Yampa River Trip

**Scottybdiving** · 07-10-2011, 14:32

We started out in Sundance, UT, in a cushy house that I rented through VRBO.com (Vacation Rentals by Owner). This is the 3rd time I have used this network and all 3 have been homeruns. We spent 3 days exploring the area between Provo and Park City, grilling and cooking on the deck, and just enjoying the magnificent home on the edge of creek. One of my all-time favorite movies (Jeremiah Johnson) was filmed here and this mountain scene appears mutiple times in it.

The House we rented

We headed east to the town of Vernal, UT where we would stay the night prior to and after our rafting trip. We were to meet at the Split Mountain boat ramp in Dinosaur National Monument the next morning. We parked our cars there at what would be the take-out point and rode a bus for 2 1/2 hours east, to the launching point at Deerlodge Park boat ramp.

Split Mountain Boat Ramp

Deerlodge Park Boat Ramp

Day 1 on the river was pretty mild. This is not a big whitewater river and even with recent record flows, the rapids are pretty mild compared to last year's Middle Fork Salmon trip. Howeve, the scenery and pristine nature of the area more than makes up for it. The flow rate was down to about 14,000 CFS from it's peak a couple week earlier of 26K CFS. The recently flooded flats and campgrounds meant the presence of mosquitoes, which is usually not the case here. We only had one camp where they were more than a nuisance. However, everyone had to sleep zipped up inside their tents, and this made the hammocks even more appealing.

River Day 2 took us deeper into the canyon. We camped below a huge sandstone cliff and made a 5 mile r/t hike to access the top. It offered some breathtaking views.

I rowed most of 3 days on this trip

River Day 3 We hike to see some petroglyphs. The hike offered some nice views. Camp 3 was the buggiest of all. It was tight and everyone was ready to hit the river the next morning.

View From Hammock - Camp 3

River Day 4 brought us to the confluence of the Green River. This has to be Top 5 of places I have been and is appropriately named Echo Park. We also crossed back into Utah on this day. Camp 4 was open, airy, and bug-free, a much welcomed change from the previous camp.

Steamboat Rock at the confluence of the Green River

Faulting caused the layers being pushed up when the land on the left thrust upward

Camp 4

River Day 5 was the best whitewater day of the trip. It was a long series of Cl II's and III's and offered a nice finish to a great trip. We arrived at the Split Mountain Boat Ramp where we had parked our cars. Everyone said their goodbyes and we headed for a warm shower in Vernal.

Full Photo Gallery

**clb** · 07-10-2011, 14:43

Great report! VRBO is great, friends of mine have used them to book our trips to Florida in the spring as well as other trips. Thanks for sharing!

**MuseJr** · 07-10-2011, 14:51

That looks like a great time. There is something about the desert areas out here that are very appealing to me. Glad you enjoyed your trip and thanks for sharing your pics.

**mbiraman** · 07-10-2011, 20:47

Pretty country,,,,nice pics.

**L.D. Cakes** · 07-10-2011, 20:55

That looks like a wonderful trip! Great pics and report. Thanks!

**BillyBob58** · 07-10-2011, 21:23

Great report and pics. I love both Jeremiah Johnson and Sundance- I skied there a lot in the 80s and 90s. I also took a river trip about 86 that I think must have been in the same area you were in. But we started at a place called "Gates of Lodore", sleeping under the stars on the river bank the night before. Then we rafted the Green River past the confluence with the Yampa, if memory serves. I think I also remember an Echo Park, not sure. Anyway, thanks for stirring up some memories for me.

**cataraftgirl** · 07-10-2011, 21:50

Looks like you guys had a great trip. How was Warm Springs rapid? I have done Lodore, but haven't done the Yampa....yet.
Two thumbs up for hammock hanging all 5 nights on your trip. The Utah river canyons can be a real challenge. Lots of rocks and tamarisks, but not a lot of real trees. Good job.
You lucked out on the mosquitos. Down river in Desolation Canyon, they will drive you insane, then carry you away. My last June Deso I went through 2 cans of DEET spray plus wore a bug suit for 7 days. Now we do Deso in April.
Thanks for the report and the awesome pictures. Steamboat Rock & Tiger Wall brought back great memories.
KJ

**Scottybdiving** · 07-10-2011, 22:40

BB58, Gates of Lodore are on the Green River, below the Flaming Gorge, and upriver from the Yampa. You would have more than likely passed the confluence of the Yampa at Echo Park, where you see Steamboat Rock.

KJ, we had to work real hard to get a good hang each night. All but one night we had two hammocks on 3 trees. A couple nights they were at their shortest spans. Another night, the span was at the max and i actually had a strap fail as I was getting in the hammock. Ripped right in two. The whole camp heard it rip. Not sure if it wedged improperly in the buckle or what happened. I tied it off and used it the rest of the trip. Makes me think I may need to go to the descending rings instead of the buckles. At the very least, I need to carry an extra strap, although I do carry 50' of amsteel with me.