Summer on horizon Memorial Day weekend is still a few days ahead and with it the âofficialâ start of summer. But Mondayâs sunny weather and temperatures in the 70s brought out signs that summerâs arrived. For starters, flows on the Arkansas are rising, up from 415 cubic feet per second on Thursday to 534 cfs Sunday. Even at the relatively low river flow, lagging somewhat because of cool weather of recent weeks, the first rafters are floating through Salida. And kayakers are playing in the eddies below and above the F Street bridge. Though Arkansas basin snow levels are below average, cool and wet May weather means that thereâs been little snowmelt through the month. The result is while snowpack is down compared to average, runoff is off to a slow start, which will help keep river levels at moderate levels longer into summer, which is good news for raft outfitters.