River Flow is an important things to know before going on a river trip. In 2014 the Grand Canyon has seen some relatively low flows. April and May had fluctuations between 5,500 cfs and 11,000 cfs, with the weekends, especially Sunday releases being much lower. This is because the river is regulated by Glen Canyon Dam which backs up Lake Powell. These lower flows make some rapids bigger, and some rapids smaller, but all of the rapids become rockier and more technical. Above Lake Powell the Colorado and Green have gone up and down all spring. The mountains have a nice amount of snow, but the temperatures have gotten hot and then suddenly cooled off and the flow through Cataract Canyon has taken on the appearance of a Sin wave. For those interested in learning the flows of the river their are a few different ways.
#1. Check out the Colorado River Basin Forecast Center River Map: Click Here another nice feature about this site is you can click on the PEAK FLOW FORECAST LIST and one can see what the most recent Peak Flow forecast is for a particular section of river. For instance on May 19, 2014 Cataract Canyon was given a 50% chance of peaking at 60,000 cfs sometime in 2014.
#2. Call 1-801-539-1311. This phone number goes to a recorded message which tells the river flows for a particular day. This message is updated daily.
#3. Buy or download one of the river flow apps on the itunes store.
#4. For Grand Canyon, where the water is regulated, be sure to check out the Bureau of Reclamation Current Dam Flow Report for Glen Canyon Dam.
High water means a lot of excitement for rafters in Cataract Canyon. Cataract Canyon is generally considered the biggest whitewater in North America at flows above 50,000 cfs so it looks like 2014 is going to be a big water year.
