Boating – May 2018

(Brent) #1
you spot the place that bills
itself as “your party headquar-
ters on the Colorado River.”
For me, seeing the trendy, de-
signer mix of rusted steel and
concrete that is the modern
Topock 66 is cool but also sad.
Like the homes south of Laugh-
lin, I remember the Topock of
old, a place where I once des-
perately needed for gas and
food, and one far removed from
the current facility. Neverthe-
less, it’s a fun place to stop, a welcome taste of food af-
ter long hours playing on the river, and one of the only
places I know that has urinals shaped like open mouths
— and bar stools that make occupants look like they’re
not wearing any pants.
An hour later, with stomachs filled, thirst quenched
and yet another round of sunscreen applied, we once again
headed south for the highlight of this trip, the 20-mile
passage through Topock Gorge. Nicknamed the “Baby
Grand” in reference to its much larger, deeper cousin, the
Grand Canyon to the north, Topock Gorge is the center-
piece of the Havasu National Wildlife Refuge. It’s a place
where the desert walls literally and figuratively begin to
close in on the river, with volcanic red-rock canyon faces

rising abruptly from the blue-green waters, and the occa-
sional sandy beach ofering an inviting spot to while away
the day in seclusion. Wildlife is in abundance. Everything
from bighorn sheep to wild burros and countless bird spe-
cies can be seen as you drift through the deepest 4-mile
section at no-wake speed. We attempt to freeze the mo-
ment in endless pic-
tures and gaze in awe
at new sights waiting
around every cor-
ner, then ultimately
head to our turn-
around point in Lake
Havasu City.

Mount the
adjustable
tow bar
and hit the
Sport Throt-
tle setting
for some fun
watersports
action.

IT’S A PLACE


WHERE THE


DESERT WALLS


LITERALLY AND


FIGURATIVELY


BEGIN TO CLOSE


IN ON THE RIVER,


WITH VOLCANIC


RED-ROCK


CANYON FACES


RISING ABRUPTLY


FROM THE BLUE-


GREEN WATERS


AND THE


OCCASIONAL


SANDY BEACH.


PHOTOS: COURTESY SEA-DOO

78 | BOATINGMAG.COM | MAY 2018

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