We scrapped down the run in to this first rapid, but when the river steepens and tightens up, that low flow makes for perfect conditions for this Italien like run.
Coming round the corner we were greeted by this view, where to go? Initially I took us left, but Mike spied a route river right and signalled me down, running the rapid in the third picture on Mikes instructions, excellent.
Known as Dinosaur gorge, we run, portage and run alternatley as we favour some moves over others, we pick our way downstream.
The guide describes the section in some detail, although to be fair with rivers like this, its have a look, see your line, or not, paddle or portage as appropriate and continue, what’s good at one level may turn ugly at another, the guides are just that, a guide, a different day, a different level, a different beast. Hazards are given as boulder sieves, piton rocks and strainers and yup we saw plenty of opportunity, all rolled into one on occasion.
This last drop signals the end of the steeper stuff and the river opens out and the scrapping starts again, until the confluence with the Rio Macho! We continued down the Lower Orosi and didn’t have chance to stop and take pictures, the Upper having taken us three hours, we had 45 minutes of servicable daylight left to get down the two mile section, what a blast, firefighting our way down through “endless summer” as the rapids merge and entertain us till dusk.