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Breaking News…. In 1934: The Vernal Express announces Bus Hatch’s Grand Canyon expedition
Breaking News…. In 1934: The Vernal Express announces Bus Hatch’s Grand Canyon Expedition
Today, many people have had the extraordinary opportunity to run the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. But it wasn’t always the accessible adventure it is today! Running the Colorado river used to be considered a daunting expedition that few dared to make, and those who did would make the news. That news is what we are going to talk about today!
In July of 1934, Bus Hatch along with Alton Hatch, Frank Swain, Royce “Cap” Mowry. Dr. Russell Frazier, Clyde Eddy and Bill Fahrni set out to run the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon for the first time. At the time less than a hundred people had run this section of the river, so it was big news to everyone that there was yet another group of people crazy enough to attempt the trip. Newspapers like the Vernal Express announced and chronicled the expedition for the public to read. Let’s take a look at what they had to say in one of their articles.
Vernal Men To Make Boat Trip Down the Colorado
Daring Party Will Ply Boats Through the Treacherous Rapids of Colorado River From Lees Ferry to the Boulder Dam*. Will Leave Saturday.
Leaving Lees Ferry in Southern Utah a party from Vernal and other Utah Point will start a trip down the Colorado river, daring treacherous rapids and passing thru long dreary and isolated gorges, to Boulder Dam. The River party will take off in four boats with airtight compartments, specially designed for the trip.
The trip will include Grand Canyon. Upon reaching Boulder Dam, the thrilling expedition will terminate with a ride through one of the fifty-foot diversion tunnels at the dam.
The expedition will be headed by Dr. R. G Frazier of Bingham and will include Clyde Eddy of New York, Bill Farhni of Lark, Bus and Alton Hatch, Frank Swain and Royce Mowrey of Vernal.
The Green and Colorado rivers have been navigated by the Utah party from Green River, Wyo, thru a series of trips to Lee’s Ferry. It is the plan of the party to continue the trips each year until they have eventually covered the rivers from Wyoming to the Gulf of California.
The stories told by the rivermen of the remarkable scenery encountered in their trips treacherous rapids, leaping over high water falls, viewing wild animals and breathtaking thrills when their boats have been overturned and sometimes gouged by sharp rocks, sound more like fairy tales.
It is a marvel that no serious accident has never occurred during the trips of these modern explorers, partly due to the utmost precaution=ion taken in making the descent of the rivers and largely due to the skill with which they handle the boats.
This will mark the ninth historically-recorded expedition down the swirling rapids of the Colorado river, which had claimed more lives than have ever survived the dangerous descent since one-armed Major Powell first went through in 1889.
Clyde Eddy has lined up a moving picture agency which will send a technician along The ninth expedition down the Colorado, thru Grand Canyon to Boulder Dam, will be unique in that it will be the first Utah party to make the venture.
In 1869 Major Powell first dared the rapid current, history records coming out at the Virgin River in 1872 Powells second expedition went clear through Fredrick S Dellenbaugh, artist and historian is now the only living member of that party being 90 years old. In 1909 Julius F Stone of Columbus Ohio went through, followed by the Kolb Brothers in 1911 a US Geological Survey expedition in 1921. Clyde eddy in 1927 a Pathe-Bray photography expedition in 1927 and finally in 1929 by a Mr and Mrs Hyde who have never been heard of since. In 1933 Dr Fraxzier made a partial descent.
A feature of the trip will be the erection at Separation Rapid of a bronze plaque in memory of Seneca Howland. OG Howland , and Wm H Dunn who left the first Powell party at this point August 28, 1869 and were killed by Indians on the Shivwits Plateau.
The national Broadcasting company had originally intended to broadcast 15 minutes a day of the thrilling trip but due to conflicting attractions such as the army balloon ascent and naval operations of the Atlantic coast together with the difficulty of getting a line into any point on the Colorado closer than Flagstaff, Ariz., the plan was abandoned.
* Boulder Dam is Hoover Dam
This article was printed on July 12th 1934. You can find the original article here.
Check out these other newspaper articles about the trip!
If you want to read more about Bus Hatch’s 1934 trip check this blog post.
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