Pucker up
Mother Nature turns riffle into a ripper on Cataract Canyon

There’s no doubt this summer’s monsoons have kept river runners on their toes. Seems the San Juan River below Bluff wasn’t the only stretch to be affected by flash floods. The Colorado River through Cataract Canyon has gained what is being described as a “trip-altering” Class IV rapid at Gypsum Canyon below Big Drop 3 near the end of the run.

Durango river runner Julie Pysklo and crew got to experience the new rapid firsthand on a trip last week, Aug. 3-8. Thankfully, they were made aware of the rapid by a guide for a commercial trip who was putting on at the same time they were. 

“He asked us if we knew about the new rapid at Gypsum,” said Pysklo, an experienced boater who has run Cataract six or seven times over the years. “It’s a Class II on the map but had turned into a Class IV because of the storms.”

Pysklo and her party had not heard but were grateful for the beta (and in keeping with river etiquette, offered the guide a beer for the intel). “There was no one else down there when we were putting on. If we hadn’t seen him, we would have floated right into it,” she said.

When the group came upon the rapid, they heeded the guide’s horror stories of even seasoned veterans seeing carnage and decided to line their boats. “It’s the first time I’ve ever had to line a boat,” said Pysklo.

She described the rapid as a jumble of 10-foot pour-overs, massive holes and large boulders choking about ¾ of the river channel. “There was also one big ‘f*** you’ rock right in the middle,” she said.

Cataract was flowing at about 5,000 cfs that week, but according to the guide, the rapid gets harder at lower water.

Gypsum is perhaps the most dramatic example of rapids on the lower part of Cataract formerly submerged by Lake Powell that have re-emerged in recent years as lake levels drop. According to americanrivers.org, as of the fall of 2023, Gypsum is among about 10 rapids that have risen from the receding silt and muck of Powell.

Alas, Pysklo is kicking herself for not snapping a photo of the new rapid, but when you’re lining boats through Class IV, there are more pressing matters. Word is map-makers are in the process of updating river guides to reflect the change and add a few pucker points to the old "Gypsum Riffle." In the meantime, scout river left.