Gaylord Staveley took his first San Juan and Grand Canyon river trips in 1956, with Frank Wright, who had acquired the Nevills Expeditions and renamed it Mexican Hat Expeditions.  The following year, Staveley was invited to become a partner.  After the 1957 season, he was offered full ownership of Mexican Hat Expeditions, and embarked on a lifetime of river-related activity on the Colorado Plateau.

The traditional Grand Canyon expedition was a once-a-year event launched after the peak of the spring runoff.  It was nineteen days long, so perishables had to be resupplied by pack mule at Phantom Ranch, and packhorse at Whitmore Trail.  Staveley continued running the river in oar powered wooden cataract boats, the same design originated by famed river runner Norm Nevills who had first used cataract boats for a 1938 scientific expedition, then for commercial river running.

In 1958, there were only four commercial outfitters operating in Grand Canyon.  By 1969, the number had grown to fifteen, and all but Mexican Hat Expeditions were offering motorized trips on inflatable rafts.  In the face of growing competition, Staveley converted to pontoon boats and began offering seven-day motorized trips through the canyon.  To reduce rigging and derigging time, he. Began hauling his boats inflated.  To address concerns about the burial of human waste in the canyon, he developed a carryout system for transporting it out of the canyon to an RV dump station.