About Wavetrain

Wavetrain is a home for whitewater in Colorado and the nearby Utah runs that Colorado boaters care about. It starts with the reference material: which rivers are running, what permit you need and when to apply, and how much snow is sitting in the basins that feed each run.

Where the information comes from

• Flows are live discharge readings from USGS stream gauges. They are provisional and can be revised. A gauge is sometimes upstream or downstream of the stretch it is linked to, and each run page says so.
• Permits are summarized from the agency pages linked on each run: Recreation.gov, BLM and the National Park Service. Dates and rules change, so always confirm on the official page.
• Runnable ranges are drafts. Local paddlers know these rivers better than any table, and community voting with moderator approval is planned so the ranges can be corrected.
• Snowpack comes from NRCS SNOTEL stations, averaged by basin and compared with the 1991–2020 median. It refreshes daily and is provisional.

What is here and what is coming

• Permit spots: permit holders post open spots on their trips and review applications (live)
• Forum: questions, beta and stories (live)
• Trip reports: first-hand accounts tied to each river (live)
• Meetups: group paddle days with RSVPs (live)
• Gear: used gear for sale and wanted posts, listings only (live)
• Guide jobs: openings from outfitters and river businesses (live)

A note on safety

Whitewater is dangerous. Nothing on this site replaces scouting, local knowledge, proper training or a conversation with a nearby outfitter.

Contact

Corrections, questions or something to report: hello@thewavetrain.com