Cataract Canyon Flow Profile
Seasonal flow profile for Cataract Canyon on the Colorado River — optimal CFS ranges, spring runoff patterns, and high-water thresholds at the Big Drops.
River section: Cataract Canyon
Flow Conditions
Combined Potash + Mineral Bottom reading — the two launch-zone gauges, summed. Equivalent post-Big-Drops reading available on the Gypsum Canyon gauge, which has thinner historical data.
The ledge rock in Big Drop 3 is exposed. Don't take your dory.
Class III character with technical, rocky lines through the Big Drops. Pool-drop sequencing dominates; the long flatwater approach drags. Best for boulder-garden navigation and skill development.
The sweet spot for experienced self-guided crews. Big Drops are powerful but read-and-run with clean lines. Sandy beaches above water; hydraulics are well-defined and readable.
Big-water Class IV. Hydraulics intensify, the sequence feels compressed, and pool recovery shrinks. Rewarding for crews with prior big-water experience; not a first run.
Pools start to wash out and beaches flood. Of the big water levels, this flow band is the most washed out. Now, North Seas & South Seas are starting 10-15', the Claw in Big Drop 2 is the major gotcha, Button Hole is washed. As always Rig to flip.
Most beaches are gone. North Seas, Mile Long South Seas top out around 20' and the Big Drops are in full flex. Expedition-grade above 50,000 cfs — commercial outfits shift tactics or cancel; private trips at that level only with a deep big-water experience. Webb, Belnap and Weisheit warn that at these flows the canyon can be very dangerous and boats frequently flip.
Flood stage, up to the highest combined daily flow on the Cisco and Green River gauges: 130,100 cfs on June 27, 1917. Bigger floods came through unmeasured: the upstream Colorado gauge has no record for 1918–1922, and Webb/Belnap/Weisheit put the 1921 flood, the largest of the twentieth century, at about 147,000 cfs. Not a runnable target; the Big Drops at their absolute limit.
Seasonality
Best known for late-spring and early-summer snowmelt, with character shifting from rocky low-water whitewater to large, dynamic big-water conditions.
- Spring
- Cold water during runoff, Rapidly rising flows, Large, consequential holes and lateral waves, Wind on the approach miles
- Summer
- Extreme heat exposure, Monsoon wind and lightning, Flash-flood potential in side canyons, Reservoir headwinds and slower lower-canyon travel
- Fall
- Lower water and rockier line choices, Cold nights, Longer flatwater feel, Take-out uncertainty tied to lake level
- Winter
- Very cold weather and water, Limited rescue margin, Road access complications, Short days and hypothermia exposure
Live Gauge Data
Colorado River at Potash, UT
USGS gauge measuring discharge and gage height on the Colorado River at Potash, UT — downstream of the Moab valley and upstream of the Confluence. Reads the Colorado’s contribution at the Potash put-in; sum it with the Green at Mineral Bottom for the combined flow that reaches Cataract Canyon.
USGS #09185600Current flow
USGSGreen River at Mineral Bottom, UT
USGS gauge measuring discharge and gage height on the Green River at Mineral Bottom, near the Canyonlands National Park boundary. Sits at the take-out for Labyrinth Canyon and the put-in for Stillwater Canyon — the Green-side launch point for Cataract Canyon trips. Reads the Green's contribution to the Confluence at the actual put-in.
USGS #09328920Current flow
USGSColorado River at Gypsum Canyon, UT
USGS gauge measuring discharge on the Colorado River at the mouth of Gypsum Canyon, near Hite — below the Big Drops sequence and in the reservoir-influenced lower miles of Cataract Canyon. Reads the combined Colorado + Green flow after the Confluence and after the Cataract whitewater corridor.
USGS #09328960