By Natali Zollinger

The most anticipated animal to see on the Green and Yampa Rivers through Dinosaur National Monument is the Desert Bighorn Sheep. Believed to have gone extinct in the region, for unknown reasons we find them flourishing back to reclaim their once dominated territory.

Bighorn Sheep are a vital resource because they provided food, clothing and tools to the natives of Utah both past and present. Due to the growth of the domestic sheep, bighorns began to die off resulting from a serious disease epidemic. Scientists were forced to believe that the Bighorn had completely been lost from Utah due to no sightings of them for several years. But in the 60’s, river rats began to see bighorns along the Colorado River system and its corridors. The current population in Utah is estimated at around 5,000 sheep, representing two genetic species—the desert bighorn and the Rocky Mountain bighorn. Mountain sheep are nearly twice the size of desert bighorn, and rams can weigh up to 300 pounds. Ewes of both species are about 40 percent smaller in size and weight.
 
Bighorns are amazing creatures. Floating downstream on the Green River, one may see a whole herd lightly prancing down the Cliffside without a worry in the world. One may ask, why are they so good on their feet? Their balance aiding split hooves with rough bottoms are the perfect natural Vibram sole. Imagine going to your local tire shop and checking out the most rugged off-road tire they sell. The reasons tires can handle so much wear and tear is because of the way they are designed to act when wrapped around sharp objects like rocks and trees. Some trail running and outdoor apparel companies are starting to use this design for their tread of the sole. It’s an amazing concept when you see it you understand why the bighorn can float across rugged obstacles with such grace and ease.

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Written by Natali Zollinger

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By Natali Zollinger & Bruce Lavoie

The Yampa River was first explored by the Yampa Ute Indians several thousand years ago. They were nomadic, following several herds of mammoth and bison around the southwest while sheltering in caves and picking berries, seeds and nuts for protein. Their favorite plant for consumption was the root of the Yampa plant. It had several different purposes and uses. Its healing properties were to help detoxify the body and cleanse the organs. It works as a laxative as well as a diuretic. Scientists also figured out that it is high in carbohydrates and quickly converts food into energy. Additionally, it was used to waterproof a skin bag and to shine up arrowheads.

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Written by Natali Zollinger

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Visit WeJustGotBack.com for a chance to win a 4-day family rafting trip in Colorado. The winning family will raft through Dinosaur National Monument with O.A.R.S., paddle through fun, splashy rapids; hike along rippling creeks to side canyon waterfalls; camp on big, sandy beaches; enjoy hearty, healthy meals; explore petroglyphs and fossilized remains of dinosaurs preserved in ancient rock walls; and view a night sky like you’ve never experienced before.

The New York Times called one of our Twitter buddies, We Just Got Back, “an authoritative voice in family trip-planning,” and Forbes considers our friends "the tell-it-like-it-is family travel website." They were selected as a 2009 Gold Magellan Award Winner by Travel Weekly magazine, one of the industry’s most prestigious honors. We Just Got Back covers topics from national parks to cruises to how and what to pack and how to plan a vacation with preschool children and just about everything in between.

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Written by Tracy

Writer, Photographer, former Waterblogged Editor

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Gentlemen… Are you fed up and ready to make a change, but just don’t know where to start? Are you worried about your drinking habits or making the mortgage payment? Are you wondering how you are going to come up with your child’s college tuition? Dealing with stress and uncertainty in uncertain times is a problem many men are facing these days. How do other guys handle these problems?

Don Hatch River Expeditions, part of the O.A.R.S. Family of Companies, is hosting a special men-only whitewater rafting expedition through Dinosaur National Monument on August 20, 2009. The four-day rafting, hiking and camping trip, open to males over the age of 18, encourages participants to address their fears or problems while in a wilderness setting. No previous camping, rafting or outdoors experience is necessary in this unstructured men’s retreat. The only ground rules? The expedition is alcohol and tobacco free.

Don Hatch River Expeditions has been guiding people downstream for 80 years. Their Green River rafting trip through Dinosaur National Monument offers a Colorado rafting journey set in an abbreviated version of the Grand Canyon. Complementing the days spent in a raft are endless exploratory side hikes in river canyons, quiet beach camps and moderate whitewater.

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Written by Tracy

Writer, Photographer, former Waterblogged Editor

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Mea culpa…

I thought I had done sufficient homework about the creation of the Warm Springs rapid on the Yampa River. I searched exhaustively the Internet and read Roderick Nash’s “The Big Drops” book. I should have, however, checked in with the folks who were on the scene.

According to Bruce Julian, who was on the Yampa River in 1965, Les Oldham was not the first person to run the new Warm Springs rapid. Nor was the Yampa dammed ‘for a few hours’.

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Written by Tracy

Writer, Photographer, former Waterblogged Editor

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O.A.R.S. Founder and President, George Wendt, has returned to the office from his recent Yampa River trip. It was his first whitewater rafting trip on the Yampa River since 1965 when he and his traveling companion narrowly escaped tragedy.  

In May and June of 1965, heavy rains fell on the Warm Springs watershed 17 out of 21 days, and the ground became super saturated.

George and his friend, Bruce Julian, were on a private boat trip on the Yampa during this time. On the afternoon of June 10, they had ducked into a cabin – Gardner’s Cabin at Warm Springs Draw – to protect themselves from the onslaught of rain. Realizing the futility of trying to stay dry in such conditions, they determined it best to continue downriver.

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Written by Tracy

Writer, Photographer, former Waterblogged Editor

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Big water and kindred spirits… a recent report from the field about the Yampa River rafting trip to raise funds for and celebrate Kelley Kalafatich…

The following was taken from the Kelley Kalafatich blog. The full report can be found here: http://checkonkk.blogspot.com/

The trip had it’s challenges, with the highest water seen since 1983 (the river peaked at around 25,000 cfs on the 3rd day) and unseasonably cold and wet weather. But frankly this just added to the overall experience in its own way. If you have never been, the Yampa River is an absolutely stunning river canyon, second only to the Grand Canyon in my estimation for visual beauty, and different than the Grand in terms of its beautiful 100-year floodplain terraces where the river camps are located.

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Written by Tracy

Writer, Photographer, former Waterblogged Editor

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Just after dinner on June 10th, 1965, a flash flood carried tons of rock down Warm Springs draw blocking the channel on the Yampa River. Within twenty-four hours the Yampa took aim and breached the dam, leaving in its wake Warm Springs Rapid, rated among the 10 biggest drops in the country. This rapid claimed the life of the first person to run it.

George Wendt, O.A.R.S. Founder and President, was on the river that day with a friend, both of whom narrowly escaped.

He recounted, “I remember it as clear as yesterday. It was June 1965. I was 23. A friend and I were making our way along a small creek bed in northwest Colorado, not far from the confluence of the Yampa and Green rivers. An incredible, torrential rain fell. We were forced to scramble for shelter in an old cabin high on the creek’s bank. But after a few minutes my friend suggested that since we were already so soaked, we might as well continue back to camp. Good thing. Less than half an hour later, in the most phenomenal exhibit of nature I’ve ever witnessed, the cabin was washed away by a flash flood. In 40 years rafting rivers ‘round the world, I’ve never seen anything like it! That day was one of the closest calls I’d ever had.”

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Written by Tracy

Writer, Photographer, former Waterblogged Editor

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