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The Rio Cotahuasi: Jewel of the Andes- A First Descent by Franz Helfenstein

Page 4: The Story Continues...

It was getting late, very late. We were deep in a chasm with few places to get out of our boats let alone stop for the night. Besides, much of our gear along with dinner was supposed to be waiting down-stream.

One of the last rapids that day we named "El Tubo" - The Tube; a wild ride through a narrow, turbulent chute with water curling over our heads. Just before dark we reached our first chance at a camp at the second foot bridge, Puenta Sipia.

We climbed up the bank to learn that our sleeping bags and dinner were still in town. The indispensable Jose Luis came through though with food, drink and enthusiasm.

This seemed a good time and place to take stock of our expedition: Already this trip was redlining the fun meter. After one river day we had traveled 2 km on the river @ 45 meters per km or 238 feet per mile. Let's see, my Passport was missing, my watch got snatched and no sleeping bag. One broken paddle but no broken bones and I still had my goodies. It all added up to one absolutely incredible day of paddling.

We had just run the only section of the Rio Cotahuasi previously run and that was done by Duilio's and Gian Marco's exploratory run a few weeks before. From here downstream is virgin river though we have some vague idea of what to expect. The river will probably stay steep, boulder-choked and almost continuous Class V from here to Sipia Cataract which is begun by a huge waterfall (156 m) we plan to portage by burro. Below Sipia we should enter a series of uncharted gorges that we hope are passable. In a week or two we should arrive at the Atlantic Ocean about 100 miles from here.

Trying to sleep as I lay shivering on my lifejacket I am reminded of the saying. You know you're on a true adventure when you would rather be home talking about it. Well this is shaping up to be quite the 'adventure' already.

This is not the first 'adventure' for any of us. Why do we pursue such activities? Evolution has instilled curiosity in all of humanity but which seems insatiable for some of us. To run a new river satisfies this craving but to make a first descent in an unknown canyon is euphoric. Sure, we lust after the unknown, but it's more than that. Is it simply the challenge of man against nature? Do we crave adrenaline? Do we seek death?

For me, the driving force is the feeling of LIFE, FULL-ON LIVING, I get from living on the edge. Just as sweetness is measured relative to bitterness, for me, the sweetness of life is measured relative to that which could cause life to cease. Feeling truly alive is contingent upon the yin yang experience offered by life-threatening activities. Feeling the fullness of life is a result of recognizing one's mortality and having some control over it. Add to that all the ingredients we have here and you get the trip of a lifetime.

That was a cold, cold night! It's summer in North America but it's winter here (though this close to the equator it's reasonably mild). But sleeping without the benefit of a sleeping bag was not in the plan. At least it's the dry season. Soon the sun rose, I ate some food and life was fantastic once again. We waited for Duilio, Gian Marco and the others to show up. They arrived early in the morning with the rest of our gear and informed us that Juan would be fine. This time I loaded my kayak with all I could leaving nothing for the burros except extra food. We headed downstream with even heavier boats naming each of the 8 Class V rapids we encountered and ran that day.

"Los Huevones" - The Bold Ones, "Los Colorados" and "Los Gringos". Then "El Serpiente" - The serpent; a winding route through large boulders. "Las Cascadas" - The Cascades; multiple five to ten foot drops in rapid succession. "Terremoto" - Earthquake; began with a 20 foot, ugly, cascading, Class V+/VI falls (portaged) with a run-out of holes, chutes and ferrys ending at the toughest drop so far, "Descanso Abajo" - Rest at the Bottom.

"Descanso Abajo": We could see a big pool at the bottom of this very steep, extremely boulder-choked drop which we snuck via micro-chutes and by skooching over 5 foot rock drops. Is this boating or spelunking? I was down first and got up on a cliff with my throw line ready. When the Shredder came through with Pepe Lopez & Fico it flipped. Pepe ended up on the far shore unharmed but minus his paddle. Fico stayed on and we quickly got a line to him. He was still 20 feet below us though and he had some problem hanging on. Eventually we pulled Fico off the Shredder and it took off downstream. I took off running along the shore thinking it was history and glad my gear was in my boat. There would be no chance to catch the Shredder before it went over the falls a few miles from there. However, when I came around the next bend of the river there it was; broached on a rocky outcrop in the middle of a rapid. What luck! Soon kayakers were there and had the whole situation under control. Team Danger was still with us.

The river mellowed until "Torrentinos" - named after those amazing ducks that can run any drop with impunity. Just another steep, boulder-choked drop with the ducks showing us how it should be run.

When we took out by Rene Urquiso's farm that evening we had covered only 1.6 km on the river at 45 meters per km. Rene agreed to help portage us around Sipia Cataract the next day assuming we got there. It was only another 1/4 mile; how long could that take? Rene was a real bonus because using the Laurel & Hardy team alone would have added another day. Rene sold us a goat for 50 Soles ($25) which he also butchered and grilled (tossed on the campfire). Dave is convinced Rene mixed up an old pair of shoes with the goat meat. While Rene's dogs ravaged the camp and made off with some of our gear and goodies though I drifted off to sleep in my warm sleeping bag thinking that was one of the most phenomenal days of whitewater in my 15+ years of kayaking. I seem to be thinking that a lot lately.