GCE dory river guide, Kate Thompson

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Kate has been with GCE since 2002, rowing dories for the 14-16 day expeditions.  She has been a boatman since 1980, having worked on a plethora of western rivers. In her other life, she is a professional photographer, graphic designer and musician.  Kate lives with her husband, Andy Hutchinson, in the tiny mountain town of Dolores, Colorado.  Included in their family are their personal dories,”Cottonwood” and …

Grand Canyon’s Blacktail Canyon…….bottoms up!

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Photo Tom Blagden (tblgden@bellsouth.net) Above photo, Tapeats Sandstone, this layer averages about 545 million years old. Lying on your back,  looking up at Blacktail Canyon (RM 120) on the Colorado River  in the Grand Canyon is totally surreal.  Not only a grand concert hall for acoustics, it also displays a truly grand view of “The Great Unconformity”.  In  addition to …

The sculpting of formations….. “fluted” Vishnu Schist

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1.7 to 2-billion year old rock formation…. The “Vishnu Schist” is the oldest rock formation in the Grand Canyon.  Also referred to as, the basement rocks of the Grand Canyon. Photo Tom Blagden (tblgden@bellsouth.net) Fluting is a process of differential weathering and erosion by which an exposed well-jointed coarse-grained rock such as granite, gneiss or vishnu schist develops a corrugated surface of flutes; especially …

Grand Canyon’s, Uta stansburianas square off….wrestling big time in Grand Canyon?

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Uta stansburiana  / Grand Canyon side bloched  “lizards” square off…wrestling move “the half nelson” Photo by Tom Blagden (tblgden@bellsouth.net) Uta is named after the state of Utah and stansburiana after the explorer Howard Stansbury who collected the holotype during the exploration and survey of the valley of the Great Salt Lake of Utah (1852). The common name refers to the black …

Vasey’s Paradise, Monkeyflowers and the BIG waters of 2011

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“Vasey’s Paradise” on the Colorado river at mile 32 , Grand Canyon, AZ.  Photo by Tom Blagden. “On coming nearer we find fountains bursting from the rock high  overhead. The rocks are covered with mosses and ferns and many beautiful flowering plants”……. Powell Report /1869. Royal Arch Creek on the Colorado river at mile 117, Grand Canyon, AZ. Photo by …

Emily Dale Perry………….Grand Canyon Expeditions

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Emily Dale Perry, but many call me Em or Emmy. I was born in good ole’ Kanab, Utah, but now live in Flagstaff, Arizona. My family has a strong history in Grand Canyon and I was still in the womb on my first river trip. After I was born my first trip was in 1989 at age 8. It was GCE …

What or who is the Grand Canyon “SWAMPER”?

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What or who is the Grand Canyon SWAMPER? swamp·er noun /ˈswämpər/
swampers, plural 1.  A laborer, esp. one employed as a general assistant to a riverboat captain 2.  A worker who trims felled trees and clears a road for lumberers in a forest 3.  A native or inhabitant of a swampy region http://www.google.com/#hl=en&q=swamper&tbs=dfn:1&tbo=u&sa=X&ei=xjHPTaYklLqwA56-wM0G&sqi=2&ved=0CBkQkQ4&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=809443016b0399f3 This has been a common question that has come up …

Meet GCE professional river guide, Jalynda McKay

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Jalynda Mckay a.k.a. Jah or Lyn from Olympia, Wa. My First trip was with GCE in 2000. It was a 14 day dory Evergreen trip. I’ve been with GCE since 2007. My Favorite stops in Grand Canyon, would have to include…Deer Creek, Black Tail, Clear Creek, Havasu, Redwall Cavern, Lee’s Ferry (it’s where it all begins) It seems like every …