I was intimidated. In fact, let me be honest, I feared a beating at the hands of the River God. Trembling muscles warned me to shoulder the boat and walk. I couldn't. I've traveled all the way from Pennsylvania to travel these rivers, how could I back out now? I had to run to Sunshine Falls...the largest rapid in the Royal Gorge section of the Arkansas River. When would I return to Colorado to travel this river? I considered portage again; it's an impressive height difference with no shame in walking. But what if they built a dam across the Arkansas? I had the pleasure of kayaking about fifteen miles on the Arkansas River in Colorado this summer. The Arkansas, flowing from its headwaters near Buena Vista, is a virgin river. Only a trickle during the winter, “The Ark,” is reborn each spring with the life-giving waters of fresh, melting mountain snow. The greening of river valleys throughout Colorado occurs during the month of June, and traveling from the east I realized how vital snowmelt waters are to life in the western United States. Without water, something we take for granted even in brutal summers, life in the West is a struggle. Now the fight for Arkansas begins. Plans to build a dam on the river below the Royal Gorge are on hold. Devastating. I can't imagine the powerful Arkansas currents trapped behind a huge concrete wall. I find it hard to justify the Arkansas barrage. Defines recreational activities for central Colorado. Canoeists, rafters and fishermen flock to the Ark for much of the summer. However, Colorado is a state with rapid population growth. People need supplies of water and electricity somewhere. Should Arkansas be one of those sources? Now I realize the main...... center of the paper...... tility system." Hydro Review, 11, 80-88.IYER, RI (19X9) "Large Dams: the right perspective.' Economic and Political Weekly, 14, 107-116.PASCAL, A. (1988) Coal Information: 1988, Paris, France, pp. 510.RADIGAN, Kyle. (1991) "To hell with everything." Trout, Summer Issue, 28- 46. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, BUSINESS, AND STATISTICS AND BUREAU OE THE CENSUS. (1994) Ed. FA. London, H. A. Scarr and M. L. Turner, Statistical Abstract of the United States, Washington, DC, pp. 750. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR AND BUREAU OF RECLAMATION. (1985) Hoover Dam. Washington, D.C., pp. 56. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR AND BUREAU OF CLEANING. (1991! Summary statistics. Washington, D C., pp. 298. WEATHERFORD, G. D. BROWN, FL,. (1986) New flows for the Colorado River, Albuquerque, NM, pp. 25 3.