Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

[roadranger]

Can you go from Lake Havasu City upriver to Laughlin Nevada by boat? Any dams in the way?<br /><br />What is boating like on the Colorado River between these points? Low water? Shallow rapids?<br />Any Marina's to refuel on the way?<br /><br />I thought I'd heard at one time that you could take a tour boat ride from Laughlin down to London Bridge. I'd like to try that this winter with my own boat...<br />or at least get out on Lake Havasu!

 

[JRJ]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

Yes, you can boat from Havasu to Laughlin. There are Colorado River web sites with lots of info. Have fun.

 

[brianmerc]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

Ugh! Colorado River blows! Go to a cool lake, like Lake Powell. Dont waste your time with the Colorado. There are plenty of better places to go with nicer water and less trashy people...

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

Hey brianmerc, what river do you think makes Lake Powell?

 

[Stumpknocker]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

Yes, you can take a tour boat from several of the casinos in Laughlin to London Bridge. I think its several hours if memory serves me correctly. The Colorado is beautiful and in that area crystal clear. Camped and fished there several times. Beautiful country around there as well.

 

[youngboater]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

I was thinking about it too but ran out of time. Yes you can do it. There are portions of the iver that look shallow but they are still usuall 10 feet or so. At night Laughlin uses less water so the rive really drops and it could be very hard or near impossible to launch or retrieve at a ramp in Laughlin. They are jet boat tours to the London Bridge and they say it is 120 miles I think. There are places to re-fuel around Laughlin and I would guess on Havasu also. Good luck and let me know what happens. Beware July 4th weekend is asking for trouble and I'm sure any other summer holiday will be the same. Well into winter(Jan.) the river is dead you'll hardly see one boat up near Laughlin.

 

[tylerin]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

I've been camping smack dab in the middle of Havasu and Laughlin/Bullhead for years. The river is dredged annually and very clean but cold. Air temp 110 water 62. The water flattens out quick with a 3mpn current. 4 hrs between Laughlin and Havasu + -. We take a trip towards Havasu through the Havasu wildlife preserve and its gorgeous. The only difficult part is where the river meets Havasu. Most local Marinas have a map of how to navigate thru the sand bars which makes it quite simple. Lake Havasu is more of a party lake and can get quite hectic during the summer. We visit but don't stay long.

 

[hoserboater]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

forgive my ignorance, but have not been to Havasu yet. I'm coming down from Canada to spend Christmas there, and have a couple dumb questions I was hoping someone could help me out with.

Is it busy down there over Christmas holidays ?

Are all the gas stations on the water open ?

Are boat service and repair places open ?

Is the water level high enough to keep on boating ?

Any help would be greatly appreciated by this Hoser looking for some warmer weather and some boating.

Thanks

 

[Fun Times]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

Is it busy down there over Christmas holidays ?

There will be lots of what they call snowbirds in town. Some that own a second home from surrounding states will typically come in for the holidays, especially for new years. And there are quite of few people that live there year round.

Are all the gas stations on the water open ?

Yes they are usually open year round. But not sure if they close on the 24-25'th. On the California side there is Havasu landing Resort with an Indian Casino with fuel docks/marina. Havasu Landing Resort & Casino

Are boat service and repair places open ?

There are a lot of service and repair places on the Arizona side by the London bridge area and most marine service shops and supplies should be open. Down town Havasu is a fully equipped town with Wal-Mart, home depot, shopping, shopping & more shopping. If you're in the mood for fast food hamburgers, Be sure to try In n out burger.

Is the water level high enough to keep on boating ?

The main lake is plenty high, you should not encounter a problem.

If you leave the main body of the lake and run up through Topock gorge, the mouth of the gorge is the shallowest part and you'll want to be careful in there.

Here is one place to check water flow if you want to time going up the gorge with the most water available.
Bureau of Reclamation: Lower Colorado Region - Lower Colorado River Operations

Have fun!

 

[12vMan]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

Here is one place to check water flow if you want to time going up the gorge with the most water available.
Bureau of Reclamation: Lower Colorado Region - Lower Colorado River Operations

Have fun!

^^ That's probably the most important piece of information you will find for going up river from Havasu to Laughlin. I've done it many times, and yes, there are shallow spots, reefs, stumps, rocks, etc. that you need to be on the lookout for. It's about 120 miles round trip. The Topoc Gorge is 17 miles long from the mouth of Havasu to the Interstate 40 bridge. From there it's about 45 miles to Laughlin. You may need fuel for the round trip, depending on your fuel capacity and consumption. There are places to fuel up along the way, but I don't know what their hours are in the winter, or if they're even open. Keep in mind that if you want to play in Laughlin, it's an all day trip and the days are short. We've stayed and came home the next day before, but if you do that check the water levels again because you may come out in the morning ready to leave and find your boat high and dry.

 

[hoserboater]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

thanks so much everyone !

I appreciate your help very much !

 

[jjacobs007]

Re: Lake Havasu/Colorado River questions

Ugh! Colorado River blows! Go to a cool lake, like Lake Powell. Dont waste your time with the Colorado. There are plenty of better places to go with nicer water and less trashy people...

I guess brian has never seen all those pretty vacation girls going down the river in there canoes,with no will power to row them, hint hint.