California and Oregon Rafting

The rivers in California are peaking and the Merced is at its finest. Tuolumne trips have been cancelling due to flows in the 15,000 – 16,000 cfs range and everyone has been paddling the Merced instead and having a great time. River guides say that they are comfortable rafting as high as 12,000 cfs and report straightforward rapids and big waves.

Rafts have been running Split Rock and Corner Pocket (both Class IV) below Briceburg at these high flows with great success and big fun. The warm weather should provide these high flows for at least the next two weeks and this coming three day weekend should be perfect.

The Tuolumne flows have ramped up over that past few days and are now hanging out in the 10,000 cfs range. All-Outdoors had a training trip on the water when the river peaked at 12,000 cfs and the crew hiked out and returned the next day when the flows dropped a bit. Most outfitters have cancelled trips over the weekend due to high water. The next few weeks should produce flows of 8,000 cfs and above.

The Tuolumne flows are quite difficult to judge because there is no gauge on the South Tuolumne anymore. The South Tuolumne flows (here and on dreamflows) are estimated from the Merced which is a rough estimate. I just fixed the Tuolumne Flow graph based on some input from dreamflows so it should portray the flows more accurately.

Tuolumne guides have been hiking down the South Fork below Rainbow Pools lately and have seen flows as high as 3,000 cfs on the South Fork alone and Clavey was estimated at 5,000 cfs the other day when the Tuolumne at Meral’s Pool was 12,000. Please be careful when planning your trip this spring.

Since April, we have seen little snowmelt in the high country and as recently as yesterday it has snowed in the Sierra. May and June were looking to provide moderately high water in the Sierra and now we are looking at very high water. The snow pack on the Tuolumne has increased from 140% in April to 180% now. The snow pack on the Merced is now at 187%.

Next week will be the first week of warm weather and the flows should start to rise dramatically. Please be careful out there when running rivers for the first time at high water. Rafters should be especially careful and consider safety kayaks and catarafts on the North Fork above 2,500 cfs, on the Tuolumne above 6,000 cfs, on the South Fork above 6,000 cfs, and on the Merced above 8,000 cfs.

Commercial outfitters will be running training trips on the various California rivers at high flows above these levels so that they know the river at its limits. Private boaters should be very careful at any flows above what they have seen in the past.