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The Grand Canyon - What to Bring |
What’s Provided The raft company will provide meals and beverages (cold juices, lemonade, milk, and coffee), dishes, and eating utensils. Water and lemonade are available on the raft throughout the day. The raft company will also provide sleeping bags, foam mattresses, cots, tents and waterproof bags at no charge. Please let me know if you would like these items from Tours West. What You Bring - Please refer to our Recommended Product List for suggestions on equipment.
Dress for Success Normally around camp, shorts and T-shirt or bathing suit are sufficient. In the evening, you may need a light sweatshirt or jacket. It’s more difficult to dress when you’re on the river. While the air temperature may exceed 100 °, the water temperature is a chilly 47 ° . On a hot day, a short swim is refreshing and you warm up fast. On an overcast, windy, or rainy day, a swim isn’t quite as enjoyable, and it can take much longer to warm up. In the morning, I suit up according to the conditions at the time, and during the day I adjust my clothing as needed. On a normal day I wear a pair of "fuzzy rubber" style pants and booties or water shoes with a stiff sole to protect my legs and feet from cold water and friction sores. If it gets windy, I put on a paddling jacket. If it gets cool, I add a polypro top under the paddling jacket. If it’s cold, or I’m running long rapids, I wear a dry suit with polypro underneath. I do not recommend wearing cotton as part of your paddling gear. And remember, you must always wear a lifejacket and helmet when paddling. Some people wear a dry suit all the time and feel it is comfortable and easy to cool off by getting in the river. It is a little more trouble when we go on hikes to get out of and back into. Based on your paddling skills, as general rules, you can dress as follows: Paddle well and have a roll – Light top and bottom Paddle well but have short swims occasionally – Wet suit Paddle OK, but swim a lot and have long swims – Dry Suit Bring a medium-sized dry bag in which you can carry a full range of paddling gear. I always carry both a light and heavy set of polypro in my dry bag. If you get cold easily, a wet suit or dry suit, or both is advised. Most of the time, rain showers and wind gusts are short in duration but be prepared. I recommend bringing a two-piece rain suit. Some days, we have a few small rapids, some days we have a lot of big rapids. In the morning I will let you know what to expect for the day and then you can dress accordingly. Footwear When on the river, wear booties or river shoes with a firm sole; the scouting trails are rocky and hard on the feet. (Karen loves her 5:10 river shoes. They offer her great traction and support.) For hiking - we will have some hikes that are “wet hikes” and others that are “dry hikes.” Some of the hikes will involve scrambling over rocks, while others will have relatively easy trails to follow. For the wet hikes and scrambles over rocks the Chaco sandals with the 5.10 soles are a must. They have the best wet/dry traction of any sandal out there. Trust me -Tevas and sneakers do not work as well for these hikes. Chaco's Website. Running or lightweight hiking shoes are recommended for the dry and trail hikes.
Hands and FeetThe combination of water and dry air often result in cracked and dry hands and feet. Bring Vaseline, Bag Balm, or other moisturizers for protection. If you chap easily, bring along a pair of light cotton socks and gloves to cover well-lubricated hands and feet at bedtime. ClothingThe water is usually muddy and everything you wear will soon have a brownish tint to it. Don’t bring your best outdoor clothes, unless you don’t mind the mud. Also, inexpensive soap and shampoo works just as well in the muddy water as the expensive ones. Pack lightly and plan to layer your clothing. Also bring: Other Items:
Suggestions on Medications on GC Here are some suggestions on medications from a physician on one of our trips: 1. Be sure to carry any medicines with you. Don't put them in checked baggage. 2. Colds, diarrhea and constipation are common problems for travelers. Take decongestants, medicine for diarrhea, etc. 3. Skin, urinary, and sinus infections are also common. Take at least one course of antibiotic (cephalexin is a good one for all 3, and it is cheap) for 7 days. Doxycycline is another good, cheap antibiotic but it makes many people extra sensitive to the sun... not such a good choice for the GC. 4. Be prepared to be stiff and sore. Take ibuprofen or your favorite anti-inflammatory; consider some muscle relaxers in case you really pull something. 5. Don't forget sunscreen, bandaids, blister pads. The raft has a trauma kit but we don't want to use up all the stuff on minor injuries and not have materials later if we need them.
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