On the River - Boise Style

July 25, 2013 with Emily, Joe, and Potts

We started out dry and happy, feeling the exhilaration of being back on the Boise River. Floating was our favorite summertime family activity when we lived here twenty plus years ago. 

It's a two-and-one-half-hour ride from Barber Park on one end to Ann Morrison Park on the other. There are a couple of waterfalls to maneuver and some rapids here and there that threaten to sweep a floating vessel into the trees if paddles aren't a-movin'.

But for the most part, it is a nice, relaxing ride.

Or so we thought -- until we passed over the 2nd waterfall and were impaled by a rock or branch or something. Yes, this is an UNDERWATER picture of the rip in the bottom of our boat.

It wasn't long before we were filled with a foot and a half of water.

We balanced on the tube part of the raft 

until half of it partially deflated leaving us with half-a-raft.

I knew we were in trouble when passers by pointed and laughed.

The men had an idea -- What if we flipped the raft over. The water would drain out of the bottom, and we could ride with the hole on top!! So we did. Emily situated herself, Potts - himself, 
I got on one edge, 

then Joe pulled us back out into the current
and JUMPED onto the raft...

...catapulting me up into the air and down into the river.

Kind of like this:

Okay... Not quite, but it sure felt like it!

I want you to know that we actually made it the entire way! We were tattered and torn, but not beaten. And on dry land once again, we deflated what was left of the raft and stuffed it into the nearest garbage can.

Can't wait until we can go again! (With a new raft, of course!)

“Life is like the river, sometimes it sweeps you gently along and sometimes the rapids come out of nowhere.”

― Emma Smith