About the program
The story of why and how the AAB program started
The Colorado River carves its route from high in the Rocky Mountains through a vast landscape of canyons and deserts transporting millions of tons of sand and silt downstream every year. This water borne sediment creates a unique riverine ecosystem that is constantly shifting as beaches and sandbars accumulate and erode with the seasons. The beaches along the Colorado River through Grand Canyon are crucial components of the ever changing riparian ecology along the river and have played a central role in human use of the river corridor for millennia.
Prior to the construction of large dams and reservoirs in the 20th century, the Colorado River’s flow fluctuated dramatically with high water during spring snowmelt in the Rockies and low water during late summer and fall. Glen Canyon Dam changed everything. Starting in 1963 when the reservoir behind the dam began to fill, the US Bureau of Reclamation managed the flow of water through the dam to optimize hydropower production. It reduced the seasonal fluctuations and introduced new daily fluctuations as electric demand rose in the afternoons and ebbed overnight. The river remained cold all year and 90 percent of its sand and silt became trapped in Lake Powell behind the dam. As a consequence, the beaches along the river through Grand Canyon lost the great majority of their sediment supply. The clear river steadily scoured the beaches sending sand downstream to Lake Mead.
River runners first noticed and protested these changes in the late 1960s and 1970s because beaches were the only places for rest and camping in most parts of the narrow, boulder and cobble strewn canyon. River runners had particular trouble with the daily fluctuating flows from the dam. The large pulses of water during times of high electricity demand changed the character of the rapids and caused flooding and stranding at beaches and campsites.
River guides alerted the conservation community to these alarming changes and encouraged their clients to write letters to politicians and the media to raise public awareness and advocate for modifications to how Reclamation released water from the dam.
Archeologists and biologists joined the chorus of protest because the steady loss of beaches uncovered and eroded ancient indigenous sites and altered species compositions along the river. Shrubs and other vegetation invaded the remaining beaches, non-native species gained a foothold, and native fish rearing habitat declined.
By the 1980s, public pressure from citizens and river running organizations along with litigation from environmental groups resulted in a series of studies led by the US Bureau of Reclamation to clarify and quantify the impacts of Glen Canyon Dam on downstream resources in the Grand Canyon. Dubbed the “Glen Canyon Environmental Studies” (conducted in two phases), this research led to passage of the 1992 Grand Canyon Protection Act and the subsequent establishment of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP).
In 1996, on the eve of the creation of GCDAMP and just months before the first “beach building” high flow experiment, Grand Canyon River Guides launched its Adopt-a-Beach (AAB) program to begin documenting changes in beaches and shorelines in the Grand Canyon. This successful volunteer citizen science program continues to the present day.
What is AAB and what has it accomplished?
provided by the Grand Canyon Conservation Fund, the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC), the Bureau of Reclamation, and private donations.
Forty-four beaches have been monitored since 1996, with more than 1,600 photographs collected along with and a trove of observational data documenting the changing character of beaches month by month, year by year.
These recorded observations and time lapse photos help scientists and decision makers better understand the effects of dam operations and different flow regimes on beaches and shorelines. Specifically, they help to evaluate the efficacy of the high flow experiments which are designed to transport sediment from the mouth of the Paria River to re-build beaches downstream. AAB helps document beach improvements as well as continued degradation and informs GCDAMP decision making.
In addition to these scientific and management functions, the AAB program serves as an educational and training tool, engaging citizens in collaborative research and problem-solving.
Lessons Learned:
Beaches along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon are constantly changing. They are and have always been a dynamic ecosystem. There is no long-term stability, no way to effectively control beach size or structure or dynamics, and no possibility of predicting the exact effects of specific dam operations. Nevertheless, we do know that certain dam operations seriously degrade beaches and their usefulness to recreationists, while certain other dam operations can help rebuild beaches and protect desired conditions.
People who care about Grand Canyon’s resources can get involved and make a difference. By working with organizations like GCRG, everyday citizens can advance understanding, educate others, and contribute to solutions. Citizen science and public participation in decision making represent democracy in action!
Table of Contents
Documents & Resources
Adopt-a-Beach How to front
Adopt-a-Beach How to back (talking points)
Adopt-a-Beach Data form front
Adopt-a-Beach Data form back
Before & After Image Comparisons
* The images in this exhibit were collected by volunteers for the Grand Canyon River Guides Adopt-A-Beach program with support provided by the U.S. Geological Survey Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center and the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation.
Stone Creek
Stone Creek Camp difference in camp use area between two normal summer flows.
Before
Group camping at approximately 20K cfs. 7/26/2016
After
Group camping at approximately <14K cfs. 10/01/2016
Owl Eyes
Owl Eyes Camp normal DAILY min/max cfs in July 2012.
Before
Camp at 10-12K cfs. 4/11/2012
After
Camp at 18-19K cfs. 7/29/2012
Zoroaster
Zoroaster Camp before and after HFE. 04/07/2012 - 12/05/2012
Before
Before HFE. 04/07/2012
After
After HFE. 12/05/2012
Hot Na Na
Hot Na Na camp before and after rain event. 07/03/2018 - 07/21/2018
Before
Hot Na Na camp before rain event. 07/03/2018
After
Hot Na Na camp shortly after rain event flash wipes out beach. 07/21/2018
110 Mile
110 Mile camp before and after vegetation encroachment. 04/22/2000 - 08/25/2015
Before
110 Mile camp before vegetation encroachment. 04/22/2000
After
110 Mile camp after vegetation encroachment. 08/25/2015
Clear Creek
Clear Creek camp before and after vegetation encroachment. 07/30/1996 - 05/13/2019
Before
Early photo of Clear Creek camp without vegetation. 07/30/1996
After
2019 photo of Clear Creek camp almost inundated by vegetation. 05/13/2019
Martha’s
Martha’s non-drainage related rain erosion.
Before
N/A
After
N/A
Tuckup
Rain erosion not related to a nearby drainage. Simply runoff from surrounding cliffs.
Before
05/30/2018
After
09/09/2018
Tatahatso
Tatahatso less than desirable result of HFE and winter flow regime.
Before
09/29/2014
After
04/03/2015
Shinumo Wash
Before
04/05/2015
After
06/18/2015
Olo
Before
04/07/2014
After
08/13/2014
12.4 Mile
Difference between daily high release in April vs May. This varies by month, so you need to know which camp will/will not be out of the water.
Before
04/10/1999
After
05/14/1999
Lower Garnet
Erosion from rain event that is definitely attributed to the drainage! FYI-this beach is much bigger than it appears in the foreshortened photo.
Before
04/10/2013
After
09/17/2013
Comparison Campsites
Campsites
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11.0 Mile R - Soap Creek
36.7400° N, -111.6942° W -
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12.4 Mile L - Below Salt Water Wash
36.7261° N, -111.6992° W -
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16.3 Mile L - Hot Na Na
36.6807° N, -111.7390° W -
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19.4 Mile L - 19 Mile
36.6477° N, -111.7605° W -
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20.7 Mile R - Upper North Canyon
36.6302° N, -111.7641° W -
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23.0 Mile L - Indian Dick
36.6039° N, -111.765° W -
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29.4 Mile L - Shinumo Wash
36.5303° N, -111.8345° W -
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35.0 Mile L - Nautiloid
36.4699° N, -111.8403° W -
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37.9 Mile L - Tatahatso
36.4345° N, -111.8515° W -
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38.3 Mile L - Martha's
36.4331° N, -111.8643° W -
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41.0 Mile R - Buck Farm
36.4035° N, -111.8796° W -
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75.6 Mile L - Nevill's
36.0493° N, -111.9031° W -
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76.6 Mile L - Hance
36.0444° N, -111.919° W -
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81.3 Mile L - Grapevine
36.0548° N, -111.9966° W -
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84.0 Mile R - Clear Creek
36.0816° N, -112.0338° W -
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84.4 Mile L - Zoroaster
36.0833° N, -112.0412° W -
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91.6 Mile R - Trinity
36.1062° N, -112.153° W -
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96.1 Mile L - Schist
36.108° N, -112.2253° W -
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96.7 Mile L - Lower Boucher
36.1166° N, -112.2308° W -
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98.0 Mile R - Upper Crystal
36.135° N, -112.2425° W -
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99.0 Mile L - Lower Tuna
36.1449° N, -112.2637° W -
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107.8 Mile L - Ross Wheeler
36.2294° N, -112.3388° W -
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108.3 Mile R - Lower Bass
36.2379° N, -112.3447° W -
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109.4 Mile R - 110 Mile
36.2431° N, -112.3576° W -
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114.3 Mile R - Upper Garnet
36.2149° N, -112.4242° W -
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114.5 Mile R - Lower Garnet
36.2124° N, -112.4246° W -
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131.1 Mile R - Below Bedrock
36.3366° N, -112.4556° W -
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132.0 Mile R - Stone Creek
36.3475° N, -112.4545° W -
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133.0 Mile L - Talking Heads
36.3633° N, -112.4616° W -
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133.5 Mile R - Race Track
36.3689° N, -112.4663° W -
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133.7 Mile R - Lower Tapeats
36.3717° N, -112.4718° W -
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134.6 Mile L - Owl Eyes
36.3769° N, -112.482° W -
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137.0 Mile L - Back Eddy
36.3916° N, -112.5238° W -
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143.2 Mile R - Kanab
36.3924° N, -112.6293° W -
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145.6 Mile L - Olo
36.3706° N, -112.6497° W -
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148.5 Mile L - Matkat Hotel
36.3412° N, -112.6815° W -
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150.3 mile L - Upset Hotel
36.3538° N, -112.7024° W -
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155.7 Mile R - Last Chance
36.3218° N, -112.7587° W -
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164.0 Mile R - Tuckup
36.2793° N, -112.8758° W -
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167.0 L - Upper National
36.2572° N, -112.8936° W -
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167.1 L - Lower National
36.2561° N, -112.8947° W -
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230.6 L - Travertine Falls
35.7562° N, -113.4474° W -
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236.0 R - Gneiss
35.7829° N, -113.5319° W -
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250.0 R - 250 Mile
35.8689° N, -113.6748° W