Half-Day Family Rafting in Durango, Colorado

Overview

Explore Durango’s Lower Animas River on this half-day family rafting trip through town. The Lower Animas is a popular river for visitors and locals alike. Get a unique view of Durango through the rapids and experience the scenic beauty south of town. Paddle along with the guide or sit back and relax as the guide does all the work. Learn the history of the region and stories of local traditions as you experience Durango, Colorado river rafting. Rafting on the Lower Animas in Durango offers a great mild trip option for ages 4 and up.

City: Durango

Tue 08 Oct

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $97.01

Make a reservation

Tue 08 Oct

Starting at $97.01

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Pre-trip safety orientation

River and land access fees included

Round trip shuttle from main office

highly maintained equipment

Free Parking

Free splash jackets and helmets (if desired)

Trip Leaders average 2,000 river miles

Additional Info

Public transportation options are available nearby
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Minimum age is 4 years
Wet-suit and wet-suit boot rentals are highly recommended through June

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (658)

Melodee F

Jun 2019

Our day rafting was great! Mary was an excellent guide. She very quickly learned what we were looking for. Mary give us thrills and splashes as well as relaxing calm time. She was surprisingly strong and fit. We had a great day. I would recommend the rafting trip to anyone, especially if you have Mary as your guide.

Jenn B

Jun 2019

This was a great, mild rafting trip. Our kids are 12 and 15, and they would have been fine doing the non-family half-day rafting trip. Our guide, Stephen, was absolutely awesome! The only reason it didn’t get five stars is because on the way back, the bus was way overloaded with over 50 people, plus life jackets and paddles. There was standing room only for the guides. If there had been an emergency, there’s no way everyone would have made it off the bus. Other than that, the afternoon was wonderful!

Michael G

Jun 2019

What a joke. My group of 4 booked a half day raft trip on the Lower Animas with a guide. 2 of us are local mountain people. From the moment we reached Santa Rita Park, the guides had no clue who was supposed to be in which raft. This should have been the first clue. Our guide followed behind another Mild to Wild raft shortly after getting onto the river. We were on the river a total of 3 minutes before watching the raft directly in front of us launch upward into the air, dumping everyone on board as the raft flipped. That raft became stuck in an eddy on it's side until we rammed into it 15 seconds later knocking it on top of us flipping our raft in the same way the first raft flipped. So after 3 minutes into a 3 hour raft trip we were all dumped into a fast flowing river. There were suddenly 12 people trying to survive in the water 3 minutes into a guided raft trip. The water was 44 degrees and 7000 cfps. After being carried downstream with 2 others (1 of whom was in shock and required a ER visit) while holding onto the raft for 15 minutes i pull us onto a shore. Our other member of our group was carried even further before being picked up by a random rafter. We ended up nearby the Mild to Wild guide that flipped the first raft. He was in shock and unable to respond. Our guide was nowhere to be found and without a communication device as it was attached to the raft. 30 minutes passed before we heard that the other person in our party was okay. At this point the guides insisted that we return to the rafts in the water to take them to a take out. We refused due to the obvious signs of incompetence and told them we'd walk out. They insisted we would be trespassing. The ambulance arrived shortly after this and was waived on by the guides as everyone was accounted for lol. Such high standards of safety. The owner (Molly Mickel) showed up to give us a ride home. She insisted she knew everyone was accounted for immediately following the rafts flipping. This was obviously not the case as not even the nearby guides had any idea. She did not seem to care about the negligent situation and safety issues, simply responding with "the guides know they would be fired for something like that." C'mon Molly, as the owner of a business you know you are ultimately the one responsible for what happens to your customers. She refunded the cost of our trip and offered us souvenir t-shirts with the Mild to Wild logos. Seriously? You have got to be kidding me. Safety is of no priority at Mild to Wild.

Response from Host

Jun 2019

We understand your disappointment, fear and concern. Falling out of the boat is never anticipated when going on a rafting trip. It is very scary to be in the river when the current is moving fast and it can seem like you are in there for a long time. It is times like this we wish we were on a track. We take the safety of our guests and guides very seriously. It is our #1 priority. Everyone was quickly accounted for and picked up by Mild to Wild guides/staff on the river. Our protocol is for guides to communicate with our logistics manager in the main office to coordinate from a central location so it may have seemed scattered from a guest's perspective. We sincerely apologize for the lack of communication back to you. I personally met with all guests and guides back at the office post trip. Our trip leaders average 2,000 river miles, where the state requires 750. Our mission is to help our guests connect in nature and adventure with family and friends. We have been in business for over 28 years and safety is the #1 priority at Mild to Wild.