The San Juan river is located in southern Utah where it flows into Lake Powell. Runs vary: one can do a short one of two days or less, or go a longer one, depending on a permit. This river is considered a family river because the rapids aren't too large and the water is warm. There are cool ruins, rope bridges, side canyons, swimming holes, mud pits, fossil beds, and all sorts of fun stuff. Here's a shot of me disappearing into a hole in Government Rapid.

You can start way upstream at a place called Montezuma Creek, but there's not much of a put-in. The stretch from here to Sand Island has no rapids, but is famous for a relatively rare phenomenon. Sand waves. These occur when the shifting sands at the river bottom flow just right to form huge rippling waves up to eight feet high. Sometimes they appear out of nowhere and disappear just as quickly. But they give a fun ride, especially when they appear directly beneath you. On this stretch there is a fascinating indian ruin and a rope bridge spanning the river. This stretch is relatively quiet-- not many people bother adding another thirty miles or so to their trips.

Sand Island is usually where trips begin. This place is a mosquito haven, just outside of Bluff, Utah. There's a campground and petroglyphs for those not running the river. Commercial trips usually do this stretch to Mexican Hat in a day. It's pretty short. But the scenery is killer. And there's a fun rapid and a really well-preserved indian ruin known as The Riverhouse.

The Riverhouse is always a recommended stop. You have to hike across a burning plain to a cliff wall, but it's worth it. There's preserved walls where you can stick your head in to see what the rooms are like. People have left collected bits of pottery and corn cobs all over the crumbled walls. A little ways downriver are some granaries and some petroglyphs worth seeing.

The fun rapid is called Eight-Foot Rapid because of its eight-foot high tail waves. Sure, this thing's a blast in a kayak or raft, but the beauty is that you can swim this thing. There's nothing like bobbing around in eight-foot deep troughs and being thrown up an eight-foot wave. It's a blast that everyone should try at least at one point in their lives. There's no rocks to kick, just pure, fast-moving water. The one drawback to this stretch of river is that Mexican Hat comes all too soon.

If you have a permit, though, you can blow on by and get out at Clay Hills, a nice long way downstream. The best stretch is from Sand Island to Clay Hills. A permit to strive for. Between Mexican Hat and Clay Hills are all the best sights. Here, you end up at the bottom of a canyon that winds back on itself. Ever hear of the Goosenecks? It's a place here where the river travels about half a mile in three miles because it keeps doubling back on itself like a huge goose neck. It feels great to be at the bottom, floating lazily across the water, and imagining the rest of the world up above running their rat race. Suckers.

Of the rapids, there are only two that even come to mind: Ledge and Government rapids. Ledge always looks imposing because the river runs right into a wall of jagged lava, but it's not really that dangerous, provided you know what you're doing. I've swam this one before. Government is also relatively painless-- it's the largest rapid on the river and is recommended to scout, but it's always the same run. I've swam this one too, but only once. A group of us swam it and we don't like to talk about it. Tiny bubbles. All you have to do is say that and those involved go all crazy-eyed. I won't be swimming it again, needless to say.

Here's a picture of my Dad piloting the raft through Government.

Other than that, it's all sightseeing. The canyon walls are beautiful. Some of the side canyons are beautiful as well. Slickhorn usually has a killer swimming hole with diving rocks, but in recent years, it has been ruined. The camps around there kind of suck anyway. Oljeto is a bad camp as well, but a fun place to play. There is an enormous mud pit of hip deep mud. A perfect place to play Bozo Ball.

Here is a picture of my parents relaxing on the raft. It's legal to not wear life jackets beyond Slickhorn, so they're all right. Don't call a ranger on their account.

Now, on to Bozo Ball. It's a game of skill and knowing the rules. To win, you... Ah, who am I kidding. There is no rules. You get a ball and a bunch of people and smack it around, trying to keep it from hitting the ground or water or whatever. If someone does drop it, then they are a bozo. Other players can feel free to throw mud or water or insults as they wish at the bozo. But everybody can be a bozo. It's perfectly legal to blow your own shot and blame somebody else. Showing zeal, by leaping for the ball or executing semi-painful pratfalls, you are looked on as heroic and less likely to be called a bozo when you do screw up. That's all there is to it. Of course, there are variations. For instance, on one year's Green River, Monkey Boze was created. It was the same game, only you crouched in shallow water and made a monkey noise every time you hit a ball. Occasionally, we have found a reason to play at home in a clear area, known as Dry Boze. Simple, eh? But fun...