Rio Grande Gorge Full Day

Overview

The Lower Gorge of the Rio Grande is a broad canyon with lush riparian habitat along the banks of the Rio. A fantastic full day adventure for families, first time rafters and groups. The first half of the day is beautiful float through the Orilla Verde section of the Rio Grande with incredible scenery, gorgeous riverside lunch stops and ample opportunity to work on your paddling in preparation for the exciting whitewater of the Racecourse to come in the afternoon. The Rio Grande Gorge full day trip meets at our headquarters at 8:30 a.m. daily and the minimum age during most of the year is 5 years old

City: New Mexico

Sat 21 Sep

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $145.00

Make a reservation

Sat 21 Sep

Starting at $145.00

Make a reservation

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What's Included

World Class Guides

Safe, Secure Parking,

Full Service Headquarters

All rafting Equipment

Lunch

Signature, Hot Chicken Fajita Lunch

Additional Info

Wheelchair accessible
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Children must be accompanied by an adult
Face masks required for travellers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Hand sanitiser available to travellers and staff
Social distancing enforced throughout experience
Regularly sanitised high-traffic areas
Gear/equipment sanitised between use
Transportation vehicles regularly sanitised
Guides required to regularly wash hands
Contactless payments for gratuities and add-ons

What To Expect

Rio Grande Gorge

Starting Out We start at our headquarters where you’ll meet your guides for the day who will outfit you with all the gear necessary for the day on the river. At the headquarters, you will find safe secure parking, clean restrooms, changing rooms, shaded picnic tables on our patio rooms, and any last minute items you might have forgotten including sunscreen, water shoes, hats and much more. This is the perfect place to start your adventure. Craft choices are dependent on water levels. The large majority of our guests like to participate and paddle along with the guide in the back of the boat giving paddling commands, however, you may also choose to sit back and let the guide do the work on an oar boat. And for the adrenaline junkies, ask about an inflatable kayak at no extra charge. Floating the Rio Grande Gorge After the short drive to the starting point in our vans, your river trip begins with a placid morning float through one of the most scenic parts of the canyon with great opportunities to see a variety of wildlife including mule deer, river otter, beaver and many different birds of prey. This section also affords us time to practice paddling techniques, swimming and simply enjoying the Rio Grande. Somewhere in this stretch, we’ll stop on the side of the river for a nice lunch put together by your guides. After lunch, we run the Class III rapids of the “Racecourse.” The Lower Gorge of the Rio Grande is a broad canyon with lush riparian habitat along the banks of the Rio. As we enter the “Racecourse” section the geology radically changes as we pass onto the Rio Grande fault line, one of the largest intercontinental fault lines in North America. But let’s not forget the whitewater! The Racecourse is 6 miles of action-packed class 2-3 rapids. Perfect for everyone from beginners to intermediate/experts. There is something for everyone to enjoy on this section. With rapids like the Maze, Albert’s Falls, The Narrows, and The Thunderdome make sure you are braced in and ready to get wet! Listen to your guides as they negotiate these rapids and don’t forget to ask them to surf when the water levels are lower. Guides for the Rio Grande Gorge Full Day Our guides are the best in the business, focusing on safety and guest service as a top priority. All are extremely knowledgeable about the area’s geology, ecology and history and just love being on the river. Our Guides have experience on rivers all over the country and across the globe, I know you’ll enjoy each one as much as we do. They will certainly help to make your day on the river the best possible. Full Day Rio Grande rafting trips available EVERY DAY starting in March through September. Our minimum age at most water levels is 5, however, at the higher flows, that minimum age rises to 13. Book online or call us anytime, 1-800-983-7756, to reserve your space.

Cancellation Policy

All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (175)

mlmartin1129

Jul 2013

My husband and our eight year old daughter did the full day Rio Grande tour with this outfit on our trip to Santa Fe, and were very pleased with everything. Our guide Garrett was knowledgeable, engaging and had fantastic technical skill as the water was low, and there were several rocks we squeaked by. Great vibe, they let us stop and swim, fixed a wonderful lunch, told us abut the terrain and a little history of the Rio Grande. If you want a first rate guided raft trip these are the guys to use. Matt and his staff have got the perfect mix for a successful trip. We will be back!

JCUBED333

Jul 2013

We took a full day trip on the 4th of July. Wendy was our guide. We could not have picked a better way to celebrate. Wendy was funny and warm. The NMRA attention to safety was appreciated. Wendy entertained us with her stories and skillfully guided us down the Rio Grande. It was a great day with views that were out of this world!

Adam M

May 2013

If you want to improve as a whitewater kayaker, talk to Matt at New Mexico River Adventures. Wendy and Matt run a great kayaking and rafting operation here in New Mexico. I thoroughly enjoyed my private kayaking lesson from Matt on the Rio Grande. Not only is Matt an amazing kayaker, but he is also a really skilled and experienced instructor, and was able to clearly explain what I was doing well and what I needed to change or improve. We worked on a lot of different skills together during the full-day lesson, which included a great lunch back at their headquarters, and thanks to Matt's excellent instruction, I feel like I was able to make a lot of progress as a kayaker. A private lesson may seem expensive at first, but there is no substitute for one-on-one instruction from a patient and experienced teacher. I've also done the overnight float trip on the Rio Chama with Matt and Wendy's company, and I would also rate this trip very highly. The Rio Chama is beautiful, the trip is organized really well, and if you're looking for a less crowded, more scenic river to paddle in New Mexico, I'd highly recommend a Rio Chama trip through NMRA.