Changes to the Basalt whitewater park are nearly complete, just in time to protect fish.
A section of the Roaring Fork River, just upstream from Basalt, has been closed since mid-February as crews with heavy machinery modify the year-old whitewater park.
Pitkin County and the contractors have an agreement with Colorado Parks and Wildlife to complete all work in the river by March 15, to protect spawning rainbow trout.
Some rafters and kayakers complained that the park’s waves were too big during peak runoff last year. River engineer Quinn Donnelly said work to create a route aroundthe waves was completed late last week. Crews are now building a wall along the river bank below Two Rivers Road for a future footpath that would connect Fisherman's Park to the whitewater park.