Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area
State Park in Salida, CO
Hours:
Park: Open 24 hours a day, year-round
Visitor Center: Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed Saturday and Sunday.
Entrance Fees:
Daily Vehicle Pass: $10
Individual Daily Pass: $4
Animals Permitted:
- Leashed Dogs
- Service Animals
- Horses
Park Address:
307 West Sackett Ave.
Salida, CO 81201-1654
United States
Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area
State Park in Salida, CO
Hours:
Park: Open 24 hours a day, year-round
Visitor Center: Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed Saturday and Sunday.
Entrance Fees:
Daily Vehicle Pass: $10
Individual Daily Pass: $4
Animals Permitted:
- Leashed Dogs
- Service Animals
- Horses
Park Address:
307 West Sackett Ave.
Salida, CO 81201-1654
United States
Navigate to:
Construction Closures: Parkdale Boat Ramp, Ruby Mountain -
Parkdale Boat Ramp is under construction through 4/15/25. Ruby Mountain Recreation Site & Fisherman's Bridge are closed through 5/18/2025. There is a full road closure of County Rd. 300 near MM 2.2 at the entrance into Browns Canyon 8am-12pm & 1pm- 6pm daily. The affected section of Arkansas River from Fisherman's Bridge, continuing Southeast to Ruby Mountain Campground, will be open to passing boat traffic. During blasting or heavy scaling, a flagger will be in the river & there may be up to a 2-hour wait to pass. Fisherman's Bridge Recreation Site is under complete closure & Ruby Mountain Recreation Site is closed to camping during this time.
Waterflow Readings
High Water Advisories
| Rapid | Advisory in Effect | High Water Advisement | High Water Equipment Advisement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Numbers | No | It is recommended that the Numbers (Section 1E) not be run when the river is flowing over 2400 cfs at the Numbers/Below Granite gage as read at 7:00 am for full day or morning trips and at 12:00 noon for afternoon Numbers trips. |
|
| Pine Creek Rapid | No | It is recommended that Pine Creek Rapid (within Section 1D) not be run when the river is flowing over 1250 cfs at the Numbers/Below Granite gauge as read at 7:00 a.m. for full day or morning trips. |
|
| Royal Gorge | No | It is recommended that the Royal Gorge (Section 5) not be run at flows over 3200 cfs at the Parkdale gauge as read at 7:00 a.m. for full day or morning trips and at 12:00 noon for afternoon Royal Gorge trips. |
|
Colors of Water
View the Colors of Water report on the Arkansas Basin Water Operations Dashboard.
Announcements
| Date | Announcement | Details |
|---|---|---|
| August 29, 2024 | Increase in Twin Release | From USBR: We’re going to increase the Twin Lakes release by 20 cfs this morning at 0800 hrs. After this gate change, we’ll be releasing 62 cfs for contract accounts and the rest native. |
| August 26, 2024 | Increase in Twin Release | From USBR: We’re going to increase the Twin Lakes release by 25 cfs this morning at 0900 hrs. After this gate change, we’ll be releasing 62 cfs for contract accounts and the rest native. |
| June 17, 2024 | Decreases in Twin and Turquoise Releases | From USBR: We’re going to decrease the Turquoise release down Lake Fork by 10 cfs this morning at 08:00. After the gate operation, we’ll be releasing 308 cfs, all of which is native. We’re going to decrease the Twin release by 100 cfs in two 50 cfs cuts at 10:00 and 11:00. After the gate operations, we’ll be releasing 550 cfs, almost all of which is native. |
| June 16, 2024 | Decrease in Twin Release | From USBR: We’re going to cut 100 cfs from Twin- 50 cfs at 07:30 and another 50 cfs at 08:00. After the gate operations, we’ll be releasing 655 cfs, almost all of which is native. |
| June 15, 2024 | Decrease in Twin and Turquoise Releases | From USBR: We’re going to decrease the TURQUOISE release by 10 cfs at 08:00 this morning. After the gate operation, we’ll be releasing 319 cfs, all of which is native. We’re going to decrease the Twin release by 100 cfs in two 50 cfs cuts at 07:30 and 09:30 this morning. After the gate operations, we’ll be releasing 750 cfs, all but 5 cfs of which is native. |
Waterflow Levels
The information below depicts the Flow Program Target and the flow of the Arkansas River as measured in cubic feet per second (cfs) at the Wellsville Gauge near Salida, CO. This page also tracks, in acre feet (af), the amount of water released as part of the summer component of the Voluntary Flow Program. For reference, a flow of 1 cfs for 24 hours is 1.98 af.
Waterflow Summary
Program Water
1000
Flow Program Releases
793
Estimated Program Water Remaining
207
Waterflow Gauge Locations
| Gauge | Value | Water Flow Data |
|---|---|---|
| Wellsville | 385 cfs |