AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Errol always knows how to make me feel like I can do anything. But I have to ask, "Will we go through any rapids that are higher than class five?"
"Oh, aye, we will." He pats my thigh. "Trust me and Munro to get you through it."
I do trust them—with my life.
"Luckily, we shouldn't need to go far enough to reach Lava Falls," Errol says. "That rapid is a class ten."
"Yeah, let's not visit that one. I love whitewater rafting, but a ten sounds like suicide."
Errol hooks a thumb over his shoulder. "You're rafting with a man who has paddled through class ten rapids many times here in the canyon."
As we enter the rapid, the current doesn't seem super turbulent. Even when the water grows rougher, and powerful waves lift the raft up a bit, I feel only a normal amount of anxiety that's overwhelmed by my excitement. I whoop as a wave crashes over the side of the raft, drenching me. Errol grins and holds my hand. The next time a wave breaks over us, we both whoop and Errol thrusts his free hand into the air. We're both grinning like idiots. I'm kind of disappointed when we emerge from the rapid and the river calms down again. I loved experiencing rapids from the backseat, but I loved it even more when I sat here at the front with Errol beside me.
Munro and I switch places, and I go back to searching the cliffs for any sign of Kincaid's cavern.
I'd never gone whitewater rafting, or done any kind of rafting at all, before yesterday. It had always sounded scary and likely to make me vomit. I survived Errol's driving, though I needed motion sickness pills for that experience. Yet I've traversed class four rapids without getting sick. Maybe I'm getting used to wild rides.
We continue down the river in relative peace for a while. Errol and I both take time now and then to admire our surroundings, though Munro stays focused on the river ahead of us. The Grand Canyon is beyond breathtaking, majestic, and so ancient that it's impossible to put into words how I feel while gliding through this landscape. Still, I hope we make another pit stop soon because I could use a break from sitting in this raft—and I need to pee. When I mention that, Munro suggests I should hang my "erse" over the side to relieve myself. Uh, no, I don't think I'll do that. My bladder can wait.
A few minutes later, Munro announces, "We're approaching Tanner Rapid. It's a class six, but donnae let that bother you. I've shot this rapid many times before, and you'll do just fine, Ashley."
"She'll love it," Errol says, and he turns his head to give me a playful smile. "Won't ye,gràidh?"
"Absolutely. Let's shoot that rapid, boys."
I'm glad Errol finally stopped fretting over my safety and can enjoy the trip along with me. Errol seems like his old self again.
We make our way around a ninety-degree bend in the river, followed swiftly by another, identical turn. Now I see the rapid ahead of us. I barely have time to brace myself before we run straight into the turbulent water, which seems to be littered with rocks on the right side. Errol and Munro guide the raft to the left to avoid those obstacles. Though our raft bounces a bit, and we get splashed once, we make it through the rapid without incident. I whooped a couple of times, and Errol shouted, "Yeah!" Even Munro got into it, whooping in his own gruff way.
After crossing through another rapid, our journey takes us around more ninety-degree bends until we reach yet another rapid. Wow, I had no idea the Grand Canyon was full of these kinds of obstacles. The river narrows as we approach the next rapid, a class six that curves to the right, which I imagine makes it more treacherous to navigate than the previous class six we'd gone through earlier. But with Errol and Munro in control of the raft, we pass through the rapid without incident. I get to whoop some more, which always makes me feel exhilarated. After that, I realize I need to focus on searching the cliffs rather than having a good time. Since we apparently have many rapids ahead of us, I've decided to ignore most of them. Well, I can't completely ignore them, but after a few class sixes, the thrill has worn off just enough that I no longer whoop every time. I actually study the cliffs while in the midst of a roiling rapid.
"Time to hold on to your trousers again," Munro shouts to me. "See that up there? It's a class eight rapid."
Holy cow. Class eight?
Despite the higher number giving me a twinge of anxiety, we rush through the rapid without any of us falling out of the raft. We get doused a couple of times, that's all. But Munro tells me we can expect even stronger rapids as we approach the Kaibab Trail. But we won't get there for hours yet, and I really need to stop this wavy train for a while.
Errol laughs when I say that phrase—"wavy train." Munro just gives me an annoyed look. I guess he doesn't appreciate silly humor. Errol calls my description of the rapids "clever and adorable."
"Have you spotted something?" Munro asks in his grumpy tone. "Or do ye need to use another 'girl bush'?"
"Both. I did see something up on the cliff we just passed. Can we go back? Or is that not possible?"
"Can we do it?" Munro says in a scoffing tone. "We're MacTaggarts, Ashley. We can do anything."
"But Errol's a Murdoch. That means we can't paddle upstream, huh?"
"He's a Murdoch and a MacTaggart."
Errol rolls his eyes at his cousin. "She's having you on, Munro. Ashley knows I'm also a MacTaggart."
"I know she was joking, yecacan. Now, let's get paddling to show the lass what Scots can do."
I watch as the men easily swivel the raft around to face upstream, then paddle hard to reach the spot I point out to them. It's just this side of the worst part of the rapids we just traveled through, which means the boys need to paddle even harder to reach the shore. They're both breathing hard by the time they push our raft onto the short sandy stretch hemmed in by cliffs. I chose this area because it has what could be called a "stain" on the cliffs as well as a dark overhang that might hide a cave. I couldn't tell for sure while floating down the river.
After going behind some rocks to relieve myself in private, I return to the sandy spot and bring out the laminated map.
Time to prove I can do this.
