Grand Tetons whitewater rafting

photos below used with permission from Ron Niebrugge: http://www.wildnatureimages.com/

Rafting companies describe the 8.5 mile whitewater section of the Snake River this way:

West Table Creek "The eight-mile trip starts here. Watch for Osprey nesting along the stretch of the river." "the current is swift and Osprey are commonly seen nesting"

The S Turns "sharp ninety degree turns keep everyone swinging a paddle"

Cutbanks 1& 2 "roller coaster ride"

Wolf Creek "a rare, but rewarding sight is a bald eagle fishing along this tranquil stretch"

Big Kahuna "when the river level drops this rapid seems to appear from nowhere"

Lunch Counter "the river narrows and compresses itself into a series of dramatic and exciting waves forming our most famous rapid"

Rope Rapids "the current coils upon itself under the shadow of the spectacular limestone cliffs" "The resemblence of water to braided rope occurs when current piles up on smooth rock benches and tumbles over itself."

Champagne "watch the millions of bubbles rising to the jade green surface" "This "bubbly" section of the river is the product of millions of tiny air bubbles rising to the surface after having been trapped by the rushing water."

Holy City "hidden ledges and protruding rocks put your skills to a test on the longest and most technical rapid"

An article in the Jackson Hole News and Guide noted that in low water years or at the end of the season, "Big Kahuna and Rope rapids are known as low water rapids whose size and intensity increase with lower water."

If you go white water rafting, you should probably also budget money for photos of your trip. (Photos are usually taken at Big Kahuna or Lunch Counter). Expect to spend a bit of money. Go to http://www.floatographs.com/

If you look there for photos taken today, you can see how the river is running, get an idea of the kind and size of boats each company uses, see which companies have boat seating that lets everyone paddle and even decide where you want to sit on the boat for the best picture.

The over a half dozen area companies offer various combinations of whitewater and/or scenic floats with or without overnights and meals. Whitewater trips can be done in 8- or 14 person boats; some companies advertise that they provide rain jackets/pants and lifejackets, others mention wetsuits, booties and gloves. There are links to all the current companies at http://www.floatographs.com/

How much water is flowing in the Snake River right now?

1-800-658-5771.

Each of the following has the current streamflow and the median daily based on 100 years of records plus daily mean flow statistics based on 100 years of record in ft3/sec

SNAKE RIVER AT JACKSON LAKE AT FLAGG RANCH WY (50 ft upstream from State Highway 89 bridge, 2 miles downstream from the south boundary of Yellowstone National Park, 600 ft downstream from the confluence with Sheffield Creek.)

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/wy/nwis/uv?13010065

SNAKE RIVER NEAR MORAN WY (1,000 ft downstream from Jackson Lake Dam) http://waterdata.usgs.gov/wy/nwis/uv?13011000

SNAKE RIVER BELOW FLAT CREEK NEAR JACKSON WY (7 miles south of Jackson)

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv/?site_no=13018750

For stats from a monitor on the right bank 0.3 mi downstream from Wolf Creek, 6.4 mi upstream from Greys River, 7.4 mi east of Alpine, 16.1 mi upstream from Palisades Dam, and at mile 917.5. go to:

http://id.waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?site_no=13022500

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On some trips (this photo 2011 trip) there have been enough people who wanted to go rafting that they reserved their own raft from a guide company and did not have to share with strangers.

The trip home page is at Grand Tetons