Yellowstone, Wyoming, US

2) Tower Junction to Gardiner, MT (Black Canyon)

Gauge Information

River Description

This run is closed to paddling but it has been run in the past. When American Whitewater submitted a proposal for access to selected rivers in Yellowstone National Park the Black Canyon was identified as the run of greatest importance to the whitewater paddling community.

This Black Canyon of the Yellowstone offers incredible whitewater with a spectacularly scenic backcountry experience. Put-in and take-out access points already exist at Tower Bridge and Gardiner. A trail parallels the river for its entire length. Numerous tributaries, including Slough Creek and Hellroaring Creek, which flow out of the bordering Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness Area to the North, add to its volume. Knowles Falls, a 15-foot Class V rapid, is one of many exceptional rapids. There are columnar basalt formations, coniferous forests, sandy beaches, and talus slopes throughout the canyon. The last three miles of the river, before Gardiner, pass through an arid, desert-like region. This stretch can be run in a day and is described in guidebooks Western Whitewater and Montana Surf. It has also been the subject of several American Whitewater Journal articles.