The summer doldrums have hit in Denver, and though we had some good flows to figure out River Run Park, now we have a paltry 50 or so cfs running through the area. Instead of compulsively checking the flows, don’t forget that the USGS allows you to setup flow alerts for the gauge (South Platte below Union) here. You can even setup a low water alert for a daily email just to check in, and a high water emergency alert so you know if you need to call in a sick day.

Even at these low flows, Chiclets, the lower wave at RRP, will still hold SUPs and bodyboards, though I haven’t seen anyone successfully surf a short board on it – there just isn’t enough strength in the wave (though it is nice and green and wide).

The other low flow options are the 16th Street Wave or Dave’s Wave, though neither offer up much in the way of high performance. Dave’s may be the better of the two, but even it’s low, and your fins will be grinding on the bottom if you’re running anything other than nubs.

My advice? Setup some flow alerts and break out the mountain bike. Or put together a road trip; things are still looking good in Gunnison and on the west slope.