Pigeon Gorge – June 27

River:Pigeon
Skill:Intermediate
Trip Date:06/27/2026
Written by: , Posted: July 4, 2026

The purpose of the trip was to prepare paddlers to lead a trip on the “new” Pigeon gorge for WOR and afterward. We chose the “secret” put-in upstream of the crowded bridge put in. Not a lot of parking up there, but more than enough for our group. We timed our launch to avoid the heaviest raft traffic which occurs between 11:30 when the release water gets to the bridge and about 12:10 when the 1st wave of rafts has launched. Parking in Hartford is easy this year.

The group skill was more than high enough for this river so it was an enjoyable trip without swims. Below BFR (Big Friendly Rock or an alternate interpretation for the “F”) the holes that made Full of Water are gone. The rock formation that gave Razor Rock its name is gone but the rapid is somewhat familiar. It looks like you can still throw ends at the flake rock at the bottom but our group headed downstream.  There is a new rapid with a surfable hole / wave  a little downstream and another new rapid immediately above the new launching area.

The rest of the trip is a lot like 2025 with some exceptions. Vegomatic remains a fast wave train with a lot of rocks and boulder to dodge. Big Bend is innocuous, Snapdragon (Dragonfly) and Roller Coaster have merged into one long rapid. Downstream, everything from Playground to Lost Guide had merged into a super long Lost Guide. LG has some quite large waves and a hole or two that you need to avoid or square up for. From the beginning of Lost Guide to Accelerator most of the right bank  has been filled with rocks by about 25 ft as a result of the  the I-40 reconstruction . This makes the river narrower and faster. You need to go left of the island at Duck and Run.  The traditional line through Double Reactionary still goes but the sneak line to the right is no longer there (filled in by that 25 ft of rock pile). There are several lines through Accelerator, they may or may not be easy to find. Everyone found one. There is a new rapid after Accelerator.