In June, 2023 I got a river permit for 85 miles (136 km) on the San Juan River in southeastern Utah from Sand Island to Clay Hills. The permits are hard to get, but I got a cancellation at the last minute. It was the first time I’ve been able to do both the upper San Juan and the lower San Juan in one trip.
Also, after the incredible snow pack we had this past winter, the rivers have been running full all spring and well into the summer. That makes for very fun boating conditions.
We ran into big horn sheep, foxes, great blue herons, wild horses, burros, and all kinds of other creatures on the trip. As always, the campsites are wonderful, though a bit warm in the summer. We set up shade tarps when it wasn’t too windy.
We did the river trip in about 5 days, due to the high water and swift currents. It was a great trip. Looking forward to more San Juan voyages next year.
