18 americanwhitewater.org

As I was preparing to launch that first morning, an emerging dread crept up the back of my neck. … Although I had run rivers for 42 years, including nine trips down the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, I had never faced a challenge like this one: a gradient equal to the Middle Fork of the Salmon, four-foot wave trains, big pour-overs, surging eddies, seemingly endless rock gardens. I was to carry the two large kitchen boxes. Throughout this adventure my greatest fear was putting the entire trip in jeopardy. One mistake in navigating 310 miles of hurtling, surging, relentless whitewater and all our cooking gear would be at the bottom of the river.

Sometimes for veteran riverrunners, simply the generaldescriptionofafree-flowingriver

inafar-offplaceisenoughtocaptureandhold the imagination.TheRioMarañón

was that place forme.Addworld-classwhitewater, theperil to theentireriverand toall thepeoplewho livealong itsbanks from future dam development,andthechancetocontributemyvoicetopreservation,andamissionwasborn. Iseizedthemomentandlaunchedonthetripofalifetime.

IfirstheardoftheRioMarañónthroughamessagepostedonasitedevotedtotheColoradoRiverthroughtheGrandCanyon.Itdescribedthebeautyanddifficultyofrunning this river and the destructionthat it faces from numerous proposedhydroelectricdamprojects.Themessagementioned Rocky Contos, outfitter andguide. IcontactedRockyathiswebsite,www.SierraRios.org, to learnmore andbeganresearchabouttheriver.

I learnedthattheRioMarañónformsontheeasternsideof thePeruvianAndes,risingfromglacialrunoffandsnowmelt.

Itplungesnorthatagradientaveraging15to30feetpermile,twotofourtimesthatoftheColorado.Hundredsofmilesdownstream,theMarañónbeginsabroadturn toward Brazil where it enters thejungle, receiveswater frommanyotherrivers,andisconsideredthemainstreamheadwatersoftheAmazon.

TheCanyonoftheRioMarañónisamongthedeepestintheworld.Inmanyplacesthepeaksoverlookingtheriverare10,000feetaboveitslevel,twiceashighastheSouth rim of the Colorado River in theGrandCanyon.InitsupperstretchestheMarañónCanyonisquitenarrowwithsteepsides and limitedbeaches.Because the

thE rIo MArAñón, A FrEE-FloWIng RiveR in PeRil

BYJACKBILLINGS

peaks more than 10,000 feet above the level of the rio Maranon (peru).photo by Alex Weinert

Opposite: Antontio and his mother would become homeless, and the entire village at Tupe’n Grande destroyed if the Chadi’n II dam is constructed.photo by Emer Chavez

mar/apr 2017 19

canyonreceivesonlyabout10to20inchesofrainperyear,itisessentiallyadesert.

Since the 1970s, foreign developershavestudieddamfeasibilityallalongtheMarañón. In 2010, then-President AlanGarcia declared that energy-producinghydroelectric dam construction on theMarañónwas inthe“national interest.”Asmanyas20damshavebeenproposedand many are under active study andconsideration. These projects, calledChadinII,Veracruz,andManserichewouldeachbeatleast600feettallandwouldfloodareasranginginsizefrom45to125miles.Anyoneofthemwouldinundateandpermanentlydestroytheecosystemoftheriverupstream,submergethevillagerswholivealonganddependonthefree-flowingriver,andchangeforeverthewayoflifealongitsbanks.

rocky ContosRocky condos is 44, tall, angular, andquitefitwithawrydemeanor.Hebegankayakingin1991butalsolearnedtoraftinthemid-1990stointroducemorepeopletothewondersofrivertravel.HeisaClassVkayakerwithmanyfirstdescentsinthe

UnitedStates,Mexico,CentralAmerica,Peru,Bolivia,andSoutheastAsia.HefirstrantheentireMarañónfromitsheadwatersto Iquitos in 2012, having discovered itfromascanofriversaroundtheworld.HeledhisfirstthreelargegroupSierraRiosexpeditionsin2013-14.

In justthreeandahalfyearsRockyhasdevelopedafirst-classoutfittingoperationinaremote,ruggedenvironmentonanextremelychallengingriver.Hisguidesandclientscomefromallovertheworldforthisintensewhitewaterchallenge.Inadditionto providing clients with an incrediblewilderness whitewater experience, hewants to demonstrate to the Peruviangovernmentthateco-tourismisaviableeconomicalternativetodamconstruction.

As I learned from Rocky, and othersources,someofthedamprojectshavedocumentedmomentumandapprovalsforconstruction.LiketheBio-BioinChile,theremaybeonlysomuchtimeremainingbeforedamsareconstructedandthisriverislostforever.And,asIturned70inJuly,2016,Iengagedinsomeback-and-forthdebateaboutwhetherIwasupforthechallenge.

ButIalwaysknewhowtheargumentwouldend:Ihadtogo.

our group to the put-inWhileshortertripsaremorepopularduetotimeconstraints forparticipants,ourplanwastorunall310milesthroughtheentiresectionoftheMarañónknownasthe“GrandCanyonoftheAmazon.”OurrendezvoushubwasthecityofHuaraz,situatedatabout10,000feetelevationonthewestsideofthePeruvianAndes.

Ourlaunchgroupwasaneclecticmixofagesandorigins.Werangedfrom23to70yearsoldandcamefromItaly,Uruguay,Chile,Peru,theUnitedStates,andDenmark.Thesixraftswereoutfittedlikeanylonger,commercialraftexpedition.Althoughwehadlocalguideswithus,wewerefortunate

wildERnESS Paddling

Weekend and 5-Day Programs

613-594-5268

It’s aRAPID EDUCATION!

U.S. PADDLING

SPECIALBook by Jan 27, 2017

and receive up to 40% o�

20 americanwhitewater.org

thatRockyContosledtheexpedition,hisninthtimedownthissectionoftheriver.

We enjoyedmagnificent views of deepblue lakes and towering snowcappedmountains as our bus passed over theAndesat14,500 feet.ProceedingdowntheRioPuchkadrainage,wecametotheruinsleftbytheChavi’npeople.TheChavi’nprecededtheIncabyatleast1000yearsandoccupiedthisareabetween1400and400BC.ThemostlyexcavatedTemplehasapreciseeast-westorientationandfine stoneconstruction.

After a seven-hour serpentine ride, wearrived at the put-in at an elevation of7000feet.OurtripcameattheendofadryseasonthatfollowedoneofthedriestElNinoyearsonrecord.So,wewerenotsurprisedthattheriverwasrunningonlyabout2000cfs,thelowestlevelRockyhadeverseenit.Thoughthismeanttheriver

hadsmallerholes,additionalexposedrocksmadeformoretechnicalmaneuvering.

Liketypicalraft-supportedtripsintheUS,allraftscarriedgroupequipment.Iroweda16-footself-bailerwithnine-footoars.Cargoincludedthetwokitchenboxes,somefoodandcampneeds,apersonalduffel,and water. Other boats had additionalfoodsupplies, includingtwocoffin-sizedicecoolersonthecataraft.

Aswepreparedtolaunchthatfirstmorning,avoiceinmyheadmuttered,“Youmustbeoutofyourmind.Whatdoyouthinkyou’redoing?”Butitwastoolatetoturnback;Ihadcometoofarandeveryoneelsehadtheirowncraftstonavigate.

From the put-in to ChagualFrom theput-in at about 7000 feetwerowedover thenext12days toour re-supply point of Chagual, at about 3300

feet.Thecanyonwallsareverysteepinthissection,constrictingtheriver,andcreatingcountlessClassIIandIIIs,roughlyadozenClassIVs,andtwoClassVs.IbecamemorecloselyacquaintedwithsomehazardsthanIwould havepreferred.Onour seconddaywerowedthroughYesojircaNarrows,where the river is constricted tobarely raft-width.

Evenwhenthewaterseemedsomewhatflat,itwouldsurgealongarockwallandsuddenly a huge eddy would appearbehindanearlycoveredboulderthatwasenoughtospinaraftcompletelyaround.Othertimeswechoseto“readandrun”rapidswherethedistanceorterrainmadeitinfeasibletoscout.Wewouldgenerallyfollow one of the guides through themajorrapidsandhopewecouldmakethe samemoves.

wildERnESS Paddling

the author below the first rapid.photo by Alex Weinert

mar/apr 2017 21

OneoftheClassVrapidsinthissectionisknownasWasson’sLandslide.ItwasfirstmentionedbyJohnWasson,amemberofa1977tripthatdescribedtheobstacleinsomedetail.RockytookchargeofrowingeachoftheraftsthroughtheupperpartofWasson’sbutturnedtheoarsbackovertousforthelaststretch.

Themajorimpedimentinthislastrunoftherapidisaneight-footdropintoagreatsurging boil. Unfortunately, I missed acoupleofstrokesandthecurrentpulledmetowardthehole.Iknewthatgoinginsidewayswouldbeacompletedisaster.Given my angle, the best option wasrowingbackwardashardasIcould.Ishotoverthetopandtheboatlandeduprightinthesurge.Withinanano-second,IwaslaunchedoutoftheboatandintothewaterasthoughIwasteeduponthegolfcourse.Atfirst,Iwaspulleddownandbackintothechurningwater,buteventuallymylifejacketbroughtmeupforawelcomegaspofairandIgottoshore.Theboatstayeduprightandwelostnogear.However,mydignitywasinseriousdisarray.

Thesteepcanyonwallshereseemidealfordamconstruction.Threedamsinthissectionaloneareunderactivestudy:Yakuatmile58,Cajasatmile87,andSanMiguelat mile 124. Each would rise hundredsof feet above the river and completelysubmergetheareaupstreamforadistanceof at least 30miles. These three damswouldcreatestairstepreservoirs,withnosemblanceofariverbetween.

As we worked our way downstream Ivisualized the impact on this beautifulcanyon if it were submerged underhundreds of feet of water. Though theareaseemedempty,itwasnot.Manysidestreams (quebradas) and smaller riversjoined the Marañón. At nearly everyconvergencewiththeriverasmalloasisof green signaled where a farmer haddivertedthequebradatocreateaplantingarea(chacra)forgrowingcoca,bananas,mangoes,papayas,oranges,andpeppers.Thesechacrasexistbecausetheriverand

its side streamshave formeda riparianbankwithaflourishingecosystem.

Several days into the trip, we campedjustupstreamofSanachganrapidandawell-establishedchacra.Aswepreparedtoleave,ayoungcouplecamewiththeirinfantdaughteranddogtoseeusoff.ItwasdifficulttolearnfromthemfirsthandthatiftheYakudamisconstructed,theirfarmandwayoflifewillbedestroyed.

Flora and FaunaTheMarañóndrainageishometoauniquevarietyofplantsandanimalsthatcouldnotsurvivethedams.Countlesscenturiesoferosion from the steepcanyonwallshaveformedriverbanksthatflourishwithtrees,shrubs,andwildlife.Thisiswherethepeopleliveandtheirsustainableagriculturehas developed over many generations.Submergethecanyonunderhundredsoffeetofwater,andthefertileriverbankisgoneforever.

Alongthisuppercanyonandinnergorge,therearecurrentlynoroadsfromtheput-inuntilthesiteoftheproposedYakuDam.Nevertheless,manypeoplelivealongthis58-milestretchofriver.Theyrelyontrailsbesidetheriverandthosethatleadupandoverthemountainstoselltheirproductsandtoobtainthematerialstheyrequire,yetcannotproduce.

From the beginning of our journey,wewereserenadedduringthedaybycicadas.Theselarge,fatbodied,leaf-eatinginsects,relatedtocricketsandgrasshoppers,liveinthetreesalongtheriver.Fish,lizards,birds,andotheranimalsdependonthecicadasfortheirsurvival.

Wewereentertainedoftenbyachatteringchorusofloros,smallgreenparrotsthatflockintheriversidetrees.WealsosawwhiteandblueheronsandAndeanternsmigratingfromthePacifictotheAtlantic.Variouswaterfowlwerepresent,suchasthetorrentducksthatliketoswimdownrapids.Other smaller birds in the treeswerefrequentlyheardbutseldomseen.Allofthesebirdswouldbedisplacedbythedams,especiallythosedependentonthesmallfishandinsectsintheflowingriver.

Along the river bank ceiba, acacia,jacaranda,willow,andreedscompeteforgrowingroom.Ifadamraisesthewaterlevel several hundred feet, these treeswoulddrown.Only theubiquitouscactithat resemble the saguaro in Arizona wouldremain.

TheMarañón is full of fish. The uppersections of the river flow with coolwatersuitableforAndeantrout.Fartherdownstream, the sediment load of theriverishometoseveraluniquefishsuchas

Anti-dam sentiment on display in Tupe’n Grande. photo by Jack Billings

22 americanwhitewater.org

catfishandcarachama(prehistoric-lookingcreatures). Dams settle silt and releaseunnaturallyclear,coldwater,whichwoulddoommostofthenativespecies.

Eventhetracesofancientpeoples,whoeonspastlivedalongthisriver,wouldbeforeverlost.Importantculturalsitesexistinmanylocations,includinggranarieslikethoseseenontheColoradoatNankoweap,andtombsthatstillhostbones.Builtintothemountainsidesnear the river, theseremainingstructuresandartifactswouldbepermanentlysubmerged.Thesesitesshouldbeprotected,notdestroyed.

the Central and lower grand Canyon sections: Chagual to puerto MalletaInChagualwere-suppliedourfoodandice.Theriverchangedcharacterdramaticallyfrom the constricted Inner Gorge intoamuchwiderriverbed,sometimeswithbraidedchannels.Thegradientmoderated

but was still almost twice that of theColorado. Though still challenging, therapidsweremostlyclassIIIs.ThefewClassIVsoftenhadeasierlinesthroughthem.Someofthelonger,calmersectionsofClassIIwatergaveusthechancetoenjoymoreofthemagnificentscenery,withclearviewsuptotherimsonbothsides.

Four mega-dams are planned for thissection of the Marañón: Rio Grande Iand II,Chadin II,andVeracruz. Ifallareconstructed,theentire188milesofthisriversectionwouldbecomeonereservoirafteranother, just like theupperGrandCanyonarea.

tupén grande Whiletheriver,rapids,andCanyonsidehikes were quite enjoyable, the mostprofound impacts for me were thevillages,especiallyTupénGrande.Whenwe arrived on day 21 of our trip (mile255),where“welcome”wasspelledoutwithrocks, inEnglish,areceptionpartymet us.We immediately knewwe hadcometoafriendlyplace.ItwasherethatIcametounderstandmostdirectlyhowadownstreamdamcalledChadinIIwouldwipeoutgenerationsofaself-sustaining,self-governingcommunitythatwouldhavenowheretogo.

We met Cesar Chavez, who is head oftheRonda,ortownmilitia.HehasbeenaleaderandspokespersonforoppositiontotheChadinIIdamproject,atmile266,thatwouldfloodanddestroythevillage,anddisplacethehundredsofpeoplewholiveinandaroundthearea.AstheydidwithRocky,developmentoperativeshave

wildERnESS Paddling

The Maranon in Peru Map courtesy of rocky Contos

Lorenzo with Mardi (red helmet) at Shapolmonte Rapid.photo by Alex Weinert

mar/apr 2017 23

attemptedtointimidateCesartosilencehisoppositionleadership.

Theirvillageisaccessibleonlyviatheriverorbyasix-to-eight-hourhiketotherim.Therearenoroads,nocars,andalmostnolights.Theonlylightbulbinthecommunityispoweredbysolarcells.Theschool,thevillagebodegafilledwithcoca,communalbuildings,homes,andotherstructuresaresomewhat randomly located whereversomeone decided to build. There is anextensive, communal irrigation systemthatsuppliesmanyproducegardens.Thecommunityfocusesonthechildrenwhoareoutsideoften.Gamesareemphasized:volleyball for the girls and soccer for theboys.

Ibroughtadonationbagwith50itemstoshare,mostlychildren’sclothes,andsome

shirtsInolongerneeded.MardiMaack,anothermemberof thegroup,broughtfourbags that includedclothing, shoes,eyeglasses,andmedicalsupplies.AttheaccesspointofBalsaswealsometoneofthevillagersandbroughthimalongwiththree100-footspoolsoftwo-inchirrigationpipeforthevillage.

Amongthosewhocametoinvestigatethegiftswasa little fellownamedAntonio.Heandhismotherwereamongthefirsttoarrive.Mybagincludedacamouflageprintshirtthatwasjusthissize.Withhismother’sencouragement,heputitonandlefttochasesomeoftheotherboys.

Toshowtheirappreciationforthesuppliesanddonationswebrought,eightof thevillagechildrenperformedsomedancesforusandtherestofthecommunity.There

wasalargeturnoutandeveryoneenjoyedtheshow.

Likeus,thepeopleofTupénGrandeareinoppositiontotheChadinIIdamprojectthatwouldfloodtheirvillage.Inspeakingwiththevillagersandjustbeingthere,Icouldsense that the resistance to thedam ispalpable.Protestsagainsttheconstructionare everywhere. Online articles andvideos of the opposition abound. Thisis a communityworking topreserve itsway of life against the threat of an ill- conceiveddam.

Though we enjoyed Tupén Grandeimmensely,westillhadmorethan50milestocompleteourjourney.Wemadeourlastcamponalargeislandinthemiddleoftheriveraboutthreequartersofamilefromthetake-outpointatPuertoMalleta.The

877.382.5893 MountainMusicFestWV.com

And 25+ More Bands!KARL DENSON’S TINY UNIVERSE TWIDDLE

Save $20 OFF Tickets!

June 1-32017

Promo Code: AWBOATER

24 americanwhitewater.org

nextandfinalmorning,Iwasthelasttoleave.AsIeasedmywayintotheconvergingchannelsofthemainriver,IlookedbackatourlastcampandagainrejoicedthatIhadcomethisfar,seensomuch,andlearnedmorethanIcouldhaveimagined.

Concluding thoughtsThe social impacts of these mega-dams would be enormous, provokingmajor disruptions in flooding cycles,fish migrations, and sediment depositsthroughout the Amazon Basin withpotentially disastrous, ecologicalconsequences.Thethousandsofpeopleliving along the Marañón would beuprootedtosomeunknown,undesirablelocation, and the flora and fauna livingwithin the river corridor would be lostforever.

Any government is vulnerable to theboatloads of cash available from giantcontractors and developers for whom

briberyandpayoffsaresimplyanothercostofacquiringmassivecontracts.Peruisnoexception.ThreeofthedamsproposedfortheMarañónareprojectsofOdebrecht,aninternational,Brazilianmega-developmentconstructioncompany.InDecember,2016,Odebrechtagreedtopayafineexceeding$2billionforitscorruptionpaymentsto

governments throughout Central andSouthAmerica, including$28million toPeru. Its president was sentenced thatsameweekto19yearsinprisonforhisroleinthescandal.

To the outside world, it is generallyunknown whether any of the briberypaymentsmadeinPeruwereassociatedwithdamprojects.Unlessuncoveredbyinvestigation,thesepayoffswillbeknownonly to the government officials whoreceivedthemandthedeveloperminionswhopaidthem.Nevertheless,theentirescandalhighlightstheenormousdifficultyfacedbytheordinaryPeruvianslivingalongand dependent upon the river as theybattletheotherdevastatingcoststotheecosystemandtheirwayoflife.

Theargumentforthesedamsisstrong:theriver isaPeruvianresource.ThepeopleofPeru,throughitsgovernment,shoulddeterminehowthisresourceshallbenefitthewholecountry.Theriverrepresentsmuch potential energy production thatcaneitherbesoldtoothercountriesorusedinternallyforthebettermentofthePeruvianpeople.

But there isanotherargumentwhich ismoreholisticandexistential.Thepeople

wildERnESS Paddling

Rocky Contos with Anh at Yasojirca Narrows. photo by Alex Weinert

A weather system darkens the upstream horizon.photo by Jack Billings

Mar/Apr 2017 25

ofPerucansavethisjewel,leavethelivesof thousandsofpeople intact,preserveaneco-systemthat isavitalpartoftheAmazondrainage,andpromoteecotourism,multiculturalexperiences,andexchanges.Thetouristmoniesspentalongtherivergodirectlytothosewholivethere.

Building these dams would be atremendousundertaking,withexponentialcosts.Someofthesitesarelocatedinveryremoteareaswithoutroads,bridges,orotherinfrastructurerequiredtocreateamultibilliondollar,500- to600-foot talldam.Inaddition,amassivehigh-voltagetransmission grid would have to beconstructedoversomeofthemostruggedmountainsintheworld.Thiscannotbeawiseuseofresources.

Furthermediaexposureofthetruecostoftheseprojects,includingallthecorruptioninvolved,offershopethatpoliticalactioncanachieveresults.AdditionaldamsontheColoradoRiverintheGrandCanyonwerepreventedonlybyinternationalpublicityandpublicoutcrythatresultedinpoliticalcompromiseinCongress.

Weneedtotakemoreaction.ForthosewhowishtoaddtheirvoicestothecalltosavetheMarañón,SierraRiosoffersseveralavenues.Followingmorethan1000others,supportcanbeaddedtothepetitiontothePeruviangovernment,opposingdamconstruction.Donationscanbemadetoenhanceeffortstosupportandencouragethe people living along the Marañón.Finally,tripsareavailablefornovicesandriverveteransalikewhoareadventurous

enoughtoexperiencethisincredibleriverforthemselves.

Although the Marañón and its CanyonontheeastsideoftheAndesmayseema remote, harsh and arid place, it isteemingwithlifeandnatureinbalance.ThePeruvianpeoplearebestservedbyanundammedMarañón.

I certainly feelblessed tohave runandexperiencedthismightyriverandtohavemetsomeofthepeoplewholivealongitsbanks.Itsvolumeismodestbutitscourseistrue.Compelling,inscrutable,restlessandindifferent,sofar,thisfree-flowingriverrollson.