Anyone in Real Estate knows it’s a 24-7 job.  You cell phone is attached to your hip at all times and your laptop is never more then a few feet away.  Every once in a while you have to step away from work and enjoy a little vacation.

Last week Claudia and I decided to go on a 5 day river trip.  We all know there is no cell phone reception on the river and no practical way to be contacted…perfect. We had a good amount of support back at the office covering our business so we packed up and headed for the rio!

The Salt River in Arizona was the river of choice.  We applied for permits and were selected for the days we requested.  There was word that the water might be too low but we took a chance and went for it anyway.  What a beautiful get away.  We had a small group, 5 people and 2 boats.  The river was amazing, each day we were taken away by beautiful desert landscapes, unique rock formations and splashed by fun rapids.  We lucked out with good weather conditions and the water was never too low.  The rapids were from class II up to Class IV which was pretty adventurous at moments and kept things pretty exciting.  Between the big rapids there was flat water and a few little riffles that set a really nice pace.  Each night we enjoyed a big dinner and campfire under the stars.  All in all it was a great vacation and completely necessary.  After 5 wonderful days it was time to get back to the office.  It was easy to jump right back into the flow at the office but this trip was a great reminder of why can’t loose sight of why we work so hard.

What a great to kick off this year’s rafting season.  There are closer rivers that can be day trips or even hour trips.  The Dolores River is just a little over an hour away from Durango and the Animas River runs right through town.  In the middle of summer I jump on the ‘town run’ down the Animas right after work.  Put in at 32nd street at 4:30 pm and take out over by Walmart by 6:30 pm and still have time to make dinner!

by Shaheen

Video of Smelter Rapid in Durango:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hN8cI6LcGk