Whitewater

Diversity, Essays, Grand Canyon, National Parks, Public Land, Whitewater / 03.09.2018

Several weeks ago a travel magazine contacted me out of the blue. The senior executive editor of  HereMagazine.com very graciously invited me to contribute to an upcoming issue dedicated to the theme of freedom. She was particularly interested in a story from me on the National Parks and the role that spending time in nature plays in my personal pursuit of happiness. It just so happened that I had given that topic a great deal of thought in recent months and I accepted the assignment with the intention...

Interview, Photography, Whitewater / 29.07.2013

The modern history of the Grand Canyon is perhaps best embodied through the life’s work of professional photographer John Blaustein. Since his first trip down the Colorado River aboard a decked-over dory in 1970, this anthropology major from UC Berkeley has built his career taking pictures while indulging a personal passion for whitewater adventure. First under the apprenticeship Joe Monroe, a freelance photographer with credits in Life Magazine, National Geographic, Time and Fortune, Blaustein learned the craft of photography while building his skills rowing the mighty river with...

Book Review, Interview, Life Out Loud, Whitewater / 29.07.2013

[caption id="attachment_172729" align="aligncenter" width="550"] Photo by Kurt-Markus[/caption] In 1983 a record snow yield in the Rocky Mountains created the highest volume of meltwater ever to surge through the Colorado River. The massive buildup of hydraulic pressure threatened to overcome the 710-foot barrier of the Glen Canyon Dam and sent a devastating current of destruction at incredibly high speeds through the mile-deep gorge that winds its way through the Arizona desert. The Grand Canyon was inundated with a catastrophic wall of the deadliest whitewater seen in a generation. And as...