By Jim Dickens July 27, 2024
Though never an adrenaline junky, I have done a little thrill seeking. As a kid we built ramps for bikes and motorcycles, climbed high trees and jumped off the roof of the house. My twenties included sky diving, bungee jumping, steep tree skiing and a quarry jump here and there. I have to say the attraction of all that has disappeared in old age. However, I still do some adventurous things for different reasons. My trip down the middle fork of the Salmon River let me do a little.
The middle fork of the Salmon flows 100 miles through the largest roadless area of the country, the 2.4 million acre Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness in Idaho. The river descends over 2000 feet making it one of the best white water experiences in the world. I joined my buddy Pete and a crew of friends for a 75 mile, 6 day 5 night, July, rafting trip.
Pete told me we needed to find more awe in our days. At first, I thought he was saying, “aaaah” which made me think, “That’s not really very insightful.” After a day or two I understood he meant awe and bought in.
The way it worked was when faced with a decision always choose the scenario that had more awe to it. A few good examples: You choose to stop and see prehistoric pictographs and be late for lunch. You choose to stop fishing and take kayaks through biggest most powerful rapids on the river. After a long day’s rafting, you choose to do a vigorous hike to an precarious overlook instead of a cold beer. When you discover a coiled rattling rattle snake near your cot, you huck your cot up a steep bank so you can still see the stars instead of retreating to your tent.
We did those things not for the thrill but for the power of the experience. It is amazing just how powerful a river is and how inconsequential your efforts to navigate can be. The grand scale of time comes to light as you look at a drawing created more than a thousand years ago. The vastness of the land and the height of the mountains are better appreciated from the top. And finally, there are almost an infinite amount of stars in the sky. It is all awe inspiring. Pete has some really good advice.
It was an amazing trip building my sense of adventure, renewing and creating fellowship and gaining further appreciation of nature. While the thrill may be gone having awe is even better.
R1T Tour 