Colorado whitewater - Rio Grande, San Juan and Jemez Mountains, Hinsdale County Hinsdale county, Rio Grande Reservoir to 12 miles above Creede section whitewater kayaking, rafting, and paddling information.   CLASS III-IV     8 miles   The wonderful Colorado scenery and the cool fresh water are reasons enough to come here and paddle. This section of Rio Grande is 8 miles long and is rated by American Whitewater as a class III-IV section. If you've been out of state whitewater rafting and kayaking you might find the rivers here more demanding, so you'd better keep in mind that a lot of the rivers here are not suitable for beginners. There are campgrounds quite near the river where you can camp. Some people prefer whitewater rafting and some kayaking, either way this is an area with     plenty of places for that. The Rio Grande Reservoir to 12 miles above Creede stretch is the only paddling stretch along Rio Grande. You might have to settle for a hotel a bit away from the river if you want to stay the night, but do book a room before you come because it is a very popular destination. When you're paddling down a San Juan and Jemez Mountains river like this one you always get great scenery along the way too. This is a pretty decent length section, suitable for an afternoon trip. Great exercise and spending some quality time in nature will make you glad you came. Briefly about the general area: At Rio Grande you don’t see much rain; of all the months in a year August is the one with the most rain, and the driest month of the year is February. For the duration of the summer months, highs commonly are in   the 70's at Rio Grande. Once the sun is down it drops down to the 40's. The cold days of the wintertime come with highs in the 30's, and nighttime lows during the wintertime for Rio Grande tend to be in the-10's. Long Canyon is a tremendous location to check out close by; on a good day you can take a hike along the Fern Creek Stock Driveway. All year is a good time in the San Juan and Jemez Mountains if you go for the outdoors. Rio Grande, Rio Grande Reservoir to 12 miles above Creede road map Printable road map with the put-in and take-out locations clearly marked. QUICK STATS AW Class: III-IV Length: 8 miles Average Gradient: 38 fpm    Putin Location Coordinates: Latitude: 37.72908 Longitude: -107.23381 Takeout Location Coordinates: Latitude: 37.77448 Longitude: -107.14028 Paddler input for Rio Grande, Colorado: Submit Input: Your Name: Write or Paste Input here: Upload picture:      Input Submission Guidelines Current weather conditions at Rio Grande, San Juan and Jemez Mountains, Colorado Local climate location: LAKE CITY 14 miles away RAFTING TRIP OUTFITTERS There are no whitewater outfitters currently listed for this river. Fairfield Pagosa Resort, Pagosa Springs 27 miles away Fairfield Pagosa gives you an incredible 18,000 acres to discover. Its lakes, golf course, trout streams and other natural wonders give you a million places to hide away among the magnificent Rockies.... Whispering Pines Condominums, Pagosa Springs 28 miles away Pagosa Springs derives its name from the Ute Indian name -Pagosah- which roughly translated means healing or boiling waters. The Utes discovered the healing power of the Hot Springs, and to this day, ... Pagosa Lodge, Pagosa Springs 28 miles away Pagosa Lodge is located on the west side of town with beautiful views of the San Juan Mountains and Pinon Lake. Pagosa Lodge is a 3 diamond facility just one mile from the Pagosa Springs Golf Course ...   San Juan and Jemez Mountains Whitewater Complete list of all the whitewater kayaking and rafting spots in the San Juan and Jemez Mountains. San Juan and Jemez Mountains Outdoors Info Complete outdoors info for the San Juan and Jemez Mountains. All Colorado Whitewater Complete list of all the whitewater paddling spots in Colorado. Books about whitewater paddling on Rio Grande, Colorado List of books from Amazon.com that cover whitewater paddling on Rio Grande, Colorado. Find a whitewater outfitter in Colorado Whitewater Basics If you're new to whitewater paddling please take a look at this basic whitewater info. Outdoors Recreation Near Durango, Colorado Very comprehensive list of a variety of outdoors recreation in the vicinity of Durango, Colorado, the metro area neareast to Rio Grande. Find info on campgrounds, hiking trails, ski resorts, lakes, beaches, parks, whitewater and more.       These outdoors activities are available near Rio Grande.   Whitewater Near Rio Grande: Lake Fork Gunnison River, Hinsdale/Gunnison County , 19 miles away, Class III - 3.6 miles long (Lake City Town Run) Henson Creek, Hinsdale County , 19 miles away, Class IV-V - 6.7 miles long (Above Nellie Creek to 1/2 mile from Lake City) Wolf Creek, Mineral County , 27 miles away, Class IV+ - 0.25 miles long (Downstream from Highway 160 Bridge) Piedra River, Hinsdale/ Archuleta County , 27 miles away, Class II-IV - 12 miles long (Upper Piedra Campground to 1st Fork Bridge) Vallecito Creek, La Plata County , 28 miles away, Class V+ - 1 miles long (1 mile above Vallecito Campground) San Juan River, Archuleta County , 29 miles away, Class II-III - 1 miles long (Pagosa Springs Town Run) San Juan River - East Fork, Archuleta County , 29 miles away, Class III-IV - 4 miles long (East Fork to 160 Bridge)   Ski Areas Near Rio Grande: Wolf Creek, Colorado , 31 miles away, 1604 vertical feet Kendall Mountain, Colorado , 33 miles away, 400 vertical feet Silverton, Colorado , 33 miles away, 1900 vertical feet Purgatory, Colorado , 44 miles away, 2029 vertical feet Telluride, Colorado , 47 miles away, 3845 vertical feet Irwin Lodge, Colorado , 63 miles away, 2100 vertical feet Crested Butte, Colorado , 65 miles away, 2775 vertical feet Hesperus Ski Center, Colorado , 65 miles away, 700 vertical feet Monarch, Colorado , 72 miles away, 1162 vertical feet Aspen Highlands, Colorado , 81 miles away, 3635 vertical feet   Hotels Near Rio Grande: Fairfield Pagosa Resort, Pagosa Springs , 27 miles away Whispering Pines Condominums, Pagosa Springs , 28 miles away Pagosa Lodge, Pagosa Springs , 28 miles away Econo Lodge Pagosa Springs, Pagosa Springs , 28 miles away Keyah Grande Resort, Pagosa Springs , 28 miles away   Camp Grounds Near Rio Grande: Road Canyon Campground, Hinsdale County, 0 miles away River Hill Campground, Hinsdale County, 3 miles away South Clear Creek Falls Campground, Hinsdale County, 5 miles away   Trails Near Rio Grande: Fern Creek Stock Driveway, Hinsdale County , 4 miles away Long Ridge Stock Driveway, Mineral County , 8 miles away Middle Creek Stock Driveway, Mineral County , 12 miles away McKenzie Stock Driveway, Mineral County , 14 miles away Cebolla Trail, Hinsdale County , 16 miles away   National Parks Near Rio Grande: Black Canyon Of The Gunnison National Park, Gunnison - CO , 55 miles away Curecanti National Recreation Area, Gunnison - CO , 55 miles away