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Short tubing season looms for Steamboat Springs as Yampa River levels plummet

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A combination of low water flows and rapidly rising temperatures is threatening to bring Steamboat Springs’ Yampa River tubing season to an early close, with commercial operations potentially shutting down as soon as next week.
Sydney Martin/Steamboat Pilot & Today archive

Tubing season on the Yampa River in Steamboat Springs is shaping up to potentially be one of the shortest in recent memory, as a combination of low flows and rising water temperatures threaten to shut down commercial tubing as soon as next week.

Jamie Hood, whitewater operations manager for Bucking Rainbow Outfitters, said that this summer’s conditions have been notably different from years past. 

“This season, the water levels are lower than average by a good bit, and the temperatures are higher,” Hood explained. “Usually those two things are correlated, but not always.”



According to U.S. Geological Survey data for the Yampa River in Steamboat, flows have dropped well below 700 cubic feet per second — the unit used to measure the volume of water passing a given point in the river in one second — which typically signals the end of the rafting season and the beginning of tubing. 

As of 11:15 a.m. Thursday, the river measured 126 cfs, edging closer to the city-mandated minimum of 85 CFS required to keep commercial tubing operations open.



Most commercial outfitters, including Bucking Rainbow and Backdoor Sports, said Hood, prefer to wait until flows are closer to 500 or 600 cfs before starting tubing operations, citing safety concerns. 

The optimal “happy tube level,” Hood said, is generally between 150 and 250 cfs, but the river is already approaching the lower end of that range.

The city mandates a halt to commercial tubing — and recommends private users do the same — after two consecutive days with water temperatures at or above 75 degrees Fahrenheit. This policy is designed to protect the river’s fish, which become stressed at higher temperatures, and to preserve the ecosystem during peak recreation. 

“(On Tuesday), the water temperature was about 72 degrees. The day before was just over 70,” said Hood. “It’s been jumping a degree or two every single day for the past week.”

With little rain and a forecast of continued hot, dry weather, he added, the river could hit that threshold as soon as next week. 

Last year, the Yampa’s tubing season ran nearly uninterrupted through the end of August, with only a brief pause due to high water temperatures. Hood noted that in 2024, the river remained above 700 cfs into early July, allowing rafting to continue and delaying the start of tubing until after the Fourth. This year, flows dropped below rafting levels much earlier, and tubing began sooner, but is now threatened by the rapid rise in water temperature and continued dry conditions.

Hood also addressed a common misconception among river users: that low water means there was little snow the previous winter. 

“That’s probably the thing I hear the most often. That’s not exactly the case,” he said. “This year was average in terms of snowpack in this part of Colorado. It just melted so quickly in the spring.” 

Hood explained that the timing and speed of snowmelt can have a greater impact on river flows than the total amount of snow. Warm temperatures in March, April and May led to an early runoff, causing the river to peak and recede sooner than usual.

If the river is closed to tubing due to high temperatures, reopening is possible if cooler, stormier weather returns and water temperatures drop, but Hood cautioned that it is a “higher bar to clear to reopen than it is to initially open.” Local outfitters tend to follow the city’s guidance, said Hood, and usually suspend operations within a day or two of each other.

For now, both locals and visitors are encouraged to enjoy the Yampa responsibly and keep an eye on weather forecasts.

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