Ride through an early summer run: A rafter’s view of Browns Canyon June 2

In my not-so-secret second life, I was a raft guide.

Browns Canyon National Monument holds the hearts of paddlers far and wide, including mine, and it's looking to be another banner year for that 9-mile stretch between Fisherman's Bridge and Hecla Junction.

I don't get to paddle as often as I’d like anymore, so it's always a joy to get out to my old splashing grounds.

Pinball

At around 2100 cfs, Canyon and Screen Doors are a perfect wakeup before dropping into the first major rapid of the run.

Once we hit Pinball proper, we found Four-Wheel Drive had stayed politely out of our way.

Heading to river right before skirting the top flipper is perfectly viable, and the current nudged us right where we needed to be. There's something special about that first rapid, at least to me. It's a refresher course, a challenge and a puzzle.

Below, we take turns pointing out rocks and pivots, humming the Pink Panther theme until our trainee catches on and ribbing each other about who My Island really belongs to.

Zoom Flume

There's only so much time to make your friends laugh before squaring up center-left for Zoom Flume.

Last week, we had the pleasure of watching a group of firefighters from Colorado Springs practice their river rescue techniques in appropriately vibrant matching red drysuits.

Who doesn't love a rapid with an audience?

After flying down the roller-coaster-adjacent flow and making a graceful pass of Pyramid, we had the chance to watch them bodyboard the waves, and whether or not

they enjoyed surfing the waves face-first, it's always nice to make friends when you eddy out.

Big Drop

Braver guides and kayakers can boof it if they wish, but I’ve always preferred to skirt the hole in favor of the waves below.

Though Big Drop has certainly changed since 2015's impressive 5200-cfs peak, I still always make the time here to tell everybody about how much I love and use turn commands.

The beach, too, is a great spot for deer, mergansers and Canada geese. Be sure to honk in order to establish your dominance.

Staircase (Seven Steps)

If you’ve never made your paddlers make a different animal noise or sing a different song as your paddle through each step, you’re missing out on the purest form of comedy.

Though we opted for the graceful approach of cheering as loud as we could for the waves and for our soon-to-be guide on that trip, it's never too late to call for a few moos and quacks.

Steps 5 and 7 never fail to disappoint, too. Punching these waves and feeling that crest of water rise and fall has always been my favorite reminder of just why I fell in love with the sport and with this place.

Widowmaker

Any water level that allows the line to pass on the right of the Toilet Bowl is a water level to take advantage of.

At higher water, even Widowmaker is a rapid that feels forgiving. It's always fun to watch someone new tackle the challenge.

Though the large claws in the last leg of the rapid are covered this early in the summer, the turbulent water above Thumb Rock still makes for a solid ride.

(It's also the spot where I lost my first guide stick, lovingly named "Athena." I’ve never given up the search, even 5 years on, and I still scour the rocky edge of the railroad tracks every run.)

Raft Ripper

The only thing I don't like about Raft Ripper is simply that it's the last major rapid. Though I once stood above the rapid for 30 minutes to help unstick boats and extract some paddlers from an afternoon wrap in 2018's low water, Raft Ripper is a crisp and quick rapid this time of the season, right to left and a quick turn before dipping into the Graveyard.

Even the rock garden goes by too fast.

We wonder aloud who took the ornaments off Charlie Brown's Christmas Tree, brace each other for a whisper of waves as if they were a Class V drop and talk about summer plans.

One of our number hands me a rock at Hecla Junction, and I add it to the multi-year geology collection in my chest pocket. (What's a PFD for if not storing the best-looking pebbles?)

There's a lot of summer still ahead. If the snow still on the mountains is any indication, it should be a solid year of waves and good levels.

And if you make every run of Browns Canyon feel as good as the first of the season, you’ll be alright no matter the CFS.

Harn was a professional rafting guide with Adventure Unlimited.

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