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Bridgeport Bend and the Gunnison RiverBridgeport Bend and the Gunnison River

Bridgeport Bend and the Gunnison River

Saturday, August 29, 2026

Even though Diane and I were going be leaving early on Sunday morning so we could drive back to Madison, Wisconsin for her second brain surgery in less than a year, I had a little extra time early on Saturday morning to squeeze in one last local hike for a few hours and decided to do some exploring along the Gunnison River near Bridgeport. I left from home in the dark and arrived at the Bridgeport Trailhead just as it was starting to get light enough out to see without a headlamp and started hiking along the railroad tracks about twenty minutes before sunrise. These are a few photos from my morning hike around the Bridgeport Bend of the Gunnison River.

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Gunnison Gorge: Chukar Trail to Gunnison ForksGunnison Gorge: Chukar Trail to Gunnison Forks

Gunnison Gorge: Chukar Trail to Gunnison Forks

Gunnison River: Rafting the Black Canyon of the Gunnison
Saturday, July 11, 2026 | Average CFS: 465

This year Jackson and I made it one of our top priorities to raft the Gunnison River through the Gunnison Gorge this summer, which is a local trip that has been on my to-do list for way too long! We figured with the low snowpack this past winter and lower flows coming out of the Crystal Dam upstream that this would be a good time to finally give it a shot. Initially, we were considering doing it in our packrafts since it would be easier for us to just pick a day, hike in, and go, but after having so much fun on the Upper Animas River last month we thought it might be fun to go in a paddle raft with a few friends, so we contacted Bob and Lisa who were also interested in giving it a try. At first we were planning to use Bob and Lisa’s raft, but after a little research we realized that it might be a little too big for the narrow chutes at these low flows, so Jackson rented us a smaller raft from Colorado Mesa University to use instead. He also called J & Ray Outfitters to reserve a packhorse which would get our raft and gear down the Chukar Trail to the river.

CONTINUE READINGGunnison Gorge: Chukar Trail to Gunnison Forks
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Deep Black: East Portal Trail to Deadhorse GulchDeep Black: East Portal Trail to Deadhorse Gulch

Deep Black: East Portal Trail to Deadhorse Gulch

Black Canyon of the Gunnison | Saturday, May 30, 2026

After floating a short segment of the Gunnison River through Delta on Saturday morning, I returned home in the afternoon to drop off my rafting gear, took a quick shower and loaded up my camping gear into the 4Runner since I had made a last minute decision to hike the Ouray Perimeter Trail first thing on Sunday morning. I figured that on my way to Ouray I could spend the rest of this evening at the East Portal deep in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison since I had not been down that way in over a decade and there was a short hiking route just downstream from the campground that I had not hiked before and was interested in checking out.

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The Gunnison River: Tongue Creek to Crane LandingThe Gunnison River: Tongue Creek to Crane Landing

The Gunnison River: Tongue Creek to Crane Landing

Saturday, May 30, 2026 | Average CFS: 695

This morning Jackson and I headed over to Delta so we could float the last remaining section of the Gunnison River below the Black Canyon that I had not been on yet. Although Jackson and Chris had actually floated this short section of the river a few years ago, I was unavailable the day they went and have been trying to get back ever since. While I really only needed to float the section from the Highway 65 Bridge to Confluence Park, Delta County constructed a new boat ramp a few miles further downstream just a couple of years ago and we thought it would be a good idea to extend the trip a little bit and take out there. Since this would be a pretty short and easy day trip, we decided to skip the inflatable kayaks and just bring our packrafts to make things a little easier. I met up with Jackson and his son Ken at the Crane Landing Boat Ramp by 9:00am and then we took Jackson’s car up to the put-in just below the Highway 65 Bridge.

CONTINUE READINGThe Gunnison River: Tongue Creek to Crane Landing
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Red Rocks – Nighthorse Trail to Spikes & SidewinderRed Rocks - Nighthorse Trail to Spikes & Sidewinder

Red Rocks – Nighthorse Trail to Spikes & Sidewinder

Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area | Wednesday, May 20, 2026

After spending Saturday hiking to the bottom of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, I decided to return again to the Gunnison Gorge this afternoon for only my second After Work Adventure of the year. This time I wanted to continue hiking trails within the National Conservation Area that I had not been on before and went for a 7.5 mile loop that combined the Red Rocks – Nighthorse Trail, Spikes Trail and Sidewinder Trail starting from the end of the Bobcat Road. Here are a few photos from the hike.

CONTINUE READINGRed Rocks – Nighthorse Trail to Spikes & Sidewinder
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