the cover

Where we launched, it was MESQUITE with PIÑON and juniper. Now, we saw GIANT SAGUAROS, ocotillos, prickly pears, and other plants of the lower Sonoran life zone.

SALT RIVER RUNNERS

YESTERDAY AS scudding dark clouds spit intermittent rain on our group of boaters on the banks of the upper Salt River, Blasshill, a Far Flung Adventures' river guide, talked about the three days and 50 miles of river rafting ahead of us.

Blasshill sat on the inflated bow of one of three six-passenger rafts beached just upstream from Salt Banks, a site sacred to several Indian tribes and the place that gives the river its name.

He described how the boat would react in white water and warned that rear passengers could be catapulted into the river when the raft bucked and corkscrewed while shooting a rapids.

He told us we needed to respond as a team if the boat high-sided against a large boulder or wrapped itself around a rock.

Safety is paramount, Blasshill said, and he demonstrated how to catch a grip on the raft's safety lines, how to grab the throw line if you got dumped into the water, and how to respond if someone else went overboard.

Photographer Peter Noebels and I were in Blasshill's boat along with Clair Destiny, Gail Warden, and Jessica Quenzler, Gail's granddaughter. Jody Gross and Brian Holers, escapees from Seattle's drizzly spring, were in a raft piloted by Bill Mobley. The third raft, piled high with food boxes, coolers, the camp kitchen, most of our personal gear, and other equipment furnished by Far Flung Adventures, was rowed by Nick Creasey.

Our three oarsmen fit the river-runner profile to a tee: Bearded, ponytailed, tanned, and fit, they have more than 30 years expe rience among them guiding white water adventures on Western rivers. We were in good hands.

Immediately after launching, we plunged through Salt Banks Rapid, a drenching bap tism to what lay ahead. Cold water surged into our laps as the raft's bow blasted through a big wave and, beside me, Clair Destiny emitted ear-piercing shrieks of de light and fear.

Thanks to Blasshill's deft handling of the oars, the boat eluded the eddy at the bottom of the rapids, and we continued downstream past Ledges and Little Boat Eater rapids. Riverine vegetation gradually changed as we dropped in elevation. Where we launched, it was mesquite with piñon and juniper on the upper slopes. Now, just a few miles downstream, we saw giant saguaros, ocotillos, prickly pears, and other plants of the lower Sonoran life zone.

Picturesque Walnut Falls enters the Salt from "river left," and downstream a bit we pulled onto a sand beach for lunch.

Later we ran Rat Trap, which was preceded by a bumpy little rapids that our guides dubbed "The Cheese." Then on to White Rock, Granite, Eye of the Needle, and Black Rock rapids. As the names of the rapids suggest, the geology along the gorge is fantastically varied.

At White Rock, we floated among shimmering 1.5-billion-year-old granite boulders, and at Black Rock, we glided past river-burnished rock of a deep obsidian hue.

As we skimmed along, we spotted a string of delights: an eagle's nest perched on a skinny ledge high above the river; a colony of cliff swallows busily repairing last year's mud nests; a ruined cliff dwelling 500 feet up the canyon wall; crimson cup hedgehog cactuses clinging to the rock crevices; Canyon Creek flowing into the Salt from the Mogollon Rim; black phoebes darting from rock perches to catch mayflies on the wing; a splash of red ocotillo blossom against jet-black rock. And, always, we heard the descending trill of the canyon wren, the signature birdsong of Arizona's canyons.

Blasshill instructed as he maneuvered the oars, making sure our attention did not wander for long. "We've got Eye of the Needle coming up, so everyone move to the middle of the boat, and remember the drill if we happen to wrap on one of those rocks." But we didn't.

The Salt begins at the confluence of the White and Black rivers, which are fed by snowmelt and numerous tributary creeks in the White Mountains. During our run, the river moved at about 1,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), up a bit from recent flow rates. Although we wouldn't experience the river at its more turbulent stages, when its volume exceeds 4,000 cfs, this was plenty wild for a bunch of greenhorn rafters.

We made camp at Hackberry Spring Wash. After a blustery first day, the weather cleared during the early evening.

Day two dawned sunny and mild, fair weather that would continue for our next two days on the river.

THE EVENING after surviving Quartzite Falls, we camp at Cherry Creek, a sycamore-lined stream flowing off the Mogollon Rim. Some of us enjoy a before-dinner swim in a deep, clear pool. During the night, I am awakened by a late-rising moon that softly illuminates evening primrose growing beside my sleeping bag on a sandy bench above the creek.

Our last day on the river. For a goodtwo-thirds of our run, beginning on day one, our raft has wound through the beautifully rugged Salt River Canyon Wilderness, 32,100 acres of the Tonto National Forest set aside by the 1984 Wilderness Act.

As it loses elevation, the river broadens, becoming less intense, so this last day is a time for conversation. The Salt never becomes a lazy river, though, and several stretches of white water and thrills aplenty await in the 16 miles to the State Route 288 bridge where both the Wilderness and our journey will end.

At the take-out, we're reluctant to leave the river, and no one wants to say good-bye. So with the camaraderie earned by a shared white water adventure and a bit of danger and excitement, we promise to stay in touch. Maybe next time, we say, we'll all sign on for the five-day trip.

Camping Guide: For information about the great variety of places to camp in Arizona, we recommend the guidebook Arizona's 144 Best Campgrounds by James Tallon, a longtime outdoorsman and contributor to Arizona Highways who personally visited each location. The book, which lists campgrounds by region and includes maps and details about facilities, costs $13.95 plus shipping and handling. To order, telephone toll-free (800) 543-5432. In the Phoenix area or outside the U.S., call (602) 258-1000.

This was Tucson-based Tom Dollar's second rafting adventure on the Salt River. As a child, Tucson-based Peter Noebels spent his free summer days on the lower Salt River. He remembered wondering what the river was like above Roosevelt Dam, and now he knows.

WHEN YOU GO The Tonto National Forest and the White Mountain Apache Tribe regulate rafting, camping, and Wilderness access to the upper Salt River. Any user of the upper Salt must purchase a White Mountain Apache Game and Fish Department permit, (520) 338-4385. Reservations and camping permits may be purchased at the Salt River Canyon General Store, just north of the Salt River Bridge on U.S. 60. If you intend to raft or camp within the Salt River Canyon Wilderness between March 1 and May 15, permits are limited, and you must apply between December 1 and January 31. For more information and to obtain the River Permit Coordinator, Tonto National Forest, 2324 E. McDowell Road, Phoenix, AZ 85006; (602) 225-5200. If you want to raft the first 20 miles, all you need are the skills and a permit from the White Mountain Apache Tribe. There are only four rafting companies registered with the Tonto National Forest. Blue Sky Expeditions, Inc., (520) 425-5252, and Desert Voyagers Guided Rafting Tours, L.L.C., (602) 998-7238, have permits for commercial rafting on the first 20 miles only. To raft the entire 50 miles of the river, contact either Far-Flung Adventures, Inc. toll-free at (800) 231-7238 or Sun Country Rafting, Inc., (602) 493-9011.