Ribbon Falls

July 9, 1975

I had to get the pen warmed in the fire before it would write. Imoe and Jason left today for San Francisco. Now we are five.

Joel is the "leader" of our small band. He is the most extroverted, picking up people everywhere. In fact, it was he who first said something about my tie-dye shirt in the supermarket in Flagstaff.

Right now we are all sitting around the fire outside the Grand Canyon under the stars. It has been a most magic day. After climbing the canyon yesterday, it was a real treat to hang out in the woods and trip for the day. Went over to the canyon earlier around sunset. Spent most of the day tripping on top of a mountain.

Jerry is singing with his guitar. Another Deadhead. Had a fine mellow trip up the mountain with him and Karola. She is the finest woman I have ever seen. She's German and we do not communicate verbally as much as I would like, but that is another indulgence. My apologies to both pen and paper. These words come hard.

Dave from England we picked up in Montrose, Colorado, not a hundred yards from where we picked up Karola. Never had rain until that day. Imoe and I both picked up on the fact that we had just picked up two foreigners so close together. We whispered to ourselves that they might be allies. Karola was going to Durango, Dave to Tucson. Both of them came to Flagstaff with us.

Met Joel and Jerry in El Rancho supermarket and they came out with us to the commune where we spent our first night together in an open field in the valley. The San Francisco peaks rose in the near distance. And to see those same peaks across the canyon is indescribable.

We met Bill in Ribbon Falls at the bottom of the canyon. We ate some peyote, but not enough to get off and just enough to get sick. I got sick right away (of course), but Karola and Jerry felt nauseous most of the day.

We went to the falls early in the morning. Karola and I had the place to ourselves for about an hour before the others finally decided to walk the extra ten yards to see a ribbon of water fallout out of a corkscrew-shaped trough, splashing on a huge rock covered with a brilliant green moss. Her slender body under the shower is not a sight I will soon forget. Such total beauty.

Had some terrific sights most of the morning from some rocks at the end of the overhang that looked fairly far out into the canyon. Had a very incredible experience with Dave. I sat on a small ledge under the overhang and he sat on a ledge I could not say how far away. I could not distinguish his features. We both sat in a lotus, staring at each other. The canyon swirled and revolved around us in a psychedelic way.

That night, Mike the park ranger at Cottonwood told me about a Cheyenne medicine man named Roaring Thunder. I think I'm heading to Nevada.