Rangers Rescue Kayakers From The Narrows

During the last weekend in April, rangers rescued a number of people following boating accidents in Zion Narrows. During the spring snowmelt runoff season, the flow of the North Fork of the Virgin River is occasionally high enough to allow for whitewater kayaking. This year, five boating parties obtained permits for one-day trips through the Narrows over the weekend. Members of four of the groups unintentionally spent nights in the Narrows, with kayakers in two of the groups losing their boats and requiring assistance to complete their trips. On the afternoon of April 24th, kayaker Curtis Martin was washed under a log jam. Fortunately, he was not trapped by the hazard and was able to safely reach the river bank, but his boat was lost downstream. The remaining two members of his party left him their extra food and warm clothing and continued on their way. They eventually came upon another group and both groups spent the night together. On the following afternoon, Martin’s party reported his predicament to the park, which organized a rescue team that including roads and trails foreman Don Sharlow, ranger Dan Hovenac, and local resident Logan Hebner.  The team began its descent of the Narrows on Sunday morning. A Bell 47G helicopter served as a radio relay. Two of the other groups that had planned day trips for Saturday failed to clear the Narrows by day’s end. The first group, consisting of two hard shell kayakers, provided Martin with additional food, then continued downstream; members of the second group, who were in two inflatable kayaks, invited Martin to accompany them. On Sunday morning, Martin and his new travelling companions came upon the boats of the hard shell kayakers who had passed Martin the afternoon before. One boat was on a gravel bar in a narrow section of canyon. The boat was tied to a rope which was anchored 80 feet up the difficult to climb cliff face.  A second boat was found upside down downstream.  Martin finally exited the Narrows on Sunday afternoon, 48 hours after losing his boat. When Martin’s party came out of the Narrows, they reported the abandoned kayaks. The Bell helicopter began searching the mesas above the kayaks. The two kayakers were discovered, cliffed-out 800 feet above the river, unable to climb up or down. The two had attempted to climb out of the canyon after one of the kayakers lost his boat.  They were concerned with fluctuating river levels and flash floods.  The helicopter’s pilot was unable to land near them due to heavy brush, so Grand Canyon’s short haul team was requested. Due to higher rotor clearance, the Grand Canyon MD 900 helicopter was able to locate a safe landing zone and the two kayakers were picked up and flown out of the backcountry. Zion Narrows was temporarily closed to boating while the causes of the multiple incidents were evaluated (they were reopened on April 30th). The NPS has advised prospective boaters that they should be comfortable with Class V whitewater prior to attempting the Narrows run. At some levels, the rapids may warrant a lower classification, but the extreme difficulty of rescue requires that boaters be highly proficient and self-sufficient. Rescue in the Narrows, if possible at all, will be significantly delayed due to the extreme inaccessibility of the canyon.  Boaters are also reminded to plan for unintended overnight stays and emergencies.