We hosted some out-of-town visitors a few weeks ago and were considering our options at the beginning of what promised to be a beautiful but hot summer day. Our guests suggested a jetboat excursion on the nearby Rogue River, and we agreed it would provide ideal recreation for just this sort of day.

In a snap, I jumped online and purchased and printed out our tickets from Hellgate Jetboat Excursions, operating out of nearby Grants Pass, Ore. Having enjoyed such boat trips in the past, we knew to come prepared with bottled water and sunglasses and to apply a liberal layer of sunscreen on all exposed skin. After checking in at the company’s reservation desk inside the two-story Shop River Rock boutique (boasting very nice home décor, lifestyle and gift items as well as the expected touristy souvenirs), we made our way down to the boat dock.

Operating since 1959, Hellgate offers a variety of trips, from a 26-mile, 2-hour scenic jaunt and excursions offering a meal at the company’s rustic OK Corral lodge to a 75-mile roundtrip venturing into the wild and scenic part of the Rogue featuring more whitewater rapids. The boats, the largest of which accommodate more than 50 guests, boast a shallow draft and powerful engines which allow them to skim over riffles and rocks in water only 8 inches deep.

We clambered in, well aware which seats were more likely to be drenched when the driver made the sudden stops and 360-degree spins for which these tours are known. Because the temperatures were climbing into the 90s, we gleefully chose benches near the front which guaranteed we’d get some “natural cooling” during the trip.

Our guide (like many, a school teacher the rest of the year) provided excellent narration throughout the trip, interspersing information about the river, the region’s history and the flora and fauna with jokes and anecdotes about the filming of such movies as Rooster Cogburn (with John Wayne and Katherine Hepburn) and The River Wild (Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon). We saw bald eagles, osprey and deer, as well as other folks out to beat the heat in their rafts, inner tubes and kayaks or just lounging along the riverbanks. Our turn-around point came just beyond the entrance to the Hellgate Canyon.

Here the river squeezes between steep rock walls 250 feet high,  reaching depths of around 100 feet and smoothing and carving the stone.  Our run back to our starting point included exchanging spins and wake jumps with one of the other boats, leading to more than a few drenched folks and gales of laughter.

This is one of those experiences where you see adults laughing and screaming like little kids, exhilarated by the speed, the fresh air and the sheer joy of being in the midst of such natural beauty. I’m looking forward to our next batch of visitors . . . another excuse to get out on the river!

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor