Blue

The 'Upper' Blue is a fun, short section of Class III-III+ whitewater between Lake Dillon and Green Mountain Reservoir. Additional access points upriver can give novice boaters more Class II floating, but most will put in not far above a small canyon that provides the most excitement.

The most common put in is at a small parking lot just off of the junction of Hwy 9 and Cty Rd. 1870. Boaters can put in as high as the Dillon Ranger Station, which adds a few more miles of braided Class II riffles. Lower access points give less of a warm up before the canyon.

Putting in at 1870 gives boaters some pretty Class II-II+ warm up. Things pick up steam once Boulder Creek confluences with the Blue - this marks the beginning of a short, sweet canyon that hosts busy Class III+ boulder garden whitewater. No single drop is particularly sizable, but things move quickly and give little time for recovery. High flows over 1,000 cfs probably bring this section into Class IV- territory.

Take out is easy and obvious at Columbine Landing. A few more riffles wait downstream, but slow water thanks to Green Mountain Reservoir and lots of private property means the section between Columbine and Green Mountain is rarely run.

Lake Dillon outflows almost entirely dictate the flows on this stretch, which seems to be getting to runnable flows less often as the Roberts Tunnel funnels more water to Denver.

Access: Put in at Cty Rd. 1870 or various; take out at Columbine Landing