The Buena Vista Whitewater Park has been recently expanded down into the South Main Neighborhood development. Now with 4 main in water structures and numerous eddy and trail improvements the Buena Vista play park is on its way to being the premier whitewater park in Colorado. Be sure to check it out the next time you are in the Upper Arkansas Valley. View town map- PDF.
This is the original wave/hole that was constructed in 2002. It is located just upstream of the Whipple or Midland Trail Bridge at the end of E. Main St. The boat ramp provides easy access to large eddies and is a popular rafting put in and take out. The feature is dynamic and has some power to it. It looks bigger than its bite and always will wash you out and has a large recovery area for rolling. Intermediate and advanced paddlers thrive at this spot, while beginners have fun too, but get tossed around some. Optimal flows on the Uptown hole are 500-2000 cfs. In this range boaters can do multiple moves and big air tricks. It is the most visible feature in Buena Vista so dress well and be social. It is also a favorite spot for lounging, tubing, and dog swimming.
Great beginner spot for aspiring surfers and spinners that like easy access and big eddy service.
This friendly surfer is located 1/4 mile downstream of the Uptown Hole and is accessed several ways. The best is to stay in your boat and float down some class II water to it. You can also hike down a wide trail or park you car in front on the Buena Vista Community Center and walk down the stairs to the river. It is right there. This wave is a river wide feature that is great for beginner and intermediate play boaters. It is optimal between 200-1000 cfs. At these flows, you can surf and spin all day out there with ease, but be ware of rafts coming by. There is a 150 foot eddy on river left, so it is simple to get back to the feature in a kayak. It is deep and safe and makes paddlers feel confident. At higher flows, above 1000 cfs, the wave tends to flatten out and is harder to stay on but the surfer right corner becomes good for cart wheeling and spinning. There is a great viewing area and is the starting point of the new river trail that leads down from the Midtown Wave through South Main.
A great area for stroke and skills development with large eddies and in stream boulders.
Optimal flow: All levels
Optimal flows for the Pocket Wave in this area 200-700 cfs
Below Midtown you will find some incredible new large and pocket eddies which are awesome for controlling your decent of the river. They are a great training area for attaining, eddy drills, rolling practice, ferrying, etc. You can float right down the middle or pick you way down in style. It is a great area for those that need this type of skill development in a controlled area. A few hundred yards down you will notice two river wings that jet into the current from both river banks. These wings help accelerate the water to the center of the river, where a large island of rock is located creating a fun foam pile for surfing, spinning and cart wheeling. Optimal flows for this pocket hole are 200-700 cfs. Above 700 cfs the hole waves out then will turn into a mellow wave train above 1000 cfs and disappears at high flows. This area is beautiful with a great trail on river right where you friends and or dog can chase you down stream. You will notice a myriad of fisherman, hikers and bikers on your right and the Midland Trail on river left. You feel like you are secluded in a far away country, but you are in the heart of the South Main Neighborhood in Buena Vista.
An advanced feature at most levels. Be ready to throw down and hold on.
This hole is located at the South Main Town Square and is accessible by boat from the Uptown or Midtown features, by foot on the river trail, or by car if you drive into the South Main Neighborhood off of E Main St. The Downtown Hole is the most obvious and powerful hole in the Buena Vista River Park. It is river wide and is retentive at all levels. Optimal flows for this hole are 200-900 cfs. At low flows you can surf, back surf, spin and do low angle cartwheels all day. As the flows come up the feature becomes deeper allowing boaters to do big loops while staying in the hole. As the water rises above 1000 cfs the hole gets stickier (very retentive) so be ware. It will hold you and pull you around some, but it will let you go. There is great eddy service on both sides and it is also a great spectator area. There is plenty of shade and shelter here on those hot days and nice big rocks to warm up on when it is cool. Take out on the river right hand side and walk back up stream on the river trail or up the South Main boat ramp to your car or to the upper shelf trail system. If you stay in the water you will get to run some fun class III rapids, but access to the river is limited until you get to Johnsons Village, 1.5 miles downstream from the Downtown hole.
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