VRRC--Main

Virgin River Runners Coalition

Defending River Runners' access and boating rights in the Intermountain West

New Fish Dam in Virgin Gorge May Be Obstacle to Boaters

fish dam at 100 cfs fish dam at 200 cfs fish dam at 1000 cfs fish dam at 1000 cfs from upstream

A new fish barrier dam has been installed in the lower Virgin River Gorge downstream (west) of the Cedar Pockets Rest Area. The dam is about 200 yards downstream of the second I-15 bridge west of the rest area, below what is known as Big Ten rapid. It can be scouted from a large graveled area on the right side of northbound I-15. The pullout is just north of a shed structure and is at the new chainlink fence and gate at the edge of the gravel. The dam cannot be seen from the highway.

Photos above (courtesy of Mark Wilder) of 100, 200 and 1000 cfs show the nature of the dam. A low profile in the center may allow flow to flush out of the center. The dam is concrete, is 6 ft or so high and has a concrete floor. Looks like a good surf wave may form downstream at 1000 cfs and above.

The left bank is near-vertical drilled and blasted limestone and the right bank is grouted rip-rap boulders. There are no significant eddies on either bank in the apprioach reach.

North Fork Virgin River Narrows beta

The Zion Narrows was closed Apr 27, 2009 due to a large number of parties requiring rescue. The closure was made to assess the conditions that led to 4 of 5 parties putting on Apr 26-27 requiring assistance. During the weekend of April 24-25, 2010 two young men from Las Vegas lost their lives while attempting to traverse the Narrows.

The Narrows is a Class III run with Class V consequences in a remote slot where the ONLY way out is down. Don't bring newbies. Bring gear so you can bivy if you split (or lose) your boat or your sprayskirt. Better yet, bring someone in an IK who can haul your ass out if you get into big drama.

150 cfs is minimum flow required by Zion NP (North Fork Virgin River nr Springdale, UT streamgage). Up to 300 is low flow, above 600 is high flow. IN 2010, Zion National Park capped permitted runs at 600 cfs due to the diffuculty of mounting a rescue at higher flows.

The run is a long day. The first 6 or so miles are pretty much a walk. There will be only rare years when this section is floatable in April or May. Bring solid footwear. An early start is paramount.

From one of the early descenders and one of the 2009 rescue party: "The most important thing... is the ever changing pickup stix logjams. There are blind drops where you just don't know, and I've had a few moments in there when there it was, out of nowhere, perfectly at larynx height, these ponderosa war clubs spiked with shattered limbs."

 


See some great high-flow Cataract Canyon videos from the NPS.

Check out some of the features of our web-site.

River Runners info:

  • Conservation--Virgin River basin management documents, endangered and threatened species listings and documents; some found nowhere else on the web.
  • River Flows--Direct links to USGS, BuRec, river Commisioner' sites
  • Snowpack--Direct links to Snotell daily update pages, and region-wide summaries and summary maps.
  • Weather--Help plan your trip with these links to National Weather Service forecast office homepages, GOES satellite images radar, more.
  • Permits--Addresses (virtual AND real), phone numbers to permitting offices.
  • River Organizations--Links to organizations that fight hard for access and conservation issues.

ClassIV


The Virgin River Runners' Coalition is a dedicated group of river runners commited to defending, maintaining, and enhancing river runners' access and boating rights throughout the Intermountain West.