Cataract Canyon

Confluence of the Green and Colorado, Canyonlands · Class III–V · UT

Reservation

10,180Oct 22 snapshot

Runnable

Snapshot from Oct 22, 2026. Live reading loading.

Runnable range 5,000 to 40,000 cfs. This is a draft estimate that paddlers have not reviewed yet.

Season

May to September

Character

Big-water canyon in Canyonlands National Park with flatwater above the rapids.

Watch for

Rapids grow much larger as flows rise, and help is far away.

Gauge

USGS 09180500
Colorado River near Cisco
10,180 cfs at 6:45 PM MT on Oct 22, 2026 (snapshot)
Flow shown is the Colorado near Cisco (6,380 cfs) plus the Green River at Green River (3,800 cfs), a rough estimate of what reaches the canyon.

Permit

ReservationReservations for the Apr 14 to Oct 15 season open Dec 14. Next release: Dec 14, in 42 days.

No lottery. Reserve up to four months ahead and at least two days before launch.

Apply on Recreation.gov Official page

Fees and rules

$36 reservation fee plus $25 per person for overnight Cataract trips. Day use is $10 per person plus a $6 fee.

Private groups are limited to 40 people, and a permit covers up to 14 consecutive nights. You can also get a permit in person at the Backcountry Permit Office in Moab.

Source: NPS page, last updated October 2025.

Snowpack

Lower Colorado (UT)Early seasonDam-regulated

Snow water equivalent 0.4 in. Early season — median too low for a meaningful %.

Upstream aggregate — combined Upper Colorado + Green River snowpack.

Dam-regulated: Flaming Gorge Dam. Flows on this river also depend on reservoir releases — snowpack alone does not determine flows. Reaches this stretch through the Green River upstream.

Outlook indicator, not a flow forecast. Spring temperatures, rain, soil moisture, dust on snow and reservoir releases also matter. NRCS SNOTEL data as of Oct 31, 2026 (provisional).

See basin snowpack

Draft details for paddlers to review and edit. Community voting on runnable ranges is coming.

Trip reports

Wavetrain is an early build. Flow readings are USGS provisional data and may be revised. Runnable ranges and run details are drafts for paddlers to review. Permit dates and rules come from the agency pages linked on each permit and can change. Snowpack figures come from NRCS SNOTEL stations, are provisional, and are grouped into basins by watershed, so they may differ from official NRCS basin reports. Nothing here replaces scouting, local knowledge or a conversation with a nearby outfitter.