Des Moines River flooding has closed Canyon Drive and other entrances at Ledges State Park
Heavy rainfall and flooding have forced significant road closures at Ledges State Park for the first time since 2018.
Canyon Drive and the east and west entrances on Lower Ledges Road are currently closed to vehicle traffic. However, visitors can still hike into the canyon from the Oak Woods picnic area, near the canyon entrance gates.
Park visitors are also encouraged to stay out of the stream due to dangerously high water levels, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources' website.
The Lower Ledges Road − which includes the Ledges boat ramp and Flood Pole parking lot − has been closed for a week due to flooding from the nearby Des Moines River.
Visitors are strongly discouraged from entering floodwaters by vehicle or on foot.
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Lower Ledges Road may reopen soon
Andy Bartlett, park manager at Ledges State Park, said Lower Ledges Road may reopen as early as Tuesday since the water levels have started to recede.
"Water levels have been subsiding, the river flood warnings expired," Bartlett said. "The only concern we have going forward is Saylor Reservoirs' pool level is going to rise to a point where it may go over the lower road, but I think it's going to come up just short."
He said Canyon Drive may take longer to open because its exit is lower than the roadway itself, so any residual flooding will often cover the exit.
The last time Ledges experienced similar flooding was in 2018, Bartlett said, when RAGBRAI was rerouted to avoid the water on Lower Ledges Road.
Twenty-five feet of water swallowed the lower level of Ledges State Park in 2008, while the 1993 floods blanketed much of the canyon.
"This is pretty minor compared to the historic flooding we've seen in the past," Bartlett said. "I consider it more nuisance flooding than anything else."
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How long will the cleanup take?
The Des Moines River at 2nd Avenue in Des Moines was expected to crest afternoon.
Chad Kelchen, district supervisor for the Iowa DNR doesn't know how long Ledges will remain closed to vehicle traffic, noting that the flooding didn't seem severe.
"The impacts are not severe, but it's enough to cover the road, major crossings and things like that," Kelchen said. "If we continue with these heavy rain patterns, it might be flooded for a little longer."
Kelchen said officials anticiapte the river to start receding, though a substantial rainfall could dampen those expectations.
Bartlett doesn't imagine much of a cleanup if the water starts to recede. The worst areas will be cleaning low water crossings along Canyon Drive.
Kelchen said that the infrastructure should withstand the floodwaters, and the DNR continues to remove debris and trees from the roadway.
He expects cleanup to take a month.
Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: How has flooding impacted Ledges State Park in Boone County?
