Headline News
Grand Canyon National Park Now Accepting Applications for Colorado River Permits
The National Park Service is now accepting applications for noncommercial river trip permits to raft the Colorado River through Grand Canyon National Park. The permits are for specific launch dates within calendar year 2010.
A total of 266 permits will be awarded for 12- to 25-day river trips. Eligible individuals can apply online at the weighted lottery website. To access the website, start from the park’s main web page at www.nps.gov/grca and select “River Trips/Permits,” then “Weighted Lottery.” Applications will be accepted online through noon on Feb. 24, 2009.
Each year in February, a main lottery is held to assign launch dates for river trips occurring the next year. Public notifications regarding main lotteries are made by both email and press release. In addition to the annual main lottery, follow-up lotteries are held as needed throughout the remainder of the year to reassign canceled and left-over river trips. Public notifications for these follow-up lotteries are made solely through email.
The weighted lottery website can be accessed for free year-round to create or modify an account and to sign up to receive email notifications. Individuals who are interested in a future river permit are strongly encouraged to create an account. Lottery applications are accepted through the weighted lottery website only when lotteries are open.
Individuals must be 18 years or older to apply for a river trip permit. Noncommercial river trips must be self-guided and technical whitewater experience is mandatory on each trip. Individuals can participate on a maximum of one river trip per year (commercial or noncommercial).
Individuals interested in professionally-guided river trips should not apply through the lottery, but instead request space on a commercial trip. A list of commercial companies offering guided trips can be found by visiting www.nps.gov/grca, selecting “River Trips/Permits,” then “3 to 18 Day Commercial Trips.”
For more information about the 2010 weighted lottery, visit the Grand Canyon National Park website at www.nps.gov/grca or contact the River Permits Office at (928) 638-7884 or toll-free at (800) 959-9164.