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
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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 |
|---|---|---|
| June 14, 2024 | Decreases in Twin and Turquoise Releases | From USBR: We’re going to cut another 10 cfs from the Turquoise release down Lake Fork Creek at 08:00. This will leave us at 335 cfs release after the gate operation, all of which is native. We’ll cut the Twin release by 100 cfs in two 50 cfs decreases at 07:30 and 09:30. That will be 845 cfs after the gate operations with about 1 cfs of account releases and the rest 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 |