Bogley

Baja Trekker · Joined: 05 Jan 2008 Posts: 37

I've heard that in recent times people have paddled up the Colorado River to Moab from the confluence with the Green River. Has anyone heard about doing this or actually done it? Likewise for paddling up the Green to Green River, UT from the confluence after floating down the Colorado from Moab?

I understand that the best conditions for doing this occur during low water - mid to late summer - and that monsoon rains and irrigation demands can influence river flows and thus current speed...

I'm looking for information and insight about past attempts at doing this and current concerns, including permitting, river flows etc. ...

thanks!

gringorio

copyright g joder 2006:

denaliguide · Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:28 pm Post subject:

probably only done by cheap bastards. i'd pay the bucks for the jetboat myself to shuttle me back.

i have taken a canoe from greenriver to mineral bottoms. easy to do and a car shuttle is all that is needed. that was a great trip. going down to spanish bottoms would have been even better. it would be a long paddle up river to moab. you can get a car into lathrop canyon for pickup. that would save many miles of the upriver pull. lining your canoe up the bank won't be easy either. heavy brush will make walking tough.

check with canyonlands nat. park about permits. since most of the trip is in the park.

let me know how it turns out if you decide to do it.

Baja Trekker · Joined: 05 Jan 2008 Posts: 37

thanks for the comment denaliguide,

not looking to save bucks, just something different. I've floated the Green years ago in a canoe, but this time will be using my sea kayak. Good point about the riverside brush and lining. For now just pondering the idea...

Alex · Joined: 27 Sep 2005 Posts: 2983 Location: SLC, UT

I'd paddled plenty of Colorado and the Green, I wouldn't want to paddle against the current.

I am sure it's doable, but the river even at that stretch is moving about 2mph. And you can paddle probably 3-5 mpg, so your average speed would be 2-3 mph.... that's slow.

I'd personally do Labyrinth or Stillwater canyons, very pretty and you go down the river.

Baja Trekker · Joined: 05 Jan 2008 Posts: 37

Thanks again Alex and denaliguide ... :haha:

Does anyone know if the Potash boat ramp area is a safe place to park a car for a few days?

Thanks!

greg

denaliguide · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:27 pm Post subject:

Baja Trekker wrote: Thanks again Alex and denaliguide ... :haha:

Does anyone know if the Potash boat ramp area is a safe place to park a car for a few days?

Thanks!

greg

i would feel comfortable doing it. just don't leave anything obvious visible.

Baja Trekker · Joined: 05 Jan 2008 Posts: 37

Did a test run of this idea last week. After consulting with both the Park and BLM people in Moab I decided to put in at Potash and float downstream until just before the entrance to Canyonlands (Shafer Canyon) and then paddle back to Potash. One day down and two days up... (all the time I could afford for this trial run). On the second day going up-river paddled about 10 miles in 4 hours with lots of stops and exploration along the way. The campsites were awesome with lots to explore as well.

My conclusion is that paddling up the Colorado from the confluence is definately doable (as those who have done it stated) and the boat of choice is a sea kayak, for me anyway, unless you have two strong/experienced paddlers in a canoe.

At the current water level the paddling was not that much different than coastal paddling where tides and winds influence speed - even on the sea averaging 2.5 mph is sometimes all you can do.

Anyhow, it was a great mini-trip and it provided me with a lot of insight...

Here's some photo's for you to enjoy:
The Potash plant below Moab:

Rafters putting in and headed for Cataract Canyon:

A damselfly eating something ... a spider I think:

Heading down river from Potash:

Mares tails clouds:

Motoring downriver (hurry!):

At this point, taking a break, I finally began to relax, leaving the stresses of work behind:

Mud flakes, great for breakfast:

High water:

A camp:

Near the Park entrance:

The sign for Canyonlands National Park. Downriver this sign you need a Park permit:

Classic scene... Recognize this photo?

Petrified wood...

Rest stop, paddling back up river:

Beaver tracks:

Nearing Potash - finally! It's hard work paddling up a river!

denaliguide · Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:10 pm Post subject:

awesome. sounds like it was easier than i thought it would be.

Sombeech · Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 10:24 pm Post subject:

Wow! great photos. I'll have to feature this one on the front page. :2thumbs:

Teleken · Joined: 09 Jan 2008 Posts: 145 Location: Colorado Springs

Great pics, that's a sweet kayak.

Jaxx · Joined: 16 Jan 2007 Posts: 2638

awesome! I love the second pic with the kayak in the background and the bare feet prints in the sand. looks like an awesome trip!

trackrunner · Joined: 27 Nov 2007 Posts: 1934

Jaxx wrote: awesome! I love the second pic with the kayak in the background and the bare feet prints in the sand. looks like an awesome trip!

Totally agree. All the pics were awesome but this second one if you could some up an awesome trip this would be it.

Post more TR & pics

Baja Trekker · Joined: 05 Jan 2008 Posts: 37

trackrunner wrote: Jaxx wrote: awesome! I love the second pic with the kayak in the background and the bare feet prints in the sand. looks like an awesome trip!
Post more TR & pics

Thanks everyone!

As per trackrunner’s request for more cowbell, here you go:

More trip report:

Well, I’d really like to find the time to float the Green and paddle back up the Colorado. I’ve done the Green from Green River to Mineral Bottom, but that seems only a tiny taste of what this area has to offer. It’s not the kind of trip to rush through, nor is it one to do without getting in lots of paddling time before hand. Doing it alone would be great – no worries about pace or where to stop to camp or explore. But as a team, all paddlers would have to be close in ability and experience. I talked several times with the Park rangers and they said that a Moab outfitter has done the paddle up-river and usually takes nearly eight days to do so. Makes sense if you do not want to feel wasted and to be able to explore the sights along the way. The two canoeists who did this trip in a tandem canoe paddled up-river from the confluence in three days I think – no time to explore and relax though …

Regarding the park rangers – they (one of them) looked in detail at my equipment, Everything from human waste management to safety gear. It appears that park rangers also manage the BLM stretch of the River. At the BLM office I was told I needed a permit to run the stretch in question and was sent to the Park office. At the Park office I was told I did not need a permit. So, on to Potash … While loading up the kayak at Potash (On private land leased by the state and surrounded by BLM land) I was approached by a Canyonlands Park Ranger and was told I needed a permit to paddle the stretch in question. At the Park office I made a point of getting the business card of the ranger that helped me and he told me emphatically that I did not need a permit. I handed this card to the ranger at Potash who in turn radioed the Park office. They in turn confirmed that I did not need a permit since I was not going to actually enter the Park. The ranger at Potash was ready to send me back to Moab even though I had all my gear and kayak already unloaded and on the beach as well as the name of the ranger who told me I did not need a permit. I relate this just to suggest that you have all your bases covered when planning your trip. All rangers and BLM staff were helpful and friendly, but the, uhh, brain may not always know what the butt is up to …

The downside to this section of river are the jetboats. I understand that they are a needed to bring paddlers up-river from the confluence, but they are also used to shuttle tourists down and up river from Moab. This industry brings noise, physical disturbance, and lack of privacy to this stretch of river between about 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. All the jetboats that passed me while I was on the water or camped slowed down in order to prevent the nearly 2’ wake from overcoming me or my parked kayak. It was clear that they were trying to very courteous and I felt our eye contact related that. Also, the motorized tourists tended to look at me and my camp and take pictures as if I were a caged animal in a zoo … This is simply something to consider while on this stretch of river. The real quietude and wilderness feeling is further down or up the Colorado or Green.

As for the float and paddle itself – it was beautiful! Even though I did not nearly approach the heart of the canyons there was so much to see and explore during the short trip. As you can see by my photos I tended to stay close to camp and focus on details. I saw Canada geese, flycatchers, canyon wrens, lizards, frogs, butterflies, moths, damselflies, dragonflies, wildflowers, stars, moon, amazing geology … I used a Nikon D300 with an 18-200mm lens and a Nikon D70 with a 60mm macro lens.

That said, here are some more photos – they seem to do the best talking …

Happy paddling,

greg

blueeyes · Posted: Sat Sep 06, 2008 10:43 pm Post subject:

Amazing photos.

Baja Trekker · Joined: 05 Jan 2008 Posts: 37

blueeyessmiling wrote: Amazing photos.

Thanks Blue Eyes ... I'm hoping to return soon to explore more. Without the camera I feel nekkid, the details are lost ...

greg