Trip Report: FULL - Paddling (Canoe or Kayak) Labyrinth Canyon


FULL - Paddling (Canoe or Kayak) Labyrinth Canyon
By Katherine Thom
BOATING 09/20/2025 Class I
We met up at a campground close to town in Moab and got our logistics sorted before getting our gear and half of our vehicles to our river outfitter the next day. With some of our boats and theirs, we made the long journey on dirt roads to Ruby Ranch, the start of our paddle through Labyrinth Canyon, which is on the Green River north of Canyonlands National Park. The air was crisp and clear and the water smooth as we got underway, knocking off 18 miles in our first day. One case of poor boat loading led to some poor boat tracking and the need to repack while knee-deep in mud. The expertise of the more experienced kayaker saved the day and we were back on track. At the end of the day, finding campsites was a decent challenge since we had to brave slick mud to get to the soft sand suitable for setting up tents. That seemed to be preferred to the dense forest of tamarisk found above the sandy banks, so we made the best of it. We got settled into camp and debated the ideal location for our rented river toilet, knowing it would have to be carried back to one of the canoes. The weather ensured we got to bed at a reasonable hour as the thunder and rain appeared for the first few evening hours. Later in the night, those of us that got out of our tents to look around were treated to a sky full of bright stars. The next morning, we noticed a brown lump on our beach that seemed to be moving ever so slightly. As we watched it's movements, we realized it was a large river otter getting ready to set out on a morning swim. A few minutes after that we saw a second otter cruising down the river in the same way. We thought they had the right idea and we got ourselves out there on the river early enough to ensure we could do the miles for our longest day. There were no more signs of rain and the cool temps and light on the walls of the canyon made for magnificent paddling; we were reaching paces even faster than the day before. And then there were the sand bars. We got really good after some trial and error at looking at widening river, the lack of signs of current, and the shallow glistening on the water that would indicate that we needed to steer around a big sand bar. There were a few times we had to get out of the boats and walk across to look for deeper water. We didn't see fellow boaters on the water until the second day and then we enjoyed the puzzled looks of a giant flotilla of rafts paddled by guides while clients basked in the sun. Our streamlined boats moved quickly past them, securing us the prime camp spot without too much mud to navigate. We stopped at a time of day that was quite early by many standards, but it was nice to have some time to sit in the shade and enjoy relaxing and conversating after crushing 21.5 miles that day. The group's efforts to gather wood from the beach were much appreciated as we got to enjoy a few hours of non-smoky campfire well into the evening. We got to relax the schedule a bit for the next day since we only had 7 miles left and several hours to get that done. We were moving so fast, in fact, that we basically coasted the final hour since any real paddling would get us to the take-out too soon. We hit only a little bit of fast water and a blue heron directed our way as we made it to the take-out at Mineral Bottom with plenty of time to spare. It was a good thing because the ramp was chaos of a large rafting party looking to put in. Our shuttle driver was there when we got there but still had to unload another group, so we got to relax and organize our gear while we waited. On the drive back, we learned about the history of Tex's Riverways from the former owner, who also happened to be our driver. The 10 switchbacks of the drive up the White Rim Trail was pretty impressive and we were thankful we didn't have to do this drive multiple times with our own cars vs. paying a company to do our shuttle for us. After a few more hours on dirt roads, we made our way back into Moab and enjoyed burgers and shakes at Milt's Stop and Eat. We lamented the amount of mud still left on our gear but we were tired and happy from the big adventure and new friends.

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