River Rafters, Anglers Go With Colorado Flow

Colorado’s driest winter in a century is reducing flows for river rafters but giving anglers an early start. The snowpack this year averaged only 27% of normal statewide, although some areas are doing better, said Dawn Taylor, spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Natural Resources in Denver.

“We won’t see big water” on the Arkansas River in south-central Colorado, one of the busiest whitewater rivers in the world, typically drawing about 750,000 rafters a year, said Steven Hall, Denver-based spokesman for Colorado State Parks. Although lower than usual, flows should be good through June, he said last week. After that, the outlook depends on whether state officials release extra water as usual in late summer; the issue is pending.

Outfitters such as Hank Bevington, general manager for American Adventure Expeditions in Salida, Colo., are putting the best face on the situation. Lower flow is better for trips by families and novices, he said.

Calmer water also enables anglers to wade in earlier in the season. “It should be one of the best fly-fishing seasons we’ve had,” Hall says.