Thanks for the report Steamboat, sorry to hear that the silver raft has deflated. Maybe it can be repaired and still be put back to use. (I know how cold the water is; going over you are rewarded by the warm water in the pools but coming back you are left to shiver.) When I was at the springs last Tuesday the rope across the creek was a 3/8 inch thick nylon rope, it seemed pretty sturdy, has it begun to fray to the point where it might break? I had brought my own rope on Tuesday and we used it to pull the empty raft back and forth a couple of times. The riders used the existing rope to pull themselves across when they were on the raft and did not seem to have any problems.

Question for Wizard: How do you transport your "River Rat" tube to and from your vehicle? Do you leave it inflated or do you blow it up each time you get to the springs? I have the exact same tube but when it is inflated it seems like it would be too awkward to carry up and down the trails. I have a small compact CO2 bicycle tire inflator and was thinking of trying it out to inflate the River Rat tube once I got to the springs.