Team JK’s Heather Herbeck sends in this note and article from Mexico

By Heather Herbeck

Hey EJ –

I just wanted to let you know how our trip went back to Mexico. It has been my goal since the last time I was in Mexico with you and other Jackson Team members to come back and show Nate the "goods" that the Alseseca offers. We met up with Rafa over the weekends we were there and hit many of the sections of the Alseseca that we explored last year.

Before I get into the river reports, I want to thank you, once again, for making such great boats. The first day of paddling in Mexico, I had a vert. pin situation, ending up pulling my skirt and watching the Rocker go over the next horizon – an unrunnable, perhaps the mankiest drop I have ever seen. It took us 3 hours to z-drag the Rocker out of a gnarly seive. Once pulled out of the water, we noticed an indentation along the side of the boat, however within minutes, the dent was out and the boat was in tip-top shape. Thanks EJ!

I am sending you some photos from the trip, but there are many more photos along with the trip reports on www.liquidkayak.com.

The most exciting thing for me about our trip back to Mexico was the last canyon (on the map, this section was the deepest canyon of the Alseseca), which Rafa, myself, Ikrt, Taylor and Nate explored. If you remember, this was the last stretch of the Alseseca that Ben wanted to explore, however with limited time, we didn’t get to it last year. This section started with a 100 foot waterfall, the most beautiful horizon line I have ever seen. We repelled downstream of this falls about 120 feet into a deep, deep canyon . . . the trip report will be up on www.liquidkayak.com soon. (The last three or four attached photos are of this last section) A beautiful, huge waterfall followed by a 35 foot waterfall a little ways downstream. And a Class V rapid about a 200 feet downstream of this . . . the gradient we noticed from the map was definatetly stacked in the first three drops.

I left Mexico last year, wanting to get back into the Alseseca and explore the last section that Ben had hoped to get on with the crew last year – so with that accomplished, I left Mexico this year with three goals in mind for when I get back – The Tomata Gorge, The Trucha section (that stretch looked so good, but with limited number of crew – because Nate was out sick – we didn’t hit it) and some waterfalls that Nate and I scouted. Can’t wait!!!

I hope you are well.
***All photos in this report are courtesy of Nate and Heather Herbeck.

Heather Herbeck