Flood Update: What the October Storm Did to Our Rivers

A major flood hit the Four Corners in late October, and anyone planning to fish the Animas or the San Juan should know what happened. Rain started Wednesday, and a storm carrying the remnants of Hurricane Trudy dropped 3 to 5 inches across Southwest Colorado in about 24 hours on Thursday. Durango got less than some places, around 2 to 3 inches, but the National Weather Service says the town still broke its all time record for October rainfall.

The Animas at Durango went from about 3.5 feet on the gauge Wednesday to nearly 8 feet Friday, and peaked at about 11,200 cfs at 2 p.m. on Friday, October 23. The record is an estimated 25,000 cfs from the 1911 flood, so this was big but not the biggest. The La Plata County sheriff closed the river to recreation from Oxbow Park to Dallabetta Park that morning. It reopened once flows stayed under 5,000 cfs. As I write this the Animas is still running about 1,780 cfs and 46 degrees, and more weather is on the way.

Up at Pagosa Springs, the San Juan crested at 15.02 feet early Friday morning, second only to the 1911 flood. Navajo Reservoir caught most of that water. Inflow to the lake topped 44,000 cfs, and the dam held most of it back. Right now the river below the dam is reading 225 cfs.

The Animas: expect it to look different from what you remember. The river has been bouncing hard on the gauge for the past couple of weeks and the water has been dirty. Runs and holding water may have moved, and there will be debris and unstable banks. Give it time to settle and look at the water yourself before you plan a trip around it.

The San Juan: the worst sewage problems are downstream of the trout water. Flooding shut down Bloomfield's wastewater plant, and wastewater went into the river without normal treatment. Shiprock released untreated wastewater too, to keep it from backing up into homes. Downstream in Utah, health officials measured E. coli near Bluff at around 25 times normal levels. The National Weather Service told people to stay out of the San Juan, and health officials say to avoid any contact with the river below those towns until further notice. Upstream, Pagosa Springs also reported sewage spills from flooded pump stations, and that water went into Navajo Reservoir. Before you fish the Quality Waters, check current conditions with a shop or the health department.

Our rivers will recover, and so will the fish, but this storm reshaped the water. Give it time to settle before you chase it. If you want a sure thing in the meantime, Lemon Reservoir is fishing well. My Lemon Reservoir Update report has the details.