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PROVO — A ragtag group of 13 whitewater kayakers assembled below Bridal Veil Falls in Provo Canyon Saturday to take advantage of the slim window in which the Provo River turns into a fast-moving series of churning rapids, and boaters duke it out in the Provo River Race.
"We have absolutely no guarantee there will be any water running through it at any given time," said Marc Nelson, who helped organize the event. It has happened four times over the last seven years, as river levels are at the mercy of drought, avalanche and water users downstream.
The sun warmed spectators crowded along the rails of the popular Provo River Parkway, as the waterfall above was carried in sheets of mist into the open air. Down below, the frigid currents occasionally streaked with the brightly colored kayaks, made their way toward Utah Lake at a rate of over 246,000 gallons every minute.
Dustin Judd, a racer and instructor for Rapid Progression Kayak School in Logan, said the course had around class-three-plus rapids, which means participants have to navigate high waves, rocky sections where they definitely don't want to flip and precise maneuvers.
When asked why he risks "life and limb" as he puts it, for the sport, Judd said, "I've met some of the nicest, best, kindest people I've ever met in any group."
"I think the camaraderie on the river is probably second to none," he said. "We take in everybody. It doesn't matter your background, religion, race, creed, color. Everybody is loved in the whitewater community."
The more serious the boater, the smaller the pool of talent grows in the state. Nelson said, "we've all paddled together for years." He organized the event to bring more attention to the Provo River's value in the area.
Recreational water use
The Provo River, which is much loved by kayakers and revered by anglers across the country, is constantly in a kind of tug-of-war between the demands of downstream water users and recreators.
Provo River Commissioner Scott Bergendorff says two types of water flow through that section of the river — irrigation and drinking water, that is demanded by rights-holders and users in northern Utah County and is diverted through Murdock dam, and into the Provo River Aqueduct to be distributed. Theoretically, it can divert the entire flow of the river, at its present level Saturday.
Water can also be diverted through the Olmsted Hydroelectric Power Plant, which generates electricity the federal government sells to the area.
The rest of the water is "spill" water, Bergendorff said, which is released down the river when the reservoirs start fill up and excess water needs to run to Utah Lake.
In June 2018, there was no spill water, and the river slowed to a trickle.
"I went down there and basically just found a puddle," said Brian Wimmer, a fly fishing guide in the area. "They just turned the water off."
Paul Pierpont, Provo River area manager for the Central Utah Water Conservancy District, said there are no recreational considerations when managing the waters coming from the reservoirs upstream. The equation only takes into account landowners with water rights, a complex hierarchical system of "first-in-time, first-in-right" claims that speak for almost every drop coming down from the mountains.
This posed serious problems for the fish population, as trout and endangered June suckers were dying in sparse pools along the exposed riverbed, the still water heating to kill point.
"There are so many ancient rules we're still going by when it comes to water," said Wimmer, president of the Utah County Alpine Anglers Trout Unlimited chapter.
Collaborative groups of recreational water users, like Wimmer and Judd, working with organizations like the Bonneville Environmental Foundation and the Utah Stream Access Coalition, looked for ways of securing sporting opportunity and habitat, when surprising collaborators stepped in — Facebook and Coca-Cola.
They worked out a 10-year deal to purchase the water that would have otherwise been used to generate electricity in the hydro plant, sending it downstream when needed, to ensure enough water to protect the fish.
"I believe the water belongs to all of us," Judd said. "Equal share use is very important. I know there's a fine balance to be had there, and that's difficult to navigate, especially when you have special interest parties involved that have a lot of capital."
Those hoping to fish and float the lower Provo have a few more years to figure out how to maintain baseline flows as the valley's population demands more water, but for now, sponsors are just buying time (and water).
