Clear Creek Whitewater Park was closed to tubers and swimmers this week due to high water and raging currents flowing over its man-made rapids, but there was plenty of activity at the popular recreation destination in Golden.
Spectators paused on the adjacent bike path to watch fire department water rescue specialists conduct training exercises in the seven-block-long park just west of downtown, practicing life-saving techniques in the frigid snowmelt torrent which has yet to reach 60 degrees.
Golden’s whitewater park was constructed as a place for kayakers to practice their whitewater skills, but it also attracts hordes of tubers every summer. While the city considers whether to restrict crowds next year through the use of a reservation system, the Golden Fire Department is preparing for the deluge of tubers soon to come.
“When they hear ‘engineered river,’ they think lazy river,” Golden fire chief Kasey Beal said Monday while observing teams from Golden, Arvada and the Fairmount Fire Protection District hone their water rescue skills. “It’s not a lazy river.”
Jason Soronson, right, and Marc Staley of Golden Fire Department and water rescue teams practice water rescue skills at the Clear Creek Whitewater Park in Golden, Colorado on Friday, June 14, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
The Clear Creek water recreation corridor begins at Clear Creek Canyon Park’s Gateway Trailhead, southwest of the intersection of U.S. 6 with Colorado highways 58 and 93. It extends to Vanover Park at Ford Street, near the Coors Brewery, affording a ride of 1.2 miles.
The potential force of water in Clear Creek is just one of the things Golden officials want people to know before they head there for tubing, swimming and wading. They want them to understand the rules and risks that go with having fun in the creek. They want them to wear lifejackets, and they recommend helmets. Alcohol use is prohibited.
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“None of us go riding a bike expecting to crash, none of us go skiing expecting to crash,” said Golden Fire battalion chief David Wolf. “It’s important to respect Mother Nature and respect the river. Water is powerful and it is relentless. When you get stuck in one of these places, it’s hard to imagine how much force we’re talking about.”
City officials urge visitors to park their cars in designated spots and respect the property of people who live in the neighborhood. They want cyclists to use the bike path on the south side of the creek, leaving the bike path on the north side for pedestrians — often mothers with baby strollers — and tubers hiking upstream.
Restrictions on the creek are communicated through the use of colored flags. A double red flag means the creek is closed to all recreational activity because of high flows and other unsafe conditions, including low water temperatures or debris. A single red flag, the creek’s current status, means swimming and tubing are prohibited but the creek remains open for experienced kayakers. A yellow flag is raised when the flow is moderate to high and considered unsafe for children under 18. A green flag means the flow is moderate and open to all users.
Similar rules govern tubing in Boulder Creek, which was closed on Wednesday by the Boulder County Sheriff from Boulder Falls to 55th Street on the east side of Boulder. Kayakers and whitewater canoes are permitted but tubers and swimmers are not.
Water rescue specialists have more confidence in the ability of kayakers to navigate high flows safety because of their training and the nature of their vessels.
“You will definitely see them in this part of the river that’s engineered as a kayak park,” Beal said. “Kayakers, especially the kayakers who are going to be in high flows, they’re wearing the right equipment. You’re hard pressed to find a kayaker under a red flag condition that isn’t fully suited up and understands the limitations of their abilities.”
Most of Golden Fire’s rescues take place when river flows diminish just enough for the flag status to be dropped from red flag to yellow, Beal said. There is pent-up demand and temperatures may be in the 90s, but the current remains strong and the creek still poses danger.
“People have a desire to get in and get cooled off,” Beal said. “The problem is what I would call a high yellow. While the river might be moving at just below what we would flag as red, people who aren’t strong swimmers have difficulty sometimes making access to the exit point at Vanover Park. When it first goes yellow, we see a lot of things at Vanover Park where people aren’t able to make access out of the river and they panic, because they are about to go beyond the recreational area.”
A sign reading “Danger-Exit Water Now!” can be seen on the Clear Creek trail bridge for tubers at Vanover Park in Golden, Colorado on Friday, June 14, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
Other dangers arise under green-flag conditions when the river is lower, the weather is hot and crowds are large.
“Green doesn’t mean it’s 100% safe,” Beal said. “We get a lot more congestion on the river. When we get congestion on the river, people get overturned. Now they’re trying to pop up, there’s a lot more people in tubes, and they can get panicked. As they try to come back up, they might be under somebody’s foot or tube. They may not be standing in that much water, but as that panic sets in, the water grabs them. All season long it’s so cold, being snow melt, that they can take in water and have an episode where they have difficulty catching their breath. They look like they’re in distress, and we get called for rescues.”
Lower water raises the risk for injury. Feet can get tangled in underwater rocks, for example.
“It doesn’t take much moving water, even under a green condition, to be swept off your feet,” Beal said. “One of the things you have to be concerned about at low levels, as opposed to high levels, if your feet get caught underneath something it can knock you down. If you don’t have head protection and a vest to keep you afloat while you’re trying to free your lower extremities, you can have an issue that way. We see a lot of extremity injuries, head trauma, shoulder injuries.”
There are no lifeguards on the river. Golden Fire Station 21 is located just a few steps from the creek, but that doesn’t mean rescuers will be able to arrive at the scene of a critical situation instantly.
“Even if we have trained swimmers on duty, there’s one fire station that’s staffed here,” Beal said. “We could be on other routine emergencies, so there might not be a single fire crew available in the city of Golden. And, even if we do have a fire crew, it doesn’t mean that every day we staff a number of swiftwater technicians. We have to page our volunteer staff (or) call for mutual aid.”
Tubes can be rented at Adventure West and Golden River Sports, the only outfitters licensed by the city of Golden, which has capped the number of tubes they can rent at 2021 numbers. That was imposed to “restrict growth of rental tubing,” according to Meredith Ritchie, communications director for the city of Golden.
Shuttle rides from Vanover Park to the trailhead at Clear Creek Canyon Park can be purchased at Adventure West. Golden River Sports does not take reservations for tubes, except for large groups. Adventure West takes individual reservations.
“Reservations help spread people out for check-in, and on the creek, which the city really appreciates,” said Adventure West owner Beth Battilla. “It works really well. We are allowed to take walk-ups as well, but we often fill through reservations primarily.”
Whether the city will require reservations for river access next year is an open question.
“The city is evaluating our ability to better manage access and impacts of Clear Creek,” Ritchie said. “A reservation system is only a concept at this time. If the city moves forward with a reservation system for 2025, it would be discussed in October 2024.”
Water rescue teams practice water rescue skills at Clear Creek Whitewater Park in Golden, Colorado on Friday, June 14, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)