A Flatwater Oasis in the Rio Grande Gorge
Located downstream of the famous "Taos Boxes", and upstream of the classic "Pilar" section, the Orilla Verde section provides a beautiful flatwater corridor through the bottom of the Rio Grande Gorge, just above where it transitions from cutting through the basaltic lava flows above to cutting through the foothills of the southern Sangre de Cristo mountains below. In an area lacking other good, accessible beginner runs, this is a shining gem of a run for those who are looking for a float, and not a whitewater thrill ride. The area used to be part of the Wild Rivers NRA, but it has now been included into the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. This section of canyon used to be known as the "Orilla Verde" segment of the Wild Rivers NRA, but now with the new National Monument, the name better applies to the physical section of canyon here, between the bottom of the Lower Taos Box and top of Pilar.
My pops and I made our first visit to this stretch in the fall of 2007. Thanks to a late season free firewood collection permit in the Carson National Forest, my pops and I decided to go to northern New Mexico and get some free firewood and do some kayaking. My pops was getting into boating at that time, having just bought a new ducky from Sea Eagle that he wanted to try out. I did some research on the internets and found this stretch and figured it would work well for us. Not too long, no difficult rapids, easy access, gorgeous scenery, and a campground right next to the takeout as an added bonus. So we scrambled and got our shit together and packed and headed out. The flow was only 400 cfs, but that was more than enough for our float.
We had such a good time that fall that we decided to come back in the spring. Only this time we called up my cousins, PK's nephews, Zach and Jeremy Allen, to come and join us. Our friend Jess Wegert, a Gunnison local but now living in Durango, rounded out our group. As it was still firmly winter in Colorado, we were all stoked to be out in the deserts of New Mexico and boating something this early. Although all of us normally want to run more difficult water, at this point in the year a nice flatwater float was just what we all wanted, to help shake out the winter cobwebs and rust. This time the flow was between 1600 and 1700 cfs, so it was quite a bit different this time- much more flow and excitement, but no real addition to difficulty.
This is the very bottom of the geologic and geographic province known as the Rio Grande Gorge, a 100+ mile long gash in the earth in northern New Mexico. The history of this whole area is one of volcanics. The "Taos Volcanic Field" is a series of volcanoes and craters that dot the area west and northwest of present day Taos, New Mexico, and these volcanic features were once much more active than they are now, spreading layer after layer of lava throughout the whole area. Over hundreds of thousands of years, these flows have hardened into various layers of basalt and rhyolite, and the landscape itself is one of flat plains, small cinder cones, and deep gorges cut through the old lava flows. The Rio Grande Gorge is obviously the largest and most majestic of these, but numerous other rivers, including the Rio Pueblo de Taos and the Red River, have carved smaller but striking canyons through the plateau as well.
At the bottom of this geologic provice, the toe of the southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains crooks down and a ways out to the west, and the Rio Grande has carved a short but exciting canyon through this "toe" of the mountains, creating the popular and yet very different Pilar or Racecourse run below Orilla Verde. |
The put in for this run is at the Taos Junction Bridge, or where NM state highway 567 crosses the Rio Grande and heads up and out of the gorge towards it's junction with US 285. There is a nice recreation site here with picnic tables, camping shelters, and a nice, large river access. The first rapid, "Hondo Rapid", comes just a short ways down, where the river narrows in a small pinch as a result of Hondo Canyon joining it from the left, and the "park" where the Taos Jct Bridge is left behind. It is a very simple wave train, take it right down the gut!
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The river from here is pretty simple- it's mostly a whole lot of flat mixed with a couple of rapids here and there, none of which are hard at all. The biggest drop of the run, which admittedly is quite small, was originally named "Gauging Station Rapid", but that is lame and unoriginal, so we decided to rename it "Orilla Verde Falls". The first time we came through, the low flow caused us some issues as we didn't make it far enough to the right, where the thin channel was, so we ended up on the gravel bar in the middle of the river where we had to make a fun move to get back into the water and the flow.
This rapid comes about 40% of the way through the run, but the majority of the run from here down to the takeout is mostly flat. There is one very small rapid in another small "pinch" that is another easy wave train, and then another small gravel bar rapid right near the end. Other than this it is flat and peaceful. The best takeout is at the Rio Bravo CG, where you can use the access itself, or, do yourself a favor and stay here while you are in the area.
This run isn't going to win any awards, and it is never going to make it onto a superlative list. It is what it is: a flatwater paddle through a scenic lava canyon. For those that are looking for epic whitewater and lots of thrills, then you will likely be disappointed. But, for those who can appreciate a fun flatwater float that is very relaxing and very beautiful, then it's well worth it. You can also pair this with a run down Pilar, by having a nice beautiful flatwater float before you drop into the class III Racecourse section.
All photos copyright Kit Davidson unless otherwise noted.