Patricia Cesspooch stands out in this scene, surrounded by men and machinery, hand-rigging her two inflatable yellow rafts before guests arrive.
Cesspooch, a member of the Hualapai Tribe, has long loved her ancestral land and dreamed of making her living on the Colorado River. In early March, Cesspooch and her partner, Rickey Massey, started Grand Canyon 9 Rapids, an independent whitewater rafting business, goal she has been pursuing much of her life.
“I used to see my grandfather coming in with one of the larger companies, and I wanted to do that,” Cesspooch said. “So at the age of 7, I did hop on the river with complete strangers.