on  
> the mid-stream outcrop. Night floating through this area is no  
> longer recommended. Scouting on river left is highly advisable.  
> Lifejackets should be worn by all river travelers running this  
> rapid. This rapid poses another risk in that the last rapid,  
> upstream at Gneiss Canyon is forty-four miles above Pearce Ferry.  
> River runners should not be lulled into thinking the last rapid has  
> been run once they pass Separation Canyon at river mile 240.
>
> The geologic term for this type of rapid is called a Nick Point.  
> Here, harder bedrock material forms a waterfall which prevents  
> further down-cutting upstream of the waterfall.
>
> As of February 20, 2008, there were as many as eight nick points  
> emerging in the 13 mile section of river between Pearce Ferry Rapid  
> and the end of current in Lake Mead, presently at the head of Gregg  
> Bay near river mile 292.8.
>
> The Pearce Ferry Rapid is cutting through consolidated gravels, and  
> it is possible the river will be able to erode the gravels, thus  
> avoiding the creation of a more serious rapid. However, river  
> runners should exercise caution in this reach as it continues to  
> evolve while the river reclaims the receding reservoir.
>
> A synopsis of this rapid with photos from the last five years is  
> found at:
> http://www.durangobill.com/GCTourSuperimposition.html
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