ay 4: It¹s July now: 112 degrees., gusty upstream winds, not a cloud in the sky. Been on the water since April. Haven¹t seen my baby. Brain¹s kind of scrambled from the heat, the wind, the people‹other trips are everywhere, LCR was nuts. My people loved it, though. They really got crazy. Is this trip #4 or #5? Everything¹s kind of running together. Rattlesnake camp is open. Better grab it.

Day 5: Baked in Furnace Flats last night, did the exchange at Phantom Ranch, made it through the big stuff and cleared Crystal intact. Now, where to put my people tonight? Three commercial trips are down in front of us somewhere. Lord knows where the privates are. Gotta make the pad by Sunday. Need to find any old place in this inferno-gorge. Well, maybe Bass Camp? Umm, right!

Day 6: Camped at Garnet. Finally got around to reading my Phantom Ranch mail. My baby left me‹ she found some other guy. Ah hell! Wonder what I¹m going to do when the season¹s over? No time for tears. 12 years at this job, barely making ends meet, and still don¹t have a future. Lower back pain doesn¹t seem to go away and my elbow is acting up again. Can¹t tell the boss, could get fired for that. Just got to put on a confident, happy face and find us a camp! Stone Creek might be open.

Day 7: Camped at Owl Eyes. Did the Deer Creek boogy with five other trips squashed in there. Heading down stream into the Muav Gorge, it¹s still early afternoon and we¹ve gotta get one of those nonexistent camps above Havasu Creek. Maybe we can get Last Chance? Yeah, fat chance!

Day 8: Havasu flashed big, barely got everybody out of there in time. Storm broke with waterfalls crashing everywhere. After noon the walls and sky turned utterly glorious in color and light! My people are getting that child-like, exuberant look in their eyes. The water is low and Lava Falls is next. The tension is rising, people look worried. My gut¹s starting to tighten-up. Vulcan lies in wait. Oh boy.

God, I love this job!

Career Opportunity: Grand Canyon River Guide

Personal qualities required: M or F, healthy, strong, mature, savvy, coordinated person with excellent judgement, common sense, loyalty, and team-skills. Must enjoy all kinds of people: be patient, tolerant, available, with a high level of endurance through all environmental and social conditions, come what may.

Responsibilities: navigate a boat with 4-20 guests for up to 16 days safely through the largest navigable whitewater in the U.S.. Know 280 miles of river corridor intimately. Effectively negotiate logistics with numerous other trips on the river. Lead hikes in rugged desert terrain, perform advanced wilderness first aid, cook meals, give orientations, interpret natural history, and give counseling as necessary. Be prepared to respond to any emergency at any time of day or night and know evacuation procedures. Do everything necessary to keep people happy and get to the take-out on time. Train new boatmen free of charge, and expect to be replaced by them when you wear-out.

• Hours per day: 24
• Days per week: 7
• Days of work per year: about 50 to 100
• Paid holidays: 0 Wages: $75-$125 per day, depending on experience.
• Benefits: Some, maybe. Great scenery. Good equipment. Little chance for advancement. You may be fired at any time for any reason. Retirement opportunities? Don¹t ask.
• River certifications needed: 2-5 years experience running Grand Canyon. Current GCNP River Guide Card, advanced wilderness first aid card, cpr card, Food Handlers certificate, negative drug tests, excellent resume and references.

Applicants must be prepared to dedicate the best and most productive working years of their lives to advancing the company¹s profitability and reputation while providing the best possible river experience to guests. New applicants should expect to apprentice the first season or two for little or no pay. Applicants should not expect to have a family or keep a mate, nor expect compensation to keep pace with cost of living increases.

Andre Potochnik