Desolation and Gray Canyons

Sand Wash to Swasey's Rapid · Class II–III · UT

Lottery

3,800Oct 22 snapshot

Runnable

Snapshot from Oct 22, 2026. Live reading loading.

Runnable range 1,500 to 12,000 cfs. This is a draft estimate that paddlers have not reviewed yet.

Season

Lottery covers launches May 1 to Sep 30

Character

Multi-day float through a deep desert canyon, 84 miles long.

Watch for

Remote, with summer heat and few places to get help.

Gauge

USGS 09315000
Green River at Green River
3,800 cfs at 6:45 PM MT on Oct 22, 2026 (snapshot)

Permit

LotteryOpens Dec 1, in 29 days.

Apply Dec 1 to Jan 31 on Recreation.gov. Results Feb 15.

Apply on Recreation.gov Official page

Fees and rules

Fees are listed on the Recreation.gov permit page.

A permit is required year-round. The lottery covers launches from May 1 to Sep 30. Dates before May 1 and after Sep 30 can be reserved starting Dec 1. The trip runs 84 miles from Sand Wash to Swasey’s Rapid.

Source: BLM lottery page. The page describes the upcoming year’s lottery without naming a year.

Snowpack

Green — DesolationEarly season

Snow water equivalent 0.5 in. Early season — median too low for a meaningful %.

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.