Flaming Gorge 2005 Trip

September 3-5

Put-in: From the top of the dam drive a small distance NE and turn right to drive down the hill. There is a $2+ day use fee per car that you pay at a little booth. Be there by 8 to 8:30 Saturday, extremely organized such that you can be fully unloaded by 9:00. Either unload across boulders above the boat ramp or use the boat ramp in very rapid fashion leaving room for the outfitters’ trailers to back down the ramp.

River: Water is clear and cold coming out of the dam with lots of large trout. There are loads of fisherman and boats all the way to Little Hole, so be ready to go around them. Pool drop rapids are class 2+ the first day, and Red Creek class 3 rapid is the second morning. It can be scouted by pulling over to the bank on the right and walking along the top of the short canyon wall. The left side has lots of smaller rocks so is very technical unless you have more than the 800cfs minimum that they maintain for river life. You can portage on the left, but get into a major rock garden at low water levels, so it is best to just portage about half of the rapid and catch the bottom of it. The right side has much bigger water and a couple of important turns. There are pretty canyons and Ponderosa pines the first half of the trip and it opens up later down. The river finishes with another short canyon (Swallow), but very slow water there.

Campsites:

Before river – (Friday night) - At the dam (not the bottom) is where the Jankowski’s usually pull in around 1 am. The big campground by the lake NE of the dam is full of late night partiers but has showers. Greendale is several miles SW of the dam and has reservable family and group (4 family) sites for $15 and $60+ plus a $9 reservation fee. Also Dripping Springs is between Dutch John (a tiny “town”) and the Little Hole ramp (where the 1^st river night campsite reservations are made) and costs the same as Greendale.

1^st night – We will try to camp in 2 of the 4 or 5 campsites on river right before Red Creek rapid (1^st choice is Grasshopper 1 and 2). Fees are probably $15 per site, with each holding about 8-10 people. Laurie Breda will make this reservation on Friday.

2^nd night – We usually camp in a large field by the old Parson’s Ranch homestead on river right and it is the best choice for a large group. No reservations or fees involved. There is a cable across the river about 100 yards below the landing for the campsite, so stop before it at a beach with a path through bushes. Note that the campground on either side of Jarvie is $5 per night, and below that they are free and not reserved. There are a few mediocre options below Parson’s that only work for smaller (<10 people) groups.

Points of Interest: Jarvie Ranch is a historic museum/site with several old buildings and information about the settlers and outlaws of the area. They have flush toilets and drinking water. At the usual 2^nd campsite – Parson’s Ranch, there are a couple of old buildings, a spring, and the remains of an orchard.

Take-out: At Swallow Canyon Boat Ramp (end of the canyon) on river left.

Shuttle Specifics: We have reserved 2 vans through Flaming Gorge Lodge @ 435-889-3772; each holds 8 people for $97. Each car driver will need to pay the van driver between $12 and $22, depending on how many cars we have. We will meet them Saturday morning at 9:30am at the Conoco station (435-885-3159) in Dutch John. (or we may go with Trout Creek Flies 435-885-3355)

So we need to have everyone at the bottom of the dam and cars unloaded by 9am, checked-in with the leader and waivers signed. Then all drivers will leave to do the shuttle, and those left behind will finish packing the canoes. Due to the length of the shuttle, it will be close to noon by the time we start going down the river. A potluck (optional) is planned for Saturday night.