Keen to enjoy some of the very best river rafting in Colorado with Echo Canyon? We’re glad to hear it! We’ve been leading guests down some of the most celebrated whitewater on the nationally renowned Arkansas River for decades, and experiencing these marvelous rapids and scenic vistas with new and returning rafters alike never gets old.
Here at Echo Canyon River Expeditions, we offer both Colorado rafting day trips and multi-day rafting trips. If it’s a day trip you’re interested in for your Arkansas River rafting adventure, you’ve got a decision to make: half-day or full-day?
Well, you needn’t fret! For one thing, we’ve got a detailed guide below to help you choose between these options. And for another, you can’t really go wrong: You’ll be guaranteed a bucket-list-level outing in a Southern Rocky Mountain wonderland regardless of which kind of day trip you go with!
1-Day Colorado River Rafting Trips
Our full-day Arkansas River rafting itineraries at Echo Canyon—among them the Royal Gorge, Bighorn Sheep Canyon, and Browns Canyon—give you the maximum time on the water (at least for a river day trip—again, we’ve got multi-day trips available as well!).
It’s about a six-hour total experience, counting transportation, safety briefings, and the hour long lunch break we savor on all-day adventures. Folks looking for extended time riding rapids and soaking up some of Colorado’s loveliest riverside scenery—and who are down for being out in the elements and engaging in physical activity for multiple hours—might gravitate toward our full-day outings.
Can a beginner rafter do a full-day rafting trip? Absolutely. Routes such as our full-day Bighorn Sheep Canyon are very much open to newbies. The main consideration (so long as a beginner-friendly section of the river is chosen) has less to do with experience level and more with whether the person in question feels up to that extended period of time exerting themselves while exposed to variable weather.
Half-Day Rafting Trips
Our most popular kind of trip at Echo Canyon River Expeditions is the half-day variety, available for such routes as the Royal Gorge, Bighorn Sheep Canyon, Upper Bighorn Sheep Canyon (our scenic half-day float), and Browns Canyon. These typically involve about two hours on the water, with an extra hour added on to account for shuttle transportation, the safety briefing, and paddling instruction.
It’s not hard to see the appeal of these half-day Colorado river rafting trips. After all, many travelers, not least family groups, have a jam-packed vacation itinerary, with multiple activities planned for each day. (Our beautiful backyard, the Royal Gorge Region, is tailor-made for that sort of vacation, with an incredible variety of outdoor activities on offer.) It’s harder to fit a full-day rafting trip into such a crammed lineup, but a half-day adventure? Perfect!
Also, beginner rafters, or those with lower stamina (no shame!), might well prefer the shorter experience of a two-hour river run.
Planning Your Adventure
The best Colorado rafting trips—half-day, full-day, or multi-day—are done with a reputable, experienced, high-quality outfitter. At Echo Canyon River Expeditions, we pride ourselves on a stellar reputation earned over multiple decades running the Arkansas—and on the diversity of whitewater itineraries we lead, from laidback family-friendly floats to high-adventure technical trips.
How long does rafting usually take on average? Well, to reiterate: Our full-day river trips are about six hours, door-to-door, and our half-day ones are roughly three hours total.
Is it better to go rafting in the morning or afternoon? Most rafting guides and guests alike tend to prefer morning trips, for a couple of reasons. One, the weather during rafting season tends to be calmest and most consistent in the morning; summer afternoons in Colorado, after all, commonly brew up thunderstorms. There’s a simple beauty factor, too: The low-angle morning sunshine on the rolling, shoaling, boiling river is heavenly.
And then there’s the fact that a morning half-day rafting trip leaves your afternoon open for other activities—including, if it be your druthers, to simply kick back and relax after all of that on-the-water excitement!
Experience the Finest Colorado Rafting Day Trips With Echo Canyon
Embark on an extraordinary one-day or half-day rafting adventure in Colorado with Echo Canyon River Expeditions! Don’t miss your chance for a remarkable experience on the water—secure your spot today!
