Essay by John Krist
Recreation – July 2006 – Colorado Central Magazine
AS A RULE, it is not a good idea to smack a fellow river rafter with a paddle or to push him out of the boat in the middle of a rapid.
Not only do such actions constitute a breach of wilderness etiquette, they can cause hard feelings which might result in unpleasantness later in camp. And there’s also the possibility of drowning, which would no doubt lead to complications involving the authorities. But there were times during a recent trip down the Selway River in Idaho when I was tempted to bludgeon one of my fellow rafters.