In the Grand Canyon, rafters hear rapids long before they see them. It starts as a low hum, turns into a rumble, and finally grows into a heart-stopping roar echoing off the canyon walls. The sheer ferocity of the rapids, which often hide waves nearly 20 feet (6 meters) high and hydraulics that flip boats like burgers, is just one reason why the Grand Canyon is unanimously the country's top rafting trip. It's also one of the longest commercially run wilderness river trips, winding 226 miles (364 kilometers) without crossing even a dirt road. And it's one of the most spectacular, slicing through two billion years of geology, color-coded in thousand-foot cliffs.
A little known fact is that the rapids are big but forgiving–over three-quarters of rafters' injuries occur on shore–and many experienced rowers propel themselves down the river. Private trips afford the luxury of time–up to three weeks–and choosing one's own company and pace. But they also offer something less tangible: the transformative power of charting your own line down the West's greatest waterway. On these long human-powered trips, rafters discover that the river's real magic is found in the quietest of moments: the discovery of centuries-old Anasazi ruins and rare cactus blooms, the comfort of a campfire flickering off the cliffs, and, when the river calms to glass, the echo of even a whisper off the canyon walls.
It can take weeks or years to secure a permit to self-run the Grand Canyon through the Park Service's weighted lottery permitting system. Sign up at the national park's website (www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/weightedlottery.htm) and keep trying–the system favors the persistent. In the meantime, take a whitewater rowing course such as O.A.R.S.' seven-day clinic on the Rogue River ($1,177; www.oars.com). To help plan a Grand Canyon trip, enlist a river outfitter like Moenkopi Riverworks, which rents rafts and equipment, buys and packs food, and runs shuttles (pricing varies; www.moenkopiriverworks.com).
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