Arkansas

02. Numbers Launch to Railroad Bridge Launch(The Numbers)

Difficulty	IV
Length	6.4 mi
Avg Gradient	71 fpm
Gauge	Arkansas River Below Granite, Co
Flow Rate as of 36 minutes	216 cfsbelow recommended
Reach Info Last Updated	May 5, 2025

Projects

Browns Canyon National Monument (CO)

Browns Canyon National Monument was designated in 2015 to protect one of Colorado’s most cherished stretches of river and surrounding public lands. Flowing between Buena Vista and Salida, the Arkansas River through Browns Canyon offers some of the most popular whitewater in the nation—combining exhilarating rapids with sweeping granite [...]Read More

River Description

The Numbers is widely considered just about the best Class IV run in the state of Colorado. At low levels, the river channelizes and is fun IV- down to about 300cfs for playboaters. At about 1000cfs the rapids graduate to IV proper, and over 2200cfs they take on a IV+ character.

There are six major Class IV rapids creatively named number 1 through 6, although most takeout shortly after #5. Rapid #1 is the most technical, but #4 and #5 generally have the most carnage. Above 3000cfs, the run takes on a big water character, massive holes abound. At these levels, a powerful 8-foot surfing wave forms at the base of rapid #1.5.

Much of the land on either side of the river is private property, so scouting is most likely illegal. Do what you have to do to be safe. As noted above, most people take out just after #5 where there is an abundance of unofficial takeouts. If the water level is medium to high, consider making the most of a short run and takeout below #6 at the railroad trestle.

Elevations: The river at the launch area is about 8,640 feet, while the take out at the railroad trestle is about 8,247 feet.

Other Information Sources:

Colorado Rivers and Creeks II, by Banks and Eckardt (The Bible)

River Features

Put In Numbers Launch Area

Distance: 0.63 mi

Pay a state park fee to park and launch here. State Parks manages this location, but access was acquired with the efforts of American Whitewater.

Scott's Bridge

Distance: 1.37 mi

Access Point

371 Bridge

Distance: 2.8 mi

Access Point

Take Out below #5

Distance: 3.3 mi

Access Point

Some people like to do a short run and take out below #5. Just after passing underneath powerlines, take out on river left. There are large turnouts that provide easy access to and from the public road.

Railroad Bridge Take out

Distance: 5.98 mi

Take Out

As the railroad bridge comes into view, look for a developed boat ramp on river left.

There are a few campsites here along with toilets.

Trip Reports

Eli Monnin - Fast-paced, continuous, short, but incredibly fun

Feb 7, 2025

Ran for the first time at 2300 in summer of 2024 and it felt like it was pretty close to the perfect level. An incredibly fun, fast-paced, heart pounding run in our raft with big holes and many necessary moves. INCREDIBLY CONTINUOUS. There are certainly places to pull over but if you go in early July like we did, many are likely too crowded for larger boats. I would say expect to padle this one all the way through if you are going at flows above low water. At 2300 it took our 3 boat trip with no carnage less than 45 minutes. Despite 'only' being class IV-IV+, the continous nature of this run means this is probably not a good choice for the beginner-intermediate paddler and you shouldn't even think about it if you aren't confident in your ability to self-rescue in a rapid. I haven't run Royal Gorge at anything above 1200, so take this next statement with a grain of salt but I thought the Numbers were more challenging and much harder to scout. If you are confident in your skills this is an incredible run you won't want to miss with the Fractions right downstream providing a less intense but still very fun option to make this a full-day trip.

When we did this, we used 3 cars, parked one at Numbers Launch, one at Railroad with our lunch and other provisions in it, and one in Buena Vista. If I were to run this section again and had the option I would probably do it like this again as it was nice to take a break and decompress before another incredibly continous but fun stretch of river.