{"id":2103985,"date":"2026-08-21T02:35:46","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T23:35:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2103985"},"modified":"2026-08-21T02:35:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T23:35:46","slug":"trip-report-rafting-the-green-river-utah-sections-a-b-c-from-the-spillway-to-swallow-canyon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2103985","title":{"rendered":"Trip Report: Rafting The Green River, Utah | Sections A, B, C \u2013 From the Spillway to Swallow Canyon"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

Report from August 7-8, 2026<\/em><\/p>\n

My wife recently got into river rafting with her friends and had me, an old high school buddy, Vince, and his wife go on a class 1-2 river rafting trip on the Colorado River from Fruita, CO, toward Moab, UT, in August 2024.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The whole trip was hilarious in lovely warm water, and I even found little badge frogs with purple spots (Arizona toad?), and I was hooked.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

This year, we went for the Green River, UT, starting at the Flaming Gorge Dam.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Green River, UT<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Sections A, B, C<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Spillway to Swallow Canyon<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  • Start \u2013 Flaming Gorge Dam Spillway<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Camp \u2013 Big Pine II campground<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Finish \u2013 Swallow Canyon<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Elevations \u2013 5,600\u2032 \u2013 5,400\u2032<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Day 1 = Spillway to Big Pine II Camp \u2013 10 miles \u2013 4 hours \u2013 Average Speed 2.5mph<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Day 2 = Big Pine II Camp to Swallow Canyon Take Out \u2013 18 miles \u2013 5 hours \u2013 Average Speed 3.6mph<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Temperatures \u2013 Highs in 90s, lows in the 60s<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Permits \u2013 Flaming Gorge Recreation Use Pass and campground reservation<\/strong><\/li>\n
  • Recommended Gear: sunscreen, sun shirt, shorts, hat, food, water, GPS maping app with pins preset for your camp and take out (I used Gaia)<\/em>, wag bags (required by law)<\/em><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
    Happy campers. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \n<\/p>\n
    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    On paper, the trip looked epic, with only 2 caveats:<\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    • 60\u00b0F water is pretty damn cold<\/li>\n
    • One class 3 rapid \u2013 Red Creek Rapid<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      The class 3 rapid is scary enough in itself, I suppose, but my main concern was that I was bringing my 72-year-old dad, who is battling chemotherapy (and kicking ass!), along, and it just wouldn\u2019t feel good to flip him out of a boat in big water.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Petroglyphs in Dinosaur National Monument. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      I was once a river rafting guide\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Just for one summer on the Truckee River near Lake Tahoe, California.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      I wasn\u2019t very good.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Osprey on nest while fishing. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
      \n<\/p>\n
      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

      We rafted the Boca to Floriston zone, and it had a few class 3 rapids that were technical.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      I flipped my clients in \u201cJaws\u201d once, and I\u2019ve been scared ever since\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

      I also guided one of the American River forks once that summer, too, which was bigger water \u2013 up to class 4 \u2013 but easier than the Truckee because more water and less technical.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Erica and Dad charging. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      Anywho\u2026 the trip was slated for 2 days and 1 night.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      We rented all the rafting gear (raft, oars, oar frame) from Dutch John Resort, and they dropped us off and picked us up \u2013 easy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      In blazing sunshine on Friday, August 7, we drove from Park City to the Flaming Gorge Dam, grabbed our recreation passes, dropped our car, and Ilian, from Kazakhstan, dropped us off at the spillway with all our stuff.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Massive dinosaur bones. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
      \n<\/p>\n
      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

      We threw our gear in the raft and set off with Miss Erica rowing first.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Honestly, it felt weird that they just give you a raft and set you free down an unknown river and I loved that.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      The river was electric with rafters and swimmers and fishermen.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Red Canyon. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      This is a big fishing river, and we were the only people I saw on the river not fishing.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Most people seemed to have a guide in these very nice row boats, with the guide in the middle and two fishermen on either side casting like crazy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      The Green is full of fish, and we saw them constantly through the violently clear water.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Campfire! Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      I\u2019ve never seen so many osprey in my life.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      They were everywhere along the river \u2013 flying, fishing, perching, and chilling in their oversized nests.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      My dad loved it, and that made my heart soar like an osprey.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Chill time. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      Section A in the gorge was busy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      I dodged a guide in her boat just before one rapid, and she twice said, \u201cThanks for not hitting me,\u201d which I took to mean that she gets hit often enough to have found relief in this instance\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

      The day was hot in the mid-90s, and we all took turns jumping in the crystalline water and swimming around the raft.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Erica likes it. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      We dodged rafts, smiled at people swimming and cliff jumping, mostly avoided people\u2019s haphazard flies and lures (one cast lure did hit one of our oars as we were paddling)<\/em>, and lazily reveled in the best way to travel on Earth.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      The initial canyon we traveled through, which I believe is called Section A, was incredibly striking.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      My dad called it \u201cThe Wall of a Thousand Faces\u201d as his imagination created contorted faces and expressions in the brilliant orange rock walls.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Camp lookout. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      We had bought sandwiches from Wasatch Bagel in Park City the previous day, and ate them as we drifted along.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      The rapids were all mellow, but a little techy. <\/strong><\/p>\n

      You had to be on the right line to avoid hitting rocks and bouncing off walls.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Osprey everywhere. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      All class 2, all easy enough, all very fun.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      On this first section, the biggest hazard really was the other boats and finding spacing and room to cruise through rapids cleanly.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      I didn\u2019t see a single person on this river who wasn\u2019t smiling and happy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Gorgeous. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      After 10 miles and 4 hours of pure joy, we found our camp, Big Pine II.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      The camp was very accommodating, with a big fire ring, benches around the fire, 4 tent platforms, and 2 picnic tables.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      We hauled our gear, set up camp, and started chilling out.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Swallow nests. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      We swam a few times, as the temperature simply would not drop.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Our last swim was after 8 p.m. and we swam 8 times in total.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      The 60\u00baF water I\u2019d feared was absolutely perfect on this scorching hot, dry summer\u2019s day.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      John Wesley Powell. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      During the downtime, I put some energy into gathering dead and down firewood and got lucky to find a huge branch with lots of sub-branches that I hauled back to camp and processed.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      My dad is a fire-freak pyromaniac who spent over 20 years of his life living as a camper on a very small island in the California Delta.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      I spent the energy creating the initial fire teepee and then just stacked everything else alongside the ring, knowing damn well that Dad would happily take care of the rest.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Mini fish. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      It never did get cold enough for a fire, but after dark, a fire we had.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      A big fire, and it felt amazing.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      There are so few places in North America that will let you have a fire in the summertime these days.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Team sport. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      Dinner was a simple charcuterie board with bread, crackers, brie, Irish cheddar, salami, bell pepper, carrots, cucumber, broccoli, pear, olives, and more.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      We all slept well on massive, thick air mattresses, with no mosquitoes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Our camp had a ton of ants, but they were pretty cool.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Big Pine II Camp. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      We were on the river the next morning around 8:30 a.m., and I was anxious\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Erica took the helm, and we kept our eyes peeled for the dreaded \u201cClass 3 Red Creek Rapid.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

      There was even a warning sign foretelling disaster ahead\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Father and son. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      Erica was rowing \u2013 I was spotting.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Last minute, it looked obvious that the best line was going to be far right against the rock wall, through the wave train, so we went for that.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Erica nailed the line, and we goofily bopped up and down through the wave train, happy, smiling, and hooting.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Class 3?<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Naw, class 2+ I\u2019d say, as long as you stay right, you\u2019re gonna nail it (and you can see the whole thing in the video above at 2:04).<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

      River rafting the Green River, UT. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      Once past the nefarious rapid, our minds could lean into the fact that this was our big day, with something like 18 miles and 6 hours of travel to cover.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      All of Section B was pleasant, with every rapid mellower than the Section A rapids (except for Red Creek Rapid, of course).<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

      We had been told that the river could be really slow on this second day, especially in Section C, but the thing moved along really nicely, almost the whole way.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        \n
      • Average speed on Day 1 \u2013 Section A = 2.5 mph<\/li>\n
      • Average speed on Day 2 \u2013 Sections B & C = 3.6 mph<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
        Osprey moods. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

        On this day, we were completely alone, and the river\u2019s calm brought out the wildlife. <\/strong><\/p>\n

        We saw fish, tons of osprey again, beaver, otters, and more.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        It was special to have the river to ourselves after the entertaining hubbub of the previous day.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Dad digging in. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

        It was quiet\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

        We pulled off for lunch at a picnic table and enjoyed another delicious charcuterie board.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        The Swallow Canyon takeout was not easy to find, and we did go past it and had to walk the raft back up a bit.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Make sure you have your maps and\/or GPS dialed in.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Note<\/strong>: We used our Gaia GPS to drop pins on camp and takeout so that we wouldn\u2019t miss them, and this was key.<\/em><\/p>\n

        Petroglyphs in Dinosaur NP. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

        Ilian from Kazakhstan picked us up and brought us back to the spillway and Dutch John Resort and told us colorful stories of his homeland.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        We hopped in the car and drifted 15 minutes up to Flaming Gorge Resort for showers, rooms, and dinner.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        On our final day, Sunday, August 9, we cruised around the Red Canyon Overlook, where we drank in spectacular views of the Flaming Gorge Reservoir and truly enjoyed the interpretive center they have there.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Red Canyon. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

        John Wesley Powell was one badass mofo.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        From Red Canyon, we drove south to Vernal, then east to Dinosaur National Monument, where we had our minds absolutely blown off by the in situ dinosaur bone exhibit there.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        We also checked out the petroglyphs, which were inspiring, and then cruised back to Vernal for a simple lunch at Carol\u2019s Kitchen.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        From Carol\u2019s, we headed home to Park City with one very stoked Dad.<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Thanks, Utah!<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Photos in Chronological Order<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
        River runnin\u2019. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Lunch. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Clear water. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Happy dudes. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dad and me. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Cruising content. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Big walls. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Party river. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Gorgeous Gorge. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Erica digs in. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Erica. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dad at the helm. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Rocks like this everywhere. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Osprey on a rock. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Osprey in hte sky. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Osprey everywhere. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dad in the river. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dad drinking it in. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Big Pine II camp. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Big Pine II Camp. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Chill time. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

        <\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
        Happy couple. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Day 2 cruising. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Erica and Dad charging. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Gorgeous. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        See thru waters. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Red Creek Rapid coming up. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Just below Red Creek Rapid. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Scoping it out. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Calm. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Empty river. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dad charging. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Fishers. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Day 2 sun. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Man made Osprey nest. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Green River. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Checking it out. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Swallows. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dad digging in. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Rocks. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Mini fish. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Red Canyon. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Red Canyon, UT. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Red Canyon. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Red Canyon. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Red canyon. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dinosaur bones in Dinosaur National Monument. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dinosaur bones in Dinosaur National Monument. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Dinosaur bones in Dinosaur National Monument. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Petroglyphs in Dinosaur NP. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Petroglyphs in Dinosaur NP. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Petroglyphs in Dinosaur NP. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Petroglyphs in Dinosaur NP. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        Petroglyphs in Dinosaur NP. Image: SnowBrains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

        \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Report from August 7-8, 2026 My wife recently got into river rafting with her friends and had me, an old high school buddy, Vince, and his wife go on a class 1-2 river rafting trip on the Colorado River from Fruita, CO, toward Moab, UT, in August 2024. The whole trip was hilarious in lovely […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,267],"class_list":["post-2103985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-snowbrains-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2103985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2103985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2103985\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2103985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2103985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2103985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}