The Gates of Lodore is an amazing western run, with scenery that rivals the Grand Canyon and rapids
that are a little more eastern in nature (much like the Nolichucky). We ran this section at the end
of June and the found the water levels to be around 845cfs. At this level, many of the rapids were
technical (Middle Disaster Falls) though not horribly difficult in our oar rigs. Duckies and kayaks
found it to be a very fun level. The pictures show several of the rapids (although they're not in
the right order). The most notable rapid was Hell's Half Mile. We used the Rivermaps Dinosaur
National Monument guide. It's much more detailed than the Belknap's guide, giving you more topo
information. Make sure you read the permit info carefully as the ranger at the put-in was a
stickler. He even asked to see the groover, the first aid kit, the repair kit, the firepan (collect
your firewood before heading downstream), and all the extra PFDs and paddles. River Runner's
Transport in Vernal, UT, ran our shuttle and did a great job. They even hooked us up with a few
pieces of river beta before setting out downstream (info on rapids and hikes). This is an amazing
stretch of river; unfortunately only about 300 permits are given each year.