ITINERARY.

The itinerary below represents a standard 5-day GOALS expedition through Ruby & Horsethief Canyons of the Colorado River. Some changes may occur.

Day 1. Travel to Loma, Colorado. Meet around 11am at GOALS world headquarters in Evergreen, CO - please arrive with a belly full of lunch. Today, we travel to Highline State Park in Loma, where we’ll spend the late afternoon swimming in their large lake to beat the western slope heat. When night begins to fall, we’ll set up camp in the grassy tent sites and begin exploring the GOALS journals. As excited as we are, we’ll try to get a good night’s sleep tonight - we officially begin our river adventure tomorrow morning

Day 2. Getting in the flow. After packing up camp and a thorough safety talk, we’ll meet the rest of our professional guide crew and launch onto the Colorado River to begin our adventure. Slowly, the canyon walls will get taller and taller as we head downstream in rafts, inflatable kayaks, and on SUP boards. When our bellies tell us it’s time, we’ll pull over and make a delicious riverside lunch. After eating, we’ll continue downstream toward our first night’s camp - most likely in the area of the Cottonwood and Mee camps. As we float, we’ll be watching for bald eagles, river otters, and desert bighorn sheep. When we arrive at tonight’s camp, we’ll break into teams, some of whom will help in the kitchen, some on the boats, and some with setting up the camp itself. Late afternoon is a great time for camp games or a quick swim in a river eddy next to our large beach campsite to cool down. The kitchen crew will help our guides prepare tonight’s dinner, then we’ll circle up in the “living room” around a campfire and re-call our favorite parts of the day, play a game or two that our guides teach us, and ultimately retire to our tents or outdoor sleeping area for a great night of sleep under the desert stars.

Day 3. Floating toward Black Rocks. After waking up to the smell of fresh coffee and the sound of guides working on a delicious, hearty breakfast in the camp kitchen, we’ll find ourselves smiling as we recognize just how good it feels to be starting a new day on the Colorado River. The kitchen crew will find their way into the camp kitchen while the rest of us watch the day come to life as the sunlight warms the canyon. After enjoying breakfast, we’ll get motivated to break down camp and head for the river - floating through a beautiful section of Ruby Canyon that will lead us to the famous “Black Rocks section” - home to some of the oldest exposed rock on planet Earth. We’ll plan to camp in this section tonight, and should be able to enjoy even more time in camp this afternoon because we’ll have a shorter day on the river. Lots of exploring this afternoon - examining the unique shapes of the Black Rocks section surrounding our camp that have been carved by millions of years of water and wind. Since this is our last night in the canyon, we’ll spend some time this evening composing a thank-you letter to the canyon - a GOALS tradition, then reflecting together on the growth we’ve experienced during our time here. One more night under the desert stars, and a fun day tomorrow still lie ahead!

Day 4. Ancient Messages. As we leave the Black Rocks section today, we’ll head toward McDonald Creek for a short hike to some ancient petroglyphs. While studying them, we’ll learn about the early civilizations that lived here and created them - pondering the messages they may have been trying to share with us. When we get back to our boats, we’ll float toward the lower section of the canyon - stopping at Catalpa Camp for some environmental education from our guides. We may sleep at Catalpa tonight, or we may continue down toward Knowles Camp - but we’ll enjoy one last evening together in the canyon with some closing activities that are unique to GOALS.

Day 5. Morning on the river, evening in your own bed! This morning can be a leisurely one in camp, as we only have a few more miles of fun, calm floating to the Westwater Canyon ranger station, where our river journey will end. Along the way this morning, we pass through “Bald Eagle Alley” - a row of cottonwood trees that often hold large eagle nests where we can spot the majestic birds as they watch us float past from above. Once we reach the ranger station at Westwater, Utah, we’ll help our guide team to de-rig the boats and load their trailers, give them good-bye hugs, and then head for home - generally arriving in the evening - already dreaming of the next time we can return to the Colorado River.