John Wesley Powell River History MuseumJohn Wesley Powell River History MuseumBoatman, guide with an obsession for the Grand Canyon, boat builder … mentor, river guardian, boss, best friend … mad man … river interpreter, counselor, writer, speaker, educator, publisher, owner, home architect, guy who gets things done. This is Brad Dimock’s life and his work for more than 50 years.
Brad first saw the Colorado River in Grand Canyon in 1971 as a freshman on a Prescott College river trip. He swamped his first commercial river trip in summer 1973 with Canyoneers. He went on to work for nearly every river outfitter in the Canyon, other companies who run elsewhere in the US and overseas, and for the Park Service and USGS. He’s driven motor rigs, rowed inflatable boats, and dories. You could say that if it floats, Brad has run it. He ran Grand Canyon when it was lower than low (less than 2000 ft3/s in 1977) and higher than it has ever been since Glen Canyon Dam was completed (90,000 ft3/s in 1983). He ran Cataract Canyon at 2000 ft3/s and at 70,000 ft3/s. He pioneered descents of the Paria and Little Colorado. He was inspired by Martin Litton to protect rivers, and he had his heart broken when the Bio Bio was dammed.
Building replicas of historic boats and rowing/steering those boats down wild rivers has been a hallmark of Brad’s career and passion. Brad founded Fretwater Boatworks in 2008, a wooden boat building shop that has helped build, teach, and celebrate the wooden row boats of the Colorado River. The shop’s motto says a lot about Brad … “You can’t beat this place for fun!” Brad has held workshops all over the country, teaching a new generation the craft of boat building. He survived steering or rowing his replicas of the Hyde’s wooden sweep boat, Buzz Holmstrom’s boat, and Bert Loper’s boat through Grand Canyon.
Brad’s done all that, but just as important is his diverse role in building and maintaining the Colorado River boating community. He helped establish and grow Grand Canyon River Guides and Colorado Plateau River Guides. He edited and wrote for the Boatman’s Quarterly Review and learned enough about graphical design and layout to transform the BQR into the prestigious journal that it is today. With an entrepreneurial spirit, Brad created his own publishing company, Fretwater Press, and he published numerous books about historic river runners of the Colorado River, including writing/co-writing biographies of Buzz Holmstrom, Bert Loper, and Glen and Bessie Hyde. His writing led to numerous awards, including multiple National Outdoor Book Awards.
Brad is the renaissance man of the River. Early on, Brad saw the need for a river community, and he worked throughout his life to create the organizations that support that community – whether its physical and mental health, the environmental health and protection of the River, or just showing folks how to have fun. Brad continues to maintain the traditions of the river, the history of its people, the history of the boating craft, and the bond of the boating community.
At the time Grand Canyon River Guides was establishing itself, Brad successfully argued that sentence be part of the organization’s mission statement, not only to provide direction to the organization but because that is who Brad is, and that is who he hopes everyone else aspires to be.
Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00am – 5:00pm
Adults (18+)
Seniors (62+)
Children (7-17)
Family
$8
$6
$3
$25
Free admission for children under 7, museum members, and Green River residents.