t is very important for all of us to realize as guides and/or private boaters that everyone of us shares a very deep burning love for the Colorado River here in the Grand Canyon. We all have a right to this land. We all seek those private moments when and wherever we can find them. We all share this river, this canyon. Yet we must face this one fact: the Grand Canyon is a National Park. It is meant to be open and it has to be open to everyone, private and commercial. Yes, the quiet, silent, splendid beauty of the canyon is one of its most powerful and majestic attributes. I can understand why we all search for those almost surreal, splendid seconds of solitude with such passion.
Certainly it is unfortunate to read comments from boaters who have had the good fortune to have been on more than a half dozen private trips within the past 20 years, who write how unfair the current allocation system is. They feel that they cannot run a trip without seeing another trip in the Canyon and having to negotiate for campsites (unless they go through a commercial company and pay the “big bucks” for the trip). Commercial guides deal with these issues on a weekly basis. Most of the time they are with people they never met before or will ever have the good fortune to see again after the trip is over. Why? Not for the money. But rather because they love the Canyon deeply. We all have to pay a price. None of us have exclusive right to the Canyon. Is it really so unfair to have to share this paradise?
Treasure the moments of quiet solitude when you have them. Embrace others when you see them. Realize that they are, after all, looking for same thing you are. The quiet unspoiled beauty of nature. Communication is the key to understanding one another. Whether you realize it or not most people you meet in the Canyon are kind, giving souls. They will give back to you what you give to them.

Bob Grusy