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RiverBrain

Colorado – US

Class
V
Length
1 Mile(s)
Put-in elevation
9,331 Feet
Take-out elevation
8,962 Feet
Typical season
May to July
Author
KSC

Current Flow

37 CFS

Gauge height: 3.09 FT

Reading from Jul 10, 2026 10:00 PM

0.20/hr (12h) 0.10/hr (24h)

Too Low

Don't bother

Primary gauge
SLATE R AB BAXTER GL @HWY 135 NR CRESTED BUTTE CO Gauge detail & alternatives Live gauge ↗

Recommended levels

Minimum500
Average1,000
Maximum2,000

Recommended use

  • Kayaking
  • Rafting
  • Canoeing
  • SUP
  • Packrafting
  • Fishing

Struck-through craft are not recommended for this run.

Flow history — last 6 days

Photos

Bajillion Words · 06-16-2013 · Subject: Justin Payne

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Description

If you haven't heard of Oh Be Joyful (OBJ), then (a) let me welcome you to the world of kayaking or (b) please crawl out of the cave you've been living in the for past 20 years.  Oh Be Joyful has become so synonymous with creekboating, that it seems to bring out people to brave its massive features who normally don't even consider running class V creeks.  Perhaps it's the reputation for big and clean drops with easy moves that brings out the hordes.  Or perhaps the stunning location in the high alpine forests just outside of Crested Butte.  Or perhaps its the excellent camping adjacent to the run where you're sure to see a few familiar faces from the boating scene and meet a few new ones.  Or perhaps its the stunning clusters of wildflowers that tend to be in full bloom when the creeks are running.  Or perhaps its the abundant trails perfect for hiking, mountain biking, and dirt biking that make this excellent place to bring nonboating friends or make it a multisport weekend.  Most likely, it's all of the above.

I would say that OBJ's reputation is both over and under stated.  While I admit that at moderate water levels, the moves are fairly straightforward for a practiced class V creekboater, for someone not familiar with the style of boating or just surviving in class IV, this run will eat them alive.  Tales of epic carnage abound, and any busy weekend, you have a chance to witness it first hand.  I've seen the aftermath of someone bouncing down the last 40 foot slide on his ass.  I've seen people swim multiple slides and drops and crawling out above the 25 foot water with their ounce of strength.  Then there are the stories of broken backs, ankles, and more paddles and boats than anyone could count.  There's a reason this run has developed the nickname "Oh Be Careful."

With that said, boaters who are ready for prime time and in for a treat.  The drops aren't exactly clean, but for their scale and compared to anything else in the state of Colorado, they're quite remarkable.  Although the run is short, laps can be run and/or it can combined with one or all of the other three excellent runs in this area.  If you haven't run anything like this before, than the first look at the creek will be jaw dropping.  Avalanche and the slides below it simply look impossibly large, but after watching a few successful lines, they l ook more doable.  

The upper half of the run contains the vertical drops: a 15 footer, 8 footer, and 25 footer, with a few small ledges and slides in between.  The lower half, starting with Avalanche, contains 3 massive slides.  The last slides in particular are often clogged with wood, but locals and nonlocals tend to be pretty good about clearing a path to always make it runnable.  The character of Avalanche in particular can change significantly depending on the amount of wood present.

There is no gauge for OBJ, but the Slate River gauge can be used as a guide.

Rapids

# Rapid Class Recommended flow Description Scout
1 Ankle Breaker V+ —–—

The name says it all - miss your boof and you piton into rock.  Almost everybody puts in below this drop, but it has been run.

2 Heart Attack V- —–—

Most people put in just above the lip of this drop in a small eddy on river left.  If the eddy and rock forming it are gone, the flow is high.  From the eddy you can two or three strokes before dropping over the lip.  It can be run almost anywhere, but I have seen people swim here before.  I usually boof it hard, but some people complain of landing in the green water and having a sore back.  Staying more center and left seems to offer more aeration.

3 8 foot ledge V- —–—

After some boogie water, the creek makes a turn from left to right around a small cliff wall and over an 8 foot ledge on the right wall.  For many people who have trouble on this run, is a frequent place where things begin to go wrong.  Fortunately, speed is on your side as long as you keep your boat straight and upright.  Don't forget to boof the ledge.

4 Slide of Joy V- —–—

This slide comes immediately after the 8 foot boof.  Although scouts often leaves people worried, it tends to run smoothly. People usually try to get right of the rooster tail at the bottom of the slide.  The ideal line depends on the water level, but the water tends to take you where you want to go.  

5 Sticky Hole V- —–—

Especially at low flows, many people might not even notice a rapid here.  At medium flows and higher, some people will have painful memories of this frowny hole.  If it's anything other than low flows, hit this hard and hit it straight or you might regret it.

6 Old Growth V- —–—

Immediately after the sticky drop is a dangerous pin spot that's almost impossible to recognize as a potential pin.  In 2011, a horrible pin occurred here on the righit side of the ledge drop.  The boat was pinned for a long time until his partners were finally able to extract him after making a numerous efforts to reach him.  I always run this on the left side now.  If you can't get left, make sure to keep your nose up.

7 Double Ledge Drop V- —–—

This rapid is mainly notable because it's positioned right above the 25 footer and is often the source of bad and dangerous lines off the waterfall.  Two broken ledges come back to back just above a large cliff wall that pushes the river 90 degrees to the right.  Run these two ledges and catch the large eddy on river left to set up for the big waterfall.

8 Dead Zone (25 footer) V —–—

This is the big waterfall on OBJ.  Unfortunately, its historical name, Dead Zone is pretty lame - somebody please come up with a better name.  The bad news is, this waterfall isn't exactly clean.  The good news is, the setup is relatively straightfoward if you're control above it.  There is a shelf on river right in the landing zone that has broken ankles.  I have also heard of broken backs here.  My best guess is this occurs if you are positioned too far left and land flat in the green water.

The ideal line involves running in center, in the main flow, and landing somewhere between 45 degrees and vertical.  It is possible to get beat down under the falls here, but most people who have a bit of angle and speed pop out below.  The other trick to this waterfall is it drops out just below a 90 degree bend in the river that means you don't see it until you're about to fall over it.  

9 Goalpost slide V- —–—

After the big waterfall comes a double slide. Start left of center and aim for between the goalpost formed by two distinct sprays of water.  This places you perfectly to the left of a boulder in the landing zone.  This feeds directly into the lower slide which can be run most anywhere with due diligence to keep your boat straight and upright.

10 Avalanche V —–—

This iconic slide can be right center or right.  Its character varies depending on the wood situation.  It generally goes better than it looks, but ankles have been broken here and worse, so scout and boat it with care.

11 Ode to Joy V- —–—

A massive slide into a river wide ledge hole.  Keep your boat straight to punch the hole at the bottom or you will be sorry.

12 Oh Be Grateful V —–—

This last slide often causes carnage.  The usual move is to start right and move left and avoid getting spun around backwards by the eddy on the left midway down.

Access

Type Name Elevation Camping Water Boat ramp Vehicle access Description
Put-In Put-in 9,331 Feet No No No 4WD Only
Take-Out Take-out 8,962 Feet No No No 4WD Only

Camps

No river camps added yet.

Permit

No permit is required, or permit info hasn't been added yet.

Fishing

No fish species have been associated with this run yet.

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