Colorado Rafting Highlights
When it comes to rafting in Colorado, you can choose your own speed. Spend a sunny morning lazily drifting along a calm waterway, or spend it energetically paddling, getting soaked by rapids, dipping past boulders and crashing over gut-wrenching drop-offs. It's up to you, because whitewater rafting in Colorado includes a bit of everything. Your best bet is to start out conservative, then tackle more difficult trips as you gain confidence and crave bigger thrills.
Imagine yourself enjoying one of these epic rafting experiences:
- Fly-fishing down entire sections of river while aboard a guided raft
- Floating with your family over slow-rolling waters
- Shooting a string of whitewater rapids as your adrenaline works overtime
- Watching for wildlife as you float along riverbanks
- Rafting and camping along Colorado’s river system on a multi-day trip
When To Go
As long as the weather is warm and the water level is high, you can go rafting. River levels are generally at raft-able depths from May through late August. As a general rule, the earlier in the season the swifter the river. Of course, it ultimately comes down to snowmelt and how quickly or slowly it flows from the mountains. As the season progresses, river levels quickly increase, plateau, then decrease with autumn. This indicates that most of the snow has already melted from the mountains—marking the end of another rafting season.
Hiring A Rafting Guide
Hiring a guide company to ferry you down the river is exceedingly easy. All guides listed on Colorado.com are state-certified outfitters and have exceptional safety records. Colorado's rafting companies are professional, friendly and knowledgeable.
Search here for a complete list of rafting guides.Where to Go
A number of rivers and regions in Colorado have whitewater rafting opportunities. Among the more rafting-centered towns are
Glenwood Springs,
Salida,
Buena Vista,
Cañon City,
Steamboat Springs,
Vail,
Breckenridge,
Fort Collins,
Winter Park,
,
Dinosaur and
Grand Junction, among others. Chances are good that no matter where you spend your Colorado vacation, there's a rafting company a short drive away.
San Juan River
The San Juan River rises from a mountain rivulet in the lofty San Juan Mountains of Southwest Colorado. Flowing through some of the most spectacular canyon country on Earth, the San Juan descends more than 400 miles to its confluence with the Colorado River. The upper stretches of the San Juan offer thrilling day outings, while the legendary Lower Canyon run hosts pristine wilderness excursions of three to seven days in length.
Piedra River
The Piedra remains a rare gem in the Four Corners region of Colorado. Hosting a relatively short season and challenging Class IV+ whitewater, the Piedra bestows those fortunate enough to float the canyon an incredible array of scenery, wildlife viewing and great whitewater in one- or two-day excursions.
Animas River
Early Spanish explorers of the Four Corners region named the Animas (“Ghost,” in Spanish) for the spirits that the American Indians of the area claimed to haunt the shores of the river’s lower stretches. Today, the bustling town of Durango flanks the shores of the stream’s most popular run, an exciting Class III day stretch enjoyed by hundreds of tourists, kayakers and anglers throughout the spring and summer. The Upper Animas remains an exhilarating Class V wilderness overnighter that begins just outside of Silverton and flows 27 miles through spectacular mountain backcountry.
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River Valley contains more stretches of whitewater – and hence more paddlers – than any other river in Colorado. Beginning with the upper reaches of the drainage, the Granite and Pine Creek sections offer paddlers a scenic Class III+ float finished up with one mile of hard-hitting Class V action. Following the legendary Pine Creek and Triple Drop rapids, the Numbers remains one of the quintessential Class IV day stretches on Earth. The Frog Rock (a.k.a. Narrows or Milk Run) section is a classic mild stretch that leads into the Buena Vista’s town run and kayak park. Downstream is the most popular stretch of river in the state, Brown’s Canyon. It offers paddlers an awesome introduction to scenic Class III whitewater. Beyond Brown’s, the Class III Parkdale stretch flows into the spectacular Royal Gorge, a thousand foot sheer-walled Class III-IV canyon. With more than 60 miles of whitewater available, the Arkansas River has options for every paddler.
Cache la Poudre
Legend holds that French fur traders entitled the Cache la Poudre (“Hiding place of the powder,” in French) after they stashed their supply of gunpowder near the river in order to conceal it from American Indians. Today, the picturesque Poudre has earned the designation as a national “Wild and Scenic River.” Paddlers enjoy rafting, kayaking and inflatable kayaking Class II, Class III and Class IV stretches of whitewater in close proximity to Fort Collins, Colorado.
Colorado River
Several stretches of the Colorado entice paddlers throughout the river’s namesake state. Class V Gore Canyon and the mild Upper Colorado flow through the north/central part of the state, making those stretches accessible to paddlers from Granby to Steamboat Springs to Vail to Summit County. Shoshone and Glenwood Canyon remain year-round warm-up stretches for paddlers from Summit County to Aspen. Westwater Canyon is a classic desert canyon overnighter located west of Colorado on the Utah border.
Dolores River
The Dolores remains one of the few multi-day wilderness rivers in the United States that does not require a special-use permit to run. The reason: because not many people run it. This makes the Dolores a great place to get away for a few days. Over the 50-mile course of the run, the terrain transitions from a forested alpine environment with crystal-clear water to more of a sandy pinon- and juniper-desert setting toward the end of the run. Steady Class III and IV whitewater tops off this spectacular three-day expedition.
Eagle River
One of the few free-flowing rivers remaining in the West, the Eagle is fed largely from the snowpack on Vail Mountain. Trickling off the slopes early every spring, melt water swells the narrow river corridor, quickly turning it into a raging deluge. Courageous paddlers enjoy the Upper Eagle’s Class IV-V Dowd Chute section, a virtual rollercoaster of haystack waves. The family-friendly Lower Eagle carries paddlers out of the lush scenery of the mountains and into the arid desert of the Western Slope.
Gunnison River
The Gunnison drainage offers paddlers from Ouray to Grand Junction multiple options for river running. Families and intermediate paddlers enjoy warming up on the Red Bridge runs near Lake City. The Gunny run, the Lake Fork Box and the Lower Taylor all offer great fishing or a quick splash of Class II fun. Taylor Canyon, near Almont, draws paddlers and anglers of all abilities, and the Gunny Gorge is an incredible Class III canyon run with a bonus hike down into the gorge at the put-in.
Roaring Fork River
Roaring Fork paddlers put-in just outside of Aspen, Colorado. The upper “Slaughterhouse” section is packed with non-stop Class IV action, and is home to one of the few commercially run waterfalls in the state. Adults and kids alike enjoy cruising the mellower lower section in inflatable kayaks and rafts, while anglers cast for trophy trout on the Roaring Fork and its largest tributary, the Frying Pan River.
Clear Creek
Located near Denver alongside I-70, Clear Creek attracts boaters visiting the Front Range and those on their way to the high country. Once on the river, however, the interstate goes entirely unnoticed as paddlers drop through the steep and narrow bed. Several half-day and full-day excursions satisfy those looking for a stomping Class IV day or families seeking a quick splash of scenic whitewater.
Yampa River
Flowing through downtown Steamboat Springs, Colorado, the Yampa River becomes a deluge during early spring runoff, making Class II Town Run an awesome afternoon paddle for kayakers and rafters alike. Later in the summer, outfitters pack away the rafts and rent inner tubes to hundreds of floaters a day. Fifty miles downstream the river enters a wilderness desert canyon and some of the most scenic Class III-IV whitewater on Earth. Visitors to the Yampa Canyon float through Dinosaur National Monument, finishing on the Green River in northern Utah.
Dispelling Myths
- Rafting is just for younger people.
As a matter of fact, rafting is safe and fun for all age groups.
- Whitewater rafting is too scary and intense.
Water conditions vary greatly. Sure, white-knuckle rides exist, but rafting companies also offer leisurely float trips.
- I can’t go by myself.
You don't need to be part of a group to sign up for a rafting adventure. Passengers often meet new friends aboard their raft.
- I’m not athletic enough to do it.
Rafting needn't be exceedingly physical. In fact, some trips don't even require passengers to paddle at all.
- I can’t go because I have kids.
Rafting is a family-friendly activity, and while there are some age restrictions, a number of raft companies offer trips that kids can enjoy.
Water Flow In Real Time
For those who want to see how the water is running on Colorado's rivers, check out real-time conditions with the United State Geological Survey river-flow data. Flow levels help experienced rafters gauge their trip before they set raft to water.
Real-time Colorado water flow.