The Palisade Rim Trailhead is the first boat launch on the Colorado in the Grand Valley, right at the mouth of the De Beque Canyon. This parking area was put in by the Town of Palisade for those hiking the popular Palisade Rim Trail and as such I would expect it to be busy on the weekends. The two “boat ramps” are not that great and I would recommend carrying your boat and gear down instead of backing your trailer down but that’s up to you.

The “typical” Palisade to Corn Lake run is from River Bend Park to Corn Lake but this stretch shouldn’t be overlooked. Adding 3.5 miles to the run, this stretch is mostly flat but it is pretty, making it worth doing at least once if you live locally.  The irrigation diversion presents a challenge at lower flows but it is typically navigable.

The Palisade Basecamp RV Resort is about .9 of a mile down from the Palisade Rim Tailhead and it offers an alternative put in if you’re in a kayak, SUP or other small craft but they do charge a minimal fee to park and put on here. If you are camping here this would be a great place to launch to avoid more shuttling.