Running the Green River Through Labyrinth Canyon in Utah

Michele Crockett

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River Beta
Labyrinth Canyon

Labyrinth Canyon is quiet—a quiet that is almost like a physical presence. Running the Green River through these soaring red walls northwest of Moab, Utah, is a 45-mile meditation with nature. Your heartbeat will slow. It’s an utter escape from the chaos of our times.

Just north of Canyonlands National Park (classic Ed Abbey country), Labyrinth Canyon is a beautiful, stress-free river run for everyone of all ages, running any type of craft. Only true whitewater fiends will be immune to its charms.

We put in for our trip through Labyrinth at the peak of the Perseid meteor shower (August 12, 2020), a light show made more spectacular viewed in the dark theater of this timeless canyon. Even if you don’t hit it during a meteor shower, Labyrinth is a prime spot for stargazing.

Red canyon walls and Green River in Labyrinth

General nature of Labyrinth Canyon

The Green River stretch through Labyrinth Canyon is either a 68-mile trip if you put in at Green River State Park in Utah, or a 45-mile stretch if you start at Ruby Ranch, a private property where boaters can camp and launch.

Classic Labyrinth Canyon color combination: Green water and red cliffs

This is an exceptionally calm, remote stretch of water. Perfect for SUPs, canoes, inflatable kayakers, as well as rafts, the canyon is breathtaking. No whitewater, no stress. You can float this stretch nearly any time of year, except in the dead of winter when the river is iced over. Motorized crafts are allowed, but on our mid-August trip, we encountered none. (A small airplane did strafe the sandbar we were camped on a couple of times.)

Camps aren’t designated, but you’ll find an abundance of options, including sandy coves lined with cottonwoods and expansive bars with sugar sand.

Glassy water and sandy beaches in Labyrinth Canyon

Downsides of Labyrinth Canyon

We highly recommend this stretch of river, but here are a few things to watch out for:

  1. Calm water. Only a downside if you’re craving whitewater, or are in a hurry. The river has very little gradient, so you will move at a meditative pace. We took 4 days and 3 nights to run the 45-mile stretch from Ruby Ranch to Mineral Bottom, and never felt rushed. But we floated pretty much continuously from about 10 am until about 5 pm.
  2. Afternoon upriver wind can slow you down even more. We contended with an upstream wind for only an hour or two on the first day of the trip, but it was enough to test the fortitude of the SUP-ers among us in particular. Getting on the river early in the morning (not one of our strengths) helps you avoid the worst of the wind.
Stand-up paddleboarders can suffer if afternoon winds kick up in Labyrinth Canyon
  1. Potential bugs. We had read so many horror stories about bugs on this trip that we freaked out and brought our screened wall tent that we use for setting up camp at music festivals. That structure never made it out of the raft. The bugs just weren’t that bad. We were floating in August, and it was a low-water year—so probably the dryness cut down on annoying critters.
  2. Motorized crafts are allowed. Again, we didn’t encounter these (in fact, we barely saw any other crafts at all, except a small canoe party). But a motor boat churning down the river would certainly break the solitude.

Upsides of the Green River through Labyrinth Canyon

  1. Quiet. This is a beautifully still place where you can drift for hours, thinking of essentially nothing.
  2. Wildlife. The great blue heron and canyon wren will be your constant companions along this stretch. We also heard all manner of squirrels chattering from the banks. Native fish in this section of the Green include four endangered species—the Colorado pikeminnow, humpback chub, bonytail, and razorback sucker. Catfish introduced for sport fishing now prey on these native species.
Fishing for catfish (scourge of the native species) on the Green River
  1. Stargazing. This is a dark, remote canyon so the star shows are exceptional.
  2. Shady and/or sandy camps. We encountered several camps with shady stands of cottonwoods, as well as big, beautiful sand bars framed by sheer cliffs. Our first-night camp was at Three Canyon, which had a convenient sandy ledge at the bank that served as a perfect kitchen, and an extensive set of tent sites about 100 yards from the river in a grove of cottonwoods.
The path to tent sites at Three Canyon lit by the magic of solar power
  1. Cool water. It’s hot in Labyrinth (100-degree-plus daytime temps during our trip), but the water is refreshingly cool, so we had no problem keeping body temps low with frequent swims.
  2. Hikes to historic inscriptions. Side hikes are numerous in Labyrinth, and you can explore inscriptions left by historic figures including Buzz Holmstrom and French fur trapper Denis Julien.
  3. Easy permit process. You simply download and complete the permit from the BLM site, making this a good go-to on short notice.
  4. Runnable most of the year. Except for winter months when you might encounter ice, you can run this stretch a good part of the year.

Tips for running the Green River through Labyrinth Canyon

  1. Plan for heat. Temperatures can reach 100+ during the day in the summer months, so gear up with sunscreen and protective clothing. Encourage frequent dips in the water. (You can dangle from your boat for miles as there’s barely a rock or a riffle to disrupt your drift.)
  2. Bring plenty of water. The Green River is silty, so filtering water is difficult. For a 7-person trip running 3 nights, we brought 4 five-gallon jugs.
  3. Bring bug spray. We didn’t encounter the hordes of mosquitoes we were expecting, but we did apply a bit of bug spray during the sunset prime time.
  4. Be prepared for a remote trip. Labyrinth Canyon has no cell service, and is far from any other services.
  5. Be prepared for the nerve-racking take-out road. The road from the take-out at Mineral Bottom to the top of the canyon is narrow and rife with switchbacks. The road can be dangerous when wet. The take-out spot itself is in a nice grove of cottonwood trees, which makes for a relatively pleasant de-rigging experience. The bank is steep and muddy, so you won’t be able to back a raft trailer all the way down.
The take-out road at Mineral Bottom is steep and winding from the top down to river’s edge

Planning your trip on the Green River through Labyrinth Canyon

Here’s a run-down of how to organize a trip through Labyrinth. (And here’s a general river trip planning guide that covers other logistics like assembling your crew, meal planning, and more.)

  1. Study the Bureau of Land Management’s information site about Labyrinth Canyon. (This area is managed jointly by the BLM and the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands.)
  2. Choose your trip length. Most common put-ins are at Green River State Park, which gives you a 68-mile stretch to the take-out at Mineral Bottom, or at Ruby Ranch, where you can launch, camp, and park for a fee of $5 per person and $10 a boat. Because of time constraints, we put in at Ruby Ranch. Although the Green River launch has easier access (less distance on dirt roads to contend with), this 20-mile stretch is primarily private land, so you’ll need to plan to camp on sandbars.
  3. Map your path to the put-in and take-out. The trip from Ruby Ranch to Mineral Bottom is just under 2 hours, so factor that into your launch timing (see a list of shuttle services below).
    • Green River State Park launch area (put-in option for 68-mile trip): From I-70 westbound, take the exit for I-70 Business Loop/E. Main St. and turn right. In 2.6 miles, turn left onto Green River Blvd. You’ll reach the park in 0.5 miles.
    • Ruby Ranch (put-in option for 45-mile trip): From I-70, take exit 175 and head south on Ruby Ranch Rd. In 7.5 miles, turn left onto BLM 147/Ruby Ranch Rd. In 0.5 miles, turn right to stay on BLM 147/Ruby Ranch Rd. In 5 miles, keep right to continue onto Ruby Ranch Rd. In 2.6 miles, you’ll reach the boat launch.
    • Mineral Bottom (take-out): From Ruby Ranch, head east on Ruby Ranch Rd. toward BLM 147 for 7.6 miles. Turn left onto BLM 147/Ruby Ranch Rd. In 0.5 mile, turn right onto Crystal Geyser Safari Rte/Ruby Ranch Rd. In 7.4 miles, turn right onto the I-70 E ramp to Crescent Junction. Continue on I-70 for 5.7 miles. Take exit 182 for US-191 S. In 0.3 miles, turn right onto US-191 S (follow the signs to Moab). In 20 miles, turn right onto UT-313 W. Turn right onto BLM 129/Mineral Canyon Rd. Follow BLM 129 for 16 miles. Turn left onto Mineral Canyon.
  4. Choose your pre-launch camp site. You don’t need to reserve a spot for Ruby Ranch; you just put your fees in the drop box at the parking lot. There are plenty of tent camp sites and a rustic compost toilet. Or if you’re putting in at Green River State Park, you can reserve a camp site here.
  5. Choose your timing. Summer months are hot, spring and fall are beautiful and cooler. For best results, set aside at least 3 nights and 4 full days to take in this breathtaking canyon. (Here are tips for predicting future river flows for planning purposes.)
  6. Plan your shuttle. We ran our own shuttle, which did not take much longer than it took to (leisurely) rig our boats. But if you’d rather not run your own, available shuttle services include:
  7. Download a permit. Labyrinth Canyon permits are available here from the BLM site and include all the regulations and stipulations you need to know. Required gear:
    • Firepan (nearly always required on permitted rivers even when fire bans are in effect, but think twice before lighting a fire in the hot, windy desert in the middle of summer; Luci lights make a nice glow you can all gather around)
    • Groover (toilet system … here’s a review of popular groovers, which includes tips on setting up the groover in camp)
    • “Spare means of propulsion” for each boat (bring spare paddles and oars)
    • PFDs readily accessible for all, and always worn by those 12 and under
  8. Study the guides. Here are some useful resources to check out:
Expansive sand bars in Labyrinth Canyon make great bocce pitches
  1. Brush up on the history and lore of the area. A few great reads that will put you in the mindset for a Canyonlands float:

Embrace the tranquility

Although this section of river doesn’t have much “tilt,” it is phenomenally beautiful and restorative. Running the Green through Labyrinth Canyon is simply good for the soul.

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