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Photo Essay: Glenwood to Moab

Posted on July 22, 2012 by david

We have been on the river and away from the internet for a while now. We have just arrived in Moab, Utah and we are about to start floating through Cataract Canyon. These photos show a few of the interesting things that we encountered from Glenwood to Moab. Stay tuned for more detailed updates when we finish Cataract at the end of July!

Many great blue herons have chicks at their nests close to the river (and the road).

Zak shows his Wu-tang Clan pride next to the graffiti under a bridge in Silt, CO. We passed many towns along the I-70 corridor past Glenwood. It has been strange to be traveling via river and camping out despite being next to civilization.

Between Glenwood Springs and Grand Junction, gas development is in full swing. Fracking (pumping mixtures of water and chemicals underground to extract natural gas) is commonplace, even near the river.

Will holds a garter snake. Even along I-70, the riparian corridor is filled with life.

Portaging Cameo Dam after a run-in with the dam keeper. This is operated by the Bureau of reclamation and is one of the most important diversions on the Colorado- Its water rights are even senior to those owned by Denver and can force water to remain on the west side of the continental divide. This water is mainly used for crop irrigation in the Grand Valley.

David paddles a fish ladder/diversion dam upstream from Grand Junction, CO.

Will stands at the last in a series of diversions before the “15 miles reach” between Pallisade and Grand Junction, CO. The 15 mile reach is a section of river that is nearly dewatered to irrigate crops in the Grand Valley. Most of the water returns to the river by seeping through the ground or by flowing all the way through the irrigation ditches. We began the day with approximately 2700 CFS. Only 400 cfs remained for the 15 mile reach.

Harvesting wheat in Fruita, CO. We spoke with the farmer who owns this land and he explained to us that water projects are entirely necessary for the future of agriculture in the West and that we need to build more dams to manage the river properly for this purpose.

Sunset in Ruby Horsetheif, just downstream from Fruita, CO. A park ranger informed us that this section of river sees 25,000 visitors each year.

A collared lizard in Westwater.

The crew paddles through the rapids of Westwater Canyon, UT. This is the first long stretch of river away from roads and railroads since Rocky Mountain National Park.

Lightning illuminates the clouds and canyon walls in Westwater.

Floating through the flat water on a hot day.Hiding out in the shade of our sweet wing on day 2 of Westwater. We discussed the Colorado Plateau with author Steve Trimble, left.

Mike White joined us to float from Westwater to the Dolores Confluence. Mike works with the Southwest Conservation Corps to coordinate wilderness work crews that remove invasive tamarisk trees along the Dolores river. Behind him you can see an entire bank of defoliated tamarisk.

We were greeted with beautiful afternoon light on the canyon walls as we approached the Canyons near Moab, Utah.

The Dewatered Headwaters

Posted on July 3, 2012 by david

A waterfall high in the mountains on the North Inlet

The Colorado River began as a small, roaring stream, carving its way through the mountains of Rocky Mountain National Park. After 10 days of hiking, packrafting, and kayaking, there is enough water to float our 16 foot long NRS raft. The switch to rafting has brought a significant change in our lifestyle. We now have a cooler, dry boxes, and a two burner stove. We eat well and float approximately 10 miles a day. But the story of the River so far is not a continuous narrative of a growing stream. And our story has not been one simply of first hiking, then packrafting, then kayaking, then rafting. Instead, the extraordinary demands on the river, especially in this drought year, caused the river to grow and shrink day by day. One day, we would have enough water to float kayaks. The next, we would be hiking again.

We began this trip high in the mountains, exploring two possible sources of the Colorado that each feed Grand Lake. The North Fork of the Colorado begins at La Poudre Pass at over 10,200 feet. This tiny stream tells the story of an altered river, pressed by the need for water to the east. The Grand Ditch diverts water from the very beginning of the stream. It creates a sort of new continental divide as waters that should be joining together in the Colorado’s headwaters, are sent east instead to the front range. We also explored the North Inlet creek. Four days of back packing here showed a different kind of headwaters. We found pristine alpine lakes and rushing streams. One of the lakes bore the name of Powell. The alpine Lake Powell seemed to be a fitting starting point for us as we follow the course of the river to the other, much different Lake Powell in Utah and Arizona. We hiked and pack rafted downstream to Grand Lake with high spirits.

This service road on la Poudre Pass divides the Grand Ditch from the Colorado River watershed. The pools on the left drain into the Colorado. The ditch on the right goes to the Front Range

It seems, however, that we will be experiencing more of the story of the diverted North Fork than of the pristine North Inlet. We had found enough water to packraft in the North Inlet and began kayaking across Grand Lake, Shadow Mountain and Granby reservoirs. But the reservoirs did not release enough water to float our craft on the downstream side, forcing us to return to hiking. We finally found enough water to float in Hot Sulphur Springs, 16 miles downstream. But even this was barely enough to float. Colorado law dictates the we cannot touch the bottom of the river if it is private property. We would not have been allowed to pass except that Rob Firth of Trout Unlimited called every land owner along that Colorado between Hot Sulphur Springs and Kremmling. We scraped along the bottom many times.

When we arrived in Kremmling, however, we finally had plenty of water to float on. We had passed the confluences with the Williams Fork and the Blue River. Our tiny stream of 135 CFS had suddenly grown to almost 900 CFS. We had ample water to kayak through Gore Canyon the next day and to begin rafting after that.

Watching the unnatural growth of the river, I realize we are not floating on the waters of the mighty Colorado River that should be fed gradually by smaller tributaries. Instead, we are floating on the waters of the Blue and the Williams Fork, which come to the rescue of the Colorado near the town of Kremmling. Without these tributaries, we would still be scraping down a slow, meandering trickle. We attempted to find the source of the Colorado in Rocky Mountain National Park, but the stream we have followed up to this point is no longer its largest tributary to itself. The demands placed on the Colorado’s headwaters have left that section of river dewatered and endangered.

Zak reading on one of our first nights with the NRS raft.

Setting Out

Posted on June 14, 2012 by david

Tomorrow we will hike to the source and begin our journey down the Colorado River. It seems amazing that we are already leaving. I returned to Colorado on Tuesday and a few things have struck me so far.

Staying at the best hotel in town as we finish planning

First, it is amazing how many little details of planning remain in the last two days before the trip. Will, Carson, and I have working non stop on the front range as we prepare our media equipment. Zach, who has been in Durango, has also been preparing gear and focusing on logistics. We must buy the right amount of food. Yesterday, two boxes of equipment arrived from Northwest River Supply (NRS).How much can we actually stuff into our brand new NRS dry bags as we prepare for the initial leg of our trip? But things are coming together all the same. Soon, all of the compacted logistics and the details of planning will be over and our lives will become simple. Day after day, our only objective will be to follow the river’s course towards the sea.

Second, the distinctly hazy look of the sky in Denver immediately reminded me of the dire situation presented by this year’s drought. The unprecedented size of the fire in Fort Collins has filled the front range with a smokey haze. It is proof of the drought’s consequences. The drought will affect our trip as we must scrape through low water sections of river that should be bursting at their banks this time of year. In a year like this, everyone is screaming for water that just isn’t there.

A beautiful sunset created by the smokey atmosphere

Finally, I am now realizing how excited I am to embark on the journey. There is no place I would rather be than floating down a river with good friends. On top of this, I truly hope that our effort can inspire others with passion for the river and a more nuanced approach to its issues.

David Spiegel

Packed and ready to go!