Yampa River Steamboat Springs Town Section
The Steamboat Springs town section of the Yampa River begins at River Creek Park which is near the Walton Creek Road and Highway 40 intersection just south of Steamboat Springs. This section of the Yampa River ends at the Steamboat Stockbridge Transit Center, approximately four miles downriver.
Learn about Yampa River floater etiquette:
Environmental Health of the Yampa through Steamboat
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Steamboat Springs section?
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Rapids & Features
Runoff starts in March when the Yampa River opens up due to snowmelt in the river valley. As spring sets in, the Yampa River starts to really flow in April, May and peaks in early June. Typically, by late June/early July the Yampa in Steamboat Springs has run its course as base flows set in.
As a boater, this section is a perfect class I-II+ float in a kayak, raft, or tube depending on river flows. This run will typically take anywhere from one hour to two hours. At peak flows (1,500 to 3,000 cfs) this section isn’t for beginners as waves, holes and fast moving, cold water will create difficult swims for anyone out of their boat. As the river recedes post peak, the Yampa River in downtown Steamboat Springs is a perfect place to learn how to kayak or raft due to the tame nature of this run.
The first rapid you can expect to experience is the Ambulance Hole, or A-Hole, located roughly 100 meters downstream of Backdoor Sports directly adjacent to the Ambulance Barn at the footbridge over the Yampa River between 10th and 9th Street. The A-Hole feature is more of a wave after a rebuild occurred in 2015 that looked to engineer a glassy wave and fix a recirculating hole that was created in the late 1990’s.
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Shortly after the A-Hole, you can expect to reach the Double Z wave. This river feature was also created in the ’90s and is a river wide feature with surfable waves on either side of a center rock pile. At flows of 1,500-3,000, kayakers can post up on the Double Z wave for a nice front surf.
The next rapid you will reach is Charlie’s Hole, or C-Hole, located directly adjacent to the Bud Werner Memorial Library at the 13th Street Bridge. This river feature was created in the mid 2000’s and is the hub of boating activity on the river. At high water this is the spot in Northwest Colorado for kayaking and raft surfing. Once high water subsides, the C-Hole becomes a beach-like experience with hundreds of children and teens swimming in the deep pool and boogie boarding the hole. It’s a great place to post up and have a picnic, riverside while your kids experience the Yampa River.
The Charlies Hole is the main venue for the Friends of the Yampa annual Yampa River Festival. With it’s recirculating water, and riverside space, we have embraced this area as a perfect venue for this event that celebrates all things Yampa River.
Learn More About the Yampa River Festival
After the Charlie’s Hole, you can expect to reach the last notable river feature, the D-Hole. The D-Hole was also built in early 2000 and is a large lateral wave spreading from river right-to-left; therefore, the easiest way through this rapid is on the river-left side, where the lateral wave eventually collapses and flushes itself out.
One interesting caveat of the Steamboat Springs Boating Park is that the Charlie’s Hole and the D-Hole were decreed as a Recreation In-Current Diversion water right with the State of Colorado. In layman’s terms this means that the City of Steamboat Springs has a water right that protects river flows in the range from as high as 1,400 cfs in early June to as low as 95 cfs in August. Learn more about this RICD here.
After floating through the whole four-mile Steamboat Springs Town section, take-outs are on river-right shortly after passing by the Dream Island trailer park at the Steamboat Stockbridge Transit Center. Friends of the Yampa, along with the City of Steamboat Springs are looking into creating a designated take out for trailered vehicles at the Bear River Park that is downstream of the James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge.
Yampa River Structures Project Details
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Steamboat Springs Yampa Section Photos
