Going Rogue

 Two weeks ago, I set off on an adventure.  The time away I hoped would be rejuvenating, exhilarating and downright fun!  It was all of that and more.  Most of you have heard me talk of First Descents  before.  This was my second time out with them and once again they proved to be a top notch organization that has the power to do some really amazing things for people as they strive to get "out living it," after cancer.  FD teamed up with Sundance Kayak School to provide us with some wonderful challenges on the Rogue river in Southern Oregon.

It was wonderful to be back on the West coast for a week.  Some sort of cancer diagnosis is the common ground that we all come to FD with but then we get on the water and tackle the rapids and that all is forgotten.  There is of course some silliness which must be explained in terms of my attire in the first photograph.  We spent one beautiful night out on the river.  The night was complete with a "Dare Wear" dinner party, as in, "I dare you to wear that."  The vest you see actually had matching pants which I donned for dinner that evening.  I decided to keep the spirit alive the following two days by sporting the vest!  As dusk was approaching that evening mamma black bear approached the far bank of the river for a drink, we were able to watch her for a nice spell of time.  We fell asleep that night under the stars singing every old school country song we could think of.

The following morning was probably the best one of the trip.  I was up and on the water by 6:26am in my own effort to get "out living it." I ferried across the river to a beautiful surf wave right across from camp.  I was out there long enough to catch a few waves and I was drawn back to camp an hour and half later by the smell of bacon frying!! What a morning.  What a wonderful time to be away and outside in nature, to soak up the healing power of creation!

This photo is of the view from the deck of our river house where we spent the balance of our time when we were not out enjoying all that the Rogue had to offer.  Thank you to all of you that supported me and FD!  It truly is a blessing to take part in such a week.  Out living it!