Jonathan Waterman paddles through rapids early in his trip.


Water Worries Waterman has good reason to worry. T e Colorado River fl ows through seven states. All along the way, people block its path and tap its water. Dams slow the river’s fl ow. Pipes carry


water far away. Some water travels hundreds of kilometers. It ends up in distant cities. T ere, it becomes drinking water. Farmers water crops. River water turns deserts into green suburbs and golf courses, too. “About 30 million people have their


straws in the river,” Waterman says. People’s thirst for water has changed the Colorado. As he found at the end of his trip, the price has been high.


tap: take 20 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXTREME EXPLORER


The Headwaters Waterman’s journey begins in deep snow. He is high in the mountains in Colorado. As the snow melts, it trickles downhill. Just as the trickle starts, though, it fl ows into a ditch. People dug the ditch to carry some of the water to a town east of the mountains. It is the first of many “straws.” T e rest of the snowmelt fl ows west.


It forms many icy streams. T e streams join and gather force. T ey create the headwaters of the Colorado River. Waterman slips his raſt into the river and


begins to paddle. T e water fl ows gently past cliff s and through canyons. He fl oats around a curve. Here, the river roars and foams. It races through rapids. Waterman’s heart pounds. What a ride!


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