Animas, Colorado, Gauge Information

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American Whitewater - NWRI - Animas 6. 32nd St. Park to Purple Cliffs Page 3 of 4 the long run. Once past the bridge on 32nd Street, you will enter a Class -II rock garden. Pick a line and enjoy. Then, after the rock garden, you will continue to float some quick water until you come to where an island divides the river. Go right and there is a good spot for old- school stern squirts. Proceed around the bend and there is a good set of Class -II waves that will get your face wet. Past this is a railroad bridge with a good rock garden. At 1600 and below, take the river -right side. I say this because on river left there is what looks like a big wave, but it is actually water pushing straight into a big rock. Next up is the most dangerous part on the river IMHO. This is the Main St. Bridge. Water crashes into all the pillars, so the best line is to take it far river left and line up to blast off the eddy line coming off of the pillar. After this, keep bombing down the run, and soon you will go past the 9th St. bridge and under some other bridge. Once you go past this bridge, the river will bend to the left. Be ready to hit some fun Class II+ -III- swamper waves. At 4,000 cfs, these waves get to be about 6 -9 ft high. Below 1000 cfs, this offers some good creek - boating practice. Afterwards, the river bends to the right and you are now at the whitewater park. The first rapid is the biggest and gets some notoriety. It is Smelter Rapid, which is where almost all the water funnels into a big haystack followed by some boily water. This haystack will knock you over, so have a good roll because afterwards is more continuous whitewater. At 4,000 cfs, I consider Smelter a class IV (some may disagree). After Smelter is a Class -ll+ rapid followed by Corner Pocket, which is where all the locals play. Corner Pocket is a good wave with a forgiving foam pile that offers up blunts, loops, cartwheels etc. Over 2800 cfs, Corner Pocket is.a class III playwave /hole. Have a good roll if you want to play, because the water afterwards will send you river right into a very trashy hole. Above 3,000 cfs I have seen lots of rafts flip in this hole and have seen some kayakers spending a lot of time getting trashed here. After the playpark you go through some more Class -II waves and then you go under the 550 bridge. Stay river right and get some good play in class II+ Santa Rita hole. People say that there is some construction debris around this hole, but I have seen the river at 180 cfs and have yet to see any. After Santa Rita are some fun Class I I -II+ waves that at around 4,000 cfs get pretty big; the last wave, Big Kahuna (right at the Four Corners take -out), is fantastic at 1500 to 6000 cfs. Ride these waves, catch some play all the way down to the Four Corners Riversports take -out. The guys at Four Corners Riversports are awesome people, so go ask them for some local Beta. If you wish an additional mile of paddling in Class -II water, you can take out at High Bridge (550/160 South near Wal -Mart). A new take- out will be ready soon an additional mile downstream, giving the paddler Class -II Pinball Rock Garden (under the new bridge behind Home Depot). After you are off the river, head on over to Steamworks for some local brew. Go on Thursday nights, and it is $1 pint night. Carver's Brewery on Main St. has the Colorado Trail Nut Brown Ale, which I think is the best beer in Durango. There is free camping within 15 minutes up in San Juan National Forest or up in the La Plata Mtn. area. Do realize that as flows go up on this river, it takes on a big -water feel that edges Class IV due to lack of eddies etc. http:// www. americanwhitewater. org /content/River /detail/id/351/ 12/28/2006