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Basics
- Activity Type:
- Rafting
- Length:
- 4 Days
Description
Lodore was the first major canyon encountered by John Wesley Powell and his men on their 1869 expedition. Powell's adventures live on in the rapids he named: Disaster Falls, Triplet Falls and Hells Half Mile. Set aside as an American treasure in 1938 under the National Park system, this canyon is a sanctuary for bighorn sheep, deer and other friendly critters.Your 44-mile trip starts at the "Gates of Lodore" where two 800 foot buttresses mark the beginning of a series of canyons. You will see vermillion cliffs cut from Precambrian bedrock in Lodore Canyon, then leapfrog through time as you cross a geologic fault in Echo Park, and see rock reflect the colors of a rainbow on your last day at the entrance to Split Mountain Gorge.
The whitewater is technical, and that means your guide's oars will be busy as a bee's wings, making quick cuts and dodges to keep the self-bailing raft headed for the clear chutes and clean waves. In the 1870's Pat Lynch, a hermit who lived at Echo Park, used to visit his neighbors by floating downstream with a log. When we reach Echo Park we'll blow up an inflatable kayak just in case you want to leave your neighbors on the raft for some personal, paddling fun.
Length:
Additional Details:
One of the advantages of a river trip is the flexibility of the daily itinerary. It can vary widely from one trip to the next based on group desires, Mother Nature, and courtesy for other groups on the river. This typical itinerary illustrates a four-day trip through Lodore Canyon.
| Day 1 | ||
| Meet party at headquarters in Vernal, Utah. Three hour bus ride to Brown's Park National Wildlife Refuge, the site of the put-in. Pass through the Gates of Lodore and encounter Upper and Lower Disaster Falls. | ||
| Day 2 | ||
| The "Gates" mark the beginning of High Desert country - the Colorado Plateau - and as the canyon narrows, more rapids emerge: Harp Falls, Triplet Falls, and Hell's Half Mile. Hike at Powell's Rippling Brook and Falls. | ||
| Day 3 | ||
| At the confluence of the Green and Yampa rivers at Echo Park, the canyon widens before the river circles Steamboat Rock. Here the river enters Whirlpool Canyon. The afternoon may be spent at Jones Hole Creek - a blue-ribbon trout stream with side canyon petroglyphs and waterfalls. | ||
| Day 4 | ||
| Peaceful morning in Rainbow and Island Park areas before entering another massive gorge. The Green's powerful forces cut laterally through Split Mountain's uplifted and colorful core. Rapids abound before the take out and a 35 minute ride back to Vernal. | ||
Customizable Directions
| Formatted Directions | Map |
