I was feeling very confident as I walked away from our Scenic Float trip. My next point of interest would be to conquer the white water… dun dun dun. For stability and reassurance purposes, I decided it would be best to bring along my friend Brant. I was not going to go alone. As I stood there waiting for the life-vest distribution, with the water running several feet away, I cannot deny that I had a very high level of stress running through me. I took in all seriousness the way our guide instructed us to hold the paddle… I only almost dropped it twice. Like I had said previously, being in a raft in the middle of a river has never appealed to me before. Going through the first set of rapids, I was thinking of every way possible of myself getting back in the raft if I had in fact fallen out. I made it through. I then noticed the gaping smile that I had plastered on my face. I was definitely having fun! I was then ready for some real action. Coming up to Big Kahuna, I felt ready. As we hit it straight on, my paddling stopped as I was engulfed with water. I was soaked, but totally proud of myself for defeating yet another fear of mine.

My piece of advice: GO RAFTING!!!  -Emily Ming

This summer’s annual Legends of the Snake event kicks off tomorrow afternoon with a float trip in Grand Teton National Park, and ends with an evening of food and festivities at Dornan’s. Jackson Hole pioneers of the rafting and fishing industry will take to the oars and tell stories of this valley’s river running history… maybe even mix in a few stories of their own personal trips down the Snake! This year’s lineup features former U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director John Turner, Jack Dennis, Frank Ewing, Charlie Sands, Dick Barker, Bill Guheen, Dave Hansen and many more.