Ode to ECHO
("I'm in Love with a River Guide")
Middle Fork of the Salmon River, Idaho, July 31-August 5, 2013
by Kay Martin & Julie Keating
At the end of July, with the sun high in the sky,
We set off on our Middle Fork ride.
With Joe and Dick as the chiefs,
We felt huge relief,
Our trip would be better than great!
With Joe’s kind instruction, we paddled the rapids,
As "busy" as busy can be!
With Dick, the hunk (or is it honk?),
We heard stories that didn’t stop coming,
Along with the rocks in the stream.
Jon serenades and leads us to fabulous adventures,
Pictographs, hot springs, flying whipped cream shots too,
Next stop is the Futaleufu!
Dewi, the sage knows the river like Neptune,
He’s calm and he carries the beer.
Cade is our man, river water in his veins,
And he cooks a mean steak on the grill.
Aaron, the swampie, helps set up the camp,
And lays out our snug little town,
His true self emerged when tequila he drank,
And the Mexican wrestler was born!
Pachoooo! There is Audrey, our teacher and pal,
With piggy dreads flying, she hula hoops madly,
And pilots big Toby to camp.
The West Virginians add stories and pizzazz to the group,
They guide with real skill and bring lots of wine!
The trip was so awesome, we have memories galore,
So watch out to ECHO, we’ll be back for more!
Dick & Kay on the Middle Fork
