Southwestern river runners, rejoice! The venerable Tom Martin has made navigating the region’s myriad waterways easier than ever with the release (finally!) of the new quintessential Canyonlands RiverMap…
“There is a reason why Duwain Whitis and Barb Vinson of RiverMaps, and Hazel Clark and I at Vishnu Temple Press, kept putting off writing the Canyonlands RiverMap river guide,” says ringleader Martin. “It has more than 320 miles of river, nine canyons, five different permits, three governmental agencies and more. But here it is, finally done. Come to think of it, it’s been over forty years since a new river guide has come out for the Canyonlands section of the Colorado and Green rivers.”
The Canyonlands RiverMap covers the beauty of Ruby Horsethief and the whitewater of Westwater canyons, all the way past the Moab Daily, through Meander Canyon to the confluence with the Green. The guide also covers the stretch from Green River, Utah, through Labyrinth and Stillwater canyons to the confluence with the Colorado.
From there, these two rivers combine and head into Cataract Canyon. So does the guide, on down through Cataract and Narrow canyons to Hite, with the take-out at North Wash these days of low water in Lake Powell.
“It’s the same format as the guides to the Grand Canyon and the San Juan River we did,” Martin says. “It has lots of useful information about rapids, where to scout, campsites, historical and geological information, hiking beta, great color photographs and the 7.5 minute USGS quad-maps “going-with-the-flow” from the bottom of the page to the top to help you orientate yourself. There’s also a robust front end section with information on how to get all the various permits and sort out shuttles.”
The 110-page 8.5″ x 14″ guide is printed on waterproof tear-resistant plastic paper will be available in early June. Pre-release orders are currently available for folks who want to order a copy for delivery at the earliest opportunity for the price of $36, including shipping.
Ordering info: www.vishnutemplepress.com