Upper Colorado

Burns to Dotsero · Class II · CO

618Oct 22 snapshot

Runnable

Snapshot from Oct 22, 2026. Live reading loading.

Runnable range 500 to 5,000 cfs. This is a draft estimate that paddlers have not reviewed yet.

Season

Late spring to fall

Character

About 24 miles of mostly Class II water to the Dotsero boat landing, with Rodeo Rapid near the start and Pinball Rapid in the middle.

Watch for

Rodeo Rapid might be Class III. You can portage it upstream or downstream, or run it with some maneuvering. BLM access points along the way let you break the trip into shorter legs. Mileage comes from adding the legs in one web guide.

Gauge

USGS 09070500
Colorado River near Dotsero
618 cfs at 6:00 PM MT on Oct 22, 2026 (snapshot)
This gauge is at the downstream end of the stretch. The Kremmling gauge upstream read 402 cfs.

Snowpack

Upper Colorado mainstemEarly season

Snow water equivalent 0.4 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

Other sections of Upper Colorado

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.