Colorado River (Utah) Fishing Guides and Conditions, Utah

About the Colorado River (Utah)

The gauge near Cisco is the reference point for the Colorado River through southeastern Utah. It watches about twenty-four thousand one hundred square miles and reports discharge, stage and a live water temperature series. Almost every commercial and private float on this stretch of river is planned against this number: Westwater Canyon immediately downstream, the Moab daily section through the Professor Valley, and the long flatwater run from Potash toward the confluence with the Green in Canyonlands all key off Cisco.

As a fishery this is not a trout river and it should not be sold as one. The main stem here is warm, silty and heavily modified by upstream storage, and the native fish community – Colorado pikeminnow, razorback sucker, humpback chub and bonytail – is imperilled and fully protected. Those fish must be released immediately and are not an angling target. What anglers actually catch are channel catfish, which are common and are the mainstay, along with smallmouth and largemouth bass in the slower reaches, common carp in numbers, and black crappie in backwaters. Utah’s regulations for the Colorado drainage include specific provisions aimed at non-native species and at protecting the native community, and they should be read before fishing.

The real character of this water is the canyon country it runs through. Westwater is a genuine whitewater canyon with a permit system; the Moab daily is a busy, accessible half-day run; and the lower flatwater is a wilderness float with no road access for days. Flows swing widely between spring runoff and late-summer baseflow, and the difference reshapes every one of those trips.

Permits are required for Westwater and for Canyonlands river trips, and the temperature series at Cisco is a practical aid for both anglers and boaters through the hot months.

Access

Cisco gauge and boat launch - the flow reference and the Westwater put-in area.
Westwater Canyon ranger station - permitted whitewater run downstream of the gauge.
Dewey Bridge - the standard put-in for the Professor Valley float.
Hittle Bottom and Highway 128 pullouts - roadside river access above Moab.
Moab daily section take-out at Take Out Beach - the busiest access on the river.
Potash boat ramp - the launch for the lower flatwater run.
Confluence with the Green River, Canyonlands - the bottom of the permitted float.

Seasons

Spring: runoff brings the highest, coldest and siltiest water and the peak whitewater season.
Summer: flows drop and temperatures climb; catfish fishing is best and floats are crowded.
Fall: settled low flows, cooler water and the most pleasant conditions of the year.
Winter: low and cold with little traffic; fishing is slow but access is easy.