So unless Bailey on the South Platte comes in, Gore Canyon of the Upper Colorado
was my last trip of the season. Kate is running Tunnel Falls above and below are
some natural springs she knew about out on the Pumphouse section. 
Turf house veterans get down at the annual White Trash Party.
Below is the only evidence that I actually ran some whitewater. This
was Castle Creek through Aspen and it was posted on LVM by
Rob Hurst.Visit the link at the bottom of the post to see Rob's pictures.
Hydrological constellations must align causing mountain tides to draw in river rats. It causes the Arkansas Valley to become the center of the boating universe; if only for a few short months.
As far as the river scene goes I had a great time living here. Between work days I made it onto the Ark a few times and checked out a couple other runs in the process, but as I gain confidence as a boater I realize there's a lot out there to learn. I invested time with RMOC early in the season to get checked out as a guide however with a slow start to the commercial season I only guided a handful of trips by the time the water dropped. That's where Kate and the "Turf" crew come in.
My kayaking was deeply intertwined with a Wednesday phenomenon they call Disco Night and it's proximity to the Numbers Buena Vista. Every Wednesday throughout rafting season the guide population that floods Buena Vista every summer descends on the Lariat Bar. Guides dressed to the nines, or should I say half dressed... sometimes undressed, get unconscionably inebriated then bump and grind to classic hits from the 70's and early 80's until the point of blacking out.
Essentially Kate, an RMOC kayak guide, and I would embark on an after work run on the Numbers; a classic class IV about an hour north of Salida. Getting off the water at dusk we'd head straight to the "Turf House". Kate's friends, mostly AAE guides, were sleeping somewhere between eight and a dozen people in a 3 bedroom house that the owner had installed astro-turf around so the tenants couldn't, as hard as they tried, kill the grass. Upon destroying a handle of cheap whiskey the party would carry over to Disco and depending on the next days work load sometimes we'd go kayaking again the next day. With minor variations this is how I spent my days off through the summer.
My paddling improved a bit, however I didn't get my camera out as much as I would have liked. There are some things that will remain in solely in my memory. Now that many the river rats have migrated to follow the high water I'll be waiting until next spring.
Special thanks to Kate Stepen. You were always down to go boating, no matter how bad those ducky trips were. Rob Hurst- Thanks for snaping a few photos and throwing one of me on LVM. Mean Gene- Thanks for saving my boat. Jacob- Thanks for making me feel better about losing my boat. Thanks to Brie, Mac, Dustin, Charlie, Jenny Sass, ect. ect. ect. for keeping the Turf real. http://www.lvmvideo.com/2009/07/05/co-update-castle-creek-and-south-fork-crystal/
