I'd Rather Be Tubing

I got an intense urge to go on the river late last week. Maybe it was the forecast of 95 degrees all weekend. For once, I didn't have too much to do Saturday or Sunday, so I convinced John and Rachel to float down a river. The closest tubing operation is Apple River, but I read reviews and heard from friends that it's more like Girls Gone Wild: drinking, nudity and littering. The latter is what really disgusted me. Instead, we headed an hour south to Welch Mill near Hastings, Minnesota. The employees were all very friendly and efficient.

For a mere $10 each, you get an innertube and a shuttle ride up river. Anyone who's floated the Arkansas River in Pueblo (or anywhere) knows the most annoying part of tubing is vehicle logistics. Pueblo really needs to start a shuttle operation!

We passed up the short trip of 40 minutes and opted for the longer 3.5 hour trip. In hindsight we should've chosen the 40 minutes trip and gone a few times. Over 3 hours is just too long to bake in the sun. Although each bus carried 50 people every 20 minutes, the river was never overwhelmingly crowded. Tubing was a perfect way to spend a 90+ degree day!

John is super excited!

Rachel braces for the cold water