Packraft Foundations: An Expedition Packrafting Course to Dark Canyon & the Colorado River, focusing on Paddling & Swiftwater Rescue Skills
Join Us for this Expedition Packrafting Course, to Dark Canyon & the Colorado River, focusing on swiftwater rescue, paddling and expedition skills
Course & Adventure Overview
This 4-day Expedition Packrafting course includes one day of skills training on the Colorado River near Moab, Utah, plus three days of remote backcountry exploring that state’s canyon lands. Beginner packrafters will access a remote part of the Colorado River through the lower portion of Cataract Canyon. Starting at the Sundance trail we hike a relatively easy trail along the canyon rim, then descend the rough and steep Sundance trail (a 1200 vertical foot drop) into Dark Canyon.
Known for clear flowing water, ancient ruins and remote hiking, Dark Canyon forms at the Western Flank of the Blue Mountains and flows through the Bears Ears National Monument for close to 40 miles before merging with the Colorado River in the Glen Canyon National Rec Area. Our hike will take us through the lower section toward the Colorado River with one camp along the way. Once we exit Dark Canyon it’s a 14+-mile paddle out on the Colorado with one night camping on the river. We do extended 5- and 6-day versions of this trip as well, a 5-day of which is scheduled this fall. The 6-day version is a Level 2 due to the strenuousness of the hiking involved and the exit canyon. Please email us if you are interested in the 6-day course.
This is an Expedition Packrafting course, so we’ll have at last one Zoom meetings prior to the course, plus the night before the course to discuss and plan the logistics for this trip.
You don’t need any packrafting experience for this course. You do need backcountry hiking and camping experience, however.
Price: $1495
A 50% deposit is required to secure your space. If you are registering inside of the 30 day window, the remaining balance is due immediately.
Please review our cancellation policy, which you will find on our Terms, Conditions & Cancellation Policy Page.
What's Included
An open Alpacka Classic packraft, PFD, paddle, helmet, all food for the backcountry part of the trip (starting with lunch on the first day in the backcountry and ending with lunch on the final day), permits, wag bags, sanitizing kits and camping.
what's not included
Food for the training day, adult beverages, transportation, drysuits, river knives, whistles or throw bags.
You only need a drysuit for the first day of this course. You may rent them at Backcountrypackrafts.com (we will provide you with the 15% discount code once you register for the course).
We do not provide transportation, so you must have your own car. We’ll work with all participants to ensure shuttling.
Instructors
Thad Ferrell
Thad is a Level 4 American Canoe Association Packraft Instructor. He additionally has advanced Swiftwater Safety training and he is a certified Wilderness First Responder. An early adopter of packrafting and life-long cyclist and bikepacker, Thad has accomplished some ground-breaking, multi-week climb-bike-packraft adventures in the desert Southwest. He is also an expert fly fishing guide.
Tyler Marlow
Born in the lush green forest of the American south, Tyler has never been one to sit still. At 18 they left home to thru hike the Appalachian trail and haven’t stopped walking yet. Educated as an Anthropologist, Tyler seeks to understand the connection between humans and the landscape; where environments meets culture. Called to the desert, Tyler moved to Southeast Utah and began a love affair with the Colorado Plateau; working in youth conservation, trail work, and now as a carpenter and guide. With their dog Mira riding shotgun Tyler migrates seasonally, from the Sonoran desert, to the Four Corners, and McCarthy, Alaska with detours far afield. Tyler is a Level 4 American Canoe Association-certified Packraft Instructor.
What You Will Learn
We designed this course for adventurers looking to expand their backcountry skills by adding a boat to their repertoire. We teach the standard techniques from our Packraft Foundations–Paddling Skills courses, but we spend less time on drills. Instead we focus more on what it takes to accomplish a multi-day packraft adventure in the backcountry. This course is meant to introduce you to these skills, not to get you to master them. You’ll do more drills and hone these skills in our Level 2-4 courses.
Paddling & River Running Skills
- ✔Equipment (use and care + boat rigging, fit, and release of thigh straps)
- ✔Posture, safety, comfort, rocking and balance
- ✔Swimming and general water confidence
- ✔Self-rescue & buddy assistance
- ✔Dealing with currents
- ✔Aggressive & defensive swimming position
- ✔River hydrology/dynamics, features & hazards
- ✔Basic paddle strokes (forward, back, draw, sculling)
- ✔Using eddies
- ✔River communication: Paddle, hand, and whistle signals
- ✔Spacing on the river
- ✔The “River Safety Talk”
- ✔Field repair-tips & tricks
Expedition Skills
- ✔Multi-day trip planning & logistics
- ✔Multi-day pack lists
- ✔Where to pack your gear (zippers, weight distribution, securing packs/gear to or inside the boat
- ✔How to pack light (i.e. what to leave behind and why + how to share gear)
- ✔Expedition food planning and prep
- ✔Leave No Trace practices in the backcountry
- ✔Navigation in the field, finding camp, using available resources (river guidebooks and/or researching trip reports from the same stretches of rivers)
- ✔Basic overview of online resources: GIS, USGS water gauges, Google Earth, etc
Swiftwater Safety: Handling common emergency situations on the river
- ✔Identify and demonstrate the use of appropriate rescue and safety gear for packrafting
- ✔Responsibilities of the group, rescuer, swimmers
- ✔Boat-based rescues
- ✔Group communication
- ✔Using throw bags
- ✔Swimming in rivers & water confidence (aggressive & defensive swimming position)
- ✔Self-rescue & buddy assistance (wet re-entry)
- ✔River dynamics: currents, obstacles and hazards
- ✔Rescue priorities: people, craft, paddle, gear
- ✔Discuss how to avoid and prevent cold water shock, hypothermia, and hyperthermia by choosing proper clothing and recognizing and treating early symptoms.
