EXPEDITION
“Robertstokesthefirefor“puma”
andSilvioplayshisfinalcard:“Have
you thought about hiking out?”
145 pm:Welowerherandherstill-loadedkayakseveralhundredfeetbackintothe
gorge.I climboutandaroundandpositionmyselfdownstreamwherethethousandsof
cfsofmud-brownflowpinchintoa scary-lookingpit.WedecideI willletherknowI am
inpositionbyflyingmydronebackupbecausethereis novisualandwehavenoradio.
*Notetoself:nexttimebringa radio.
300 pm:Thedroneis goingtocrashrightinfrontofmeanddisappearintoboilsbelow
untilI snatchthebuzzingairwithmyrighthand.Bloodpoursdown,andmypinkynailis
hangingonbya shredofcuticle.It burns,it bleeds,andI needtapetosalvagewhatis
left.I tapeit andthrowthedronebackin theairasif Nouria’slifedependsonit. 335 pm:
Nouria’s lifedoesnotdependonmydrone,butit doeswakeherupfromwhatlookslike
a prettynicenap.
310 pm:I watchfroma fewhundredfeetaboveasshelaunchesintotheseethingred-
browncrackintheearth.Shelacespowerfulstrokesthroughverticalrockwallsandsilty
turmoil.It’sthekindofstuffthatmightgetrunclosetoa roadafterdaysofscouting,orby
Nouriaintheabsolutemiddleofnowhereaftera glimpsethroughhermagicbinoculars.
630 pm:Lookingforsignsoftheguys,I finda spotI swearI havebeenbefore.I am
dehydratedandconfusedwhenNouriapaddlesup. 830 pm:TheArgentinecontingent
arrives,lookingworsethanI feel.Silvioconfirmsthatourcampfrom 2005 is submerged
underthesurgingbrownwater,sowefinda vacantledgein a cavemarkedbysparklybat
guanoandfuzzywhitepumapoo.Silvio, Augustin, and Robert’s boats are still back on the
portage.I’mtootiredtoaskwhy.Day7 - MerryChristmasLayover- Elevation:6350’steady12 pm:Theyreturnaroundnoonexhaustedfromretrievingtheboats,butSilviowants
tohittheriver,now.Thecanyonaheadis non-stopandsteeper,withmoreportages.It’s
nottoohardtoconvincehimtotakea layoverday.“It’sChristmas,porle amordeldio!!”
330 pm:Condorscircleoverhead.Weshelterfromthebakingsunandmakeramen
andbeansforlunch.Silvioopensa well-stockedfirstaidkitandcleansanddressesmy
pinkyunderthecondors’relentlessgaze.8 pm:Nouriareportsthat"Thenextrapidlooks
horrible,I didn'thavetimetoseefurtherdownstream."It'snota goodreport,especially
comingfromher.
9 pm:Robert stokes the fire for "puma" and Silvio plays his final card: "Have you thoughtWhere the road ends, the journey begins at the 250-year-old stone hut called Scarabilli.Silviofocusesonexecutinga preciseboat
angleandpowerfulverticalstrokesatthecrux
movein "EarthquakeRapid."Justdownstream,
theblackwateroftherioSalinillaswould
double the river's already high flows.