Flip and Rusty were going to have the hardest job during this shoot. Their goal was to get pictures at every rapid, but they were going to have to travel by foot down the side of the river. At first, Flip had thought about traveling in a raft in front of us, which would have made it easier, but he still had that cast, which he couldn’t get wet. But after some good scouting during our practice run, he was able to find some really good views from land. He was just going to have to struggle to get there quickly.
Flip yelled to us and waved as he and Rusty took off down the trail. “The best shots are going to be from Butter-Churn and Get-Out-Now, so save some smiles for the end!”
As Matt ran over to get our paddles, Fawn grabbed me and Mom. “I’d really like to shake our guide up a little on the Morning Coffee rapid. Are you game?”
Of course we were game. So we hatched a plan.
Matt broke up our little huddle. “Ladies, we’re going to change things up a bit with the seating. We need Riley in the front right, and Fawn in the front left. Mrs. Hart, you can sit behind Riley, and I’ll just move wherever I’m needed.”
“But the front is where all the waves hit,” I said.
“Exactly,” Matt said. “That’s how Flip wanted it.”
“Great. I’ll get him back later.”
“Be careful,” Fawn said. “He always gets you back worse.” I laughed, remembering Fawn’s gravy pants.
Matt lifted me into the raft and before I knew it, we were shoved off and reviewing the rafting commands. Only this time I was on the other side, so I really had to think.
“All forward into Morning Coffee!” Matt yelled.
Fawn began counting loud. “One, two . . . three!”
As we entered the rapid, all of us women stood up. We raised our paddles in the air and gave a big “Whoop!”
The cold wave of water hit us hard. It stung my legs and arms and neck, and it felt like I had done a belly flop in a pool. A ways down on the bank, I could see Flip snapping pictures and Rusty cheering us on. The Class One rapid didn’t last long. I waited for Matt’s reaction. I expected another stink eye or a firm warning, but instead, he grabbed his stomach, laughed, and shook his head. “Wow — I thought you were all flying out there!”
“Gotcha,” Fawn said.
“Yeah, well just remember, pride goeth before a fall.”
“We were just having a little fun. We’ll be good now. Promise.” Fawn looked over at me and winked.
The next rapid was Break Neck, the one that turns you into a human bobblehead. Fawn thought it would be funny to have us act like we were drinking tea out of pretend cups — pinkies up and everything — while Matt pushed us from behind. It made for another great picture if Rusty’s reaction from the shore meant anything. As soon as Flip took a few shots, we dug our paddles into the shallow river to help Matt dislodge us from the rocks. This time he was able to jump in without any drama.
“I thought this wasn’t a tea party,” he said.
“Yeah, well, we changed our minds,” Fawn said.
That made me laugh, but just for a minute. In the distance, I could hear the churning and whooshing sounds of our first waterfall. My stomach did a little jump, but this time, I knew the feeling wouldn’t go away until we had successfully made it down the Tube Chute.
My ears started to pound, or I guess maybe that was just me hearing my heart kick up a notch. Our last attempt through the Tube Chute was botched when we hit that rock and got stuck on it. All I could think about was that I couldn’t remember what to do if it happened again. Matt didn’t review that with us.
Matt yelled from the back of the raft. “Left forward, right back!”
We did as we were told. But what we did couldn’t be right. We started spinning in circles. The churning water sound got louder.
“Matt! What are you doing?” Fawn’s eyes were wide as she watched the rock getting closer and closer.
“I’m paying you back!” Matt yelled. “Now, all forward— HARD!”
As soon as we dug our paddles in, the raft straightened out.
“GET DOWN!” We all held our paddles as we flattened out on the bottom of the raft. I watched as we flew by the rock. I threw my hands up in a victory pose — just in time to plunge down the waterfall. In all the excitement, I forgot to hold my breath before we went under. I did remember to smile when we came back up, but I’m not sure how that picture turned out, because the water that had filled up my mouth squirted out of my teeth.
“That was THRILLING, wasn’t it?” Matt stood up and gave us all high fives as the waters calmed a bit.
Mom shook herself like a dog when it’s done with its bath. “Hey, Bucko, what was with the spinning?”
“Sorry, Mrs. Hart. I had it under control the whole time. You can thank Fawn for your little adventure.”
“I’m sorry,” Fawn said. “But we’re even now, right?”
Matt blushed a little. “Yeah, we’re even. But if the tea party’s not over yet, this would be a good time to get out some dinner rolls. Butter-Churn is next.”
I tried to remember about Butter-Churn. “Is this a waterfall, Matt?”
“A small one. The rapid is a little rough. The river narrows, and then we have to weave through rocks on both sides. You’ll all paddle forward and put on a show for Flip, and I’ll do the tricky maneuvering back here. After that is Get-Out-Now, and then we can have cookies and relax, because we’re definitely not going down Thrill-and-Kill today.”
“Only two more waterfalls. Easy as pie.”
I’m not sure why Fawn used that term. I’ve tried to make pie before and it wasn’t easy. The crust shrank and then burned, and the filling bubbled out all over the inside of the oven which caused smoke to fill the kitchen. When things are going to be easy, I don’t say that they’re easy as pie. I always say they’re “cake.”