5 Day Yampa River Whitewater Rafting Vacation

The Yampa River is like floating through another planet

This may be the last opportunity to explore the Yampa River through Dinosaur National Monument.

There is a water diversion pipeline project being proposed. If this project is implemented, no one will ever have the opportunity to explore the mighty Yampa River through Dinosaur National Monument in it's natural state again.

The Adrift Adventures five day Yampa River trip traverses 72 miles through Yampa, Whirlpool and Split Mountain Canyons.  These 2,000 ft. deep sandstone gorges are a remote, pristine wilderness in the heart of Dinosaur National Monument.  Since the canyons are roadless, we bring all food and gear on the rafts to undeveloped camps each night. Adrift provides transportation from the meeting place to the start of the river trip, and then back to the Adrift Adventure store at trips end.  Professional guides and all boating related equipment are provided, including one watertight duffel bag per person to carry personal gear.  All meals from first day to last day lunch are included, and we offer vegetarian alternatives.  No previous rafting experience is required.  Minimum age is 7 years.

You start your whitewater boating adventure in the remote northwestern part of Colorado about 55 miles west of Craig.  Here the Yampa River, the last major free-flowing tributary of the Colorado River system, roars through a colorful canyon maze with canyon walls towering 2,000 feet above the river, containing rock strata spanning a geologic time period of 1.5 billion years.  During spring and early summer when runoff from high mountains fills the channel, the Yampa provides over 40 intermediate (Class III) rapids along with one of the “Big Drops” in the west, Warm Springs Rapid. There are also numerous Class II rapids, as well as quiet stretches along the way. When the opportunity arises, we will stop for side canyon hikes.

You have three boating options to choose from, and you can stay with one type the entire trip or switch at any time.  Choose between a paddle raft where you grab a paddle, and with the assistance of a guide who sits in the back, maneuver the boat through the rapids as a team (small trips may not have enough people for a paddle raft); or select an oar powered raft where you just sit back and let the guide do all the work. Another option is to run the rapids "on your own" in an inflatable kayak with support rafts drifting nearby. Several of these kayaks are provided per trip and they are shared by all participants. Kayakers must follow the guidance and rules of the Adrift crew and stay close to the support rafts.  It is ultimately the decision of the Adrift Adventures’ staff  whether or not the kayaks can run certain rapids.