Rio Grande Taos Box  Whitewater Plus-Two Day River Trips

 
Rio Grande Gorge in Northern New Mexico is one of America's original Wild and Scenic rivers, the river hurtles through a gorge that is a rift in an ancient lava flow.  Our Box-Plus Two-Day begins at the John Dunn Bridge and ends at the Taos County line.  Camp is at the Orilla Verde Recreation Area.  The trip begins at the John Dunn Bridge and ends at the Taos-Arriba County Line, for a total of 29 river miles. 

Dates:  April 20-July 15 Available throughout the season.  Friday and Saturday launches are in greatest demand, so please book early.  Weekday and Sunday launches are often available as late as three weeks in advance.  Ask us for available dates. 

Participants: We welcome first-time rafters twelve years of age and older.   You should be in normal good health.  Guides will do the navigating in our oar-powered, self-bailing rafts.  Groups of 4-6  experienced paddlers in good shape may request the more exciting paddle boat. 

Cost:  ^$283 per person plus New Mexico tax, with 50^% advance deposit required.  Charter groups of 12 to15 persons receive discounts up to 10 percent. 

Sample Itinerary:
Our first day, we launch at John Dunn Bridge, passing the mouth of the Rio Hondo.  We enter the Taos Box and begin 16 miles of Rio Grande's most furious whitewater section.  Beginning at the precipitous Powerline Falls, we descend at an average gradient of 55 feet per mile, though drops with names like The Rockgarden, Screaming Left Hand Turn, Enema and Sunset. Our camp is at our  FFA primitive base camp near Orilla Verde Recreation Area.  Our gear is resupplied by truck.  (Our other two-day camping trip, the Wild River Two-day begins with a hike in to the river at Arsenic Springs and runs the Taos Box Canyon on the second day). 

The second day is twelve miles, with six calm (Class II) miles through Orilla Verde Recreation Area , and culminating in the early afternoon with a run of the Class III rapids of the Pilar Racecourse. 

Our Meeting Time :  9:00 A.M. at the Far Flung Adventures Boathouse. Head North from Taos on Highway 64 to the stop light. Go North through the intersection on 522 approximately 1/4 mile and look for the Far Flung sign on your right. 

Weather: Springtime and summer conditions in the Rockies are often unsettled, with late snows interposed among 70-80 degree days. However, by June, the prognosis is for mostly warm and clear conditions.  Afternoon showers become common as the weather gets hot, so at any season participants should be prepared for the sudden onset of chilly conditions. 

Far Flung Adventures provides: Certified river guides, self-bailing rafts, 4 meals (all fresh foods, tasty, and nutritious) and meal service items, river-safety equipment, waterproof duffel for your personal gear, camera/binocular protection (however, the inexpensive disposable waterproof cameras are highly recommended), tents, portable toilets, and shuttle transportation to and from the river and our Taos meeting place. Your River Guides have many years experience on the Rio Grande, are trained in river rescue and wilderness emergency first aid, and are certified by the New Mexico River Outfitter’s Association.  What you need to Bring: Participants should provide their own sleeping gear (rental sleepkits available @^$10 per night), and personal clothing, raingear (rentals available @^$5 per day), a canteen, and a non-breakable drinking cup.  Footgear should include sneakers (no slippery bottoms, please) and wool socks for on river wear, and sturdy hiking boots or sneakers for camp, nature walks, and the hikes into and out of the canyon.

Reservations: A 50^% per person deposit is required. 

Call toll free 1-800-359-2627.  e-mail  farflung@taosnet.com

Cancellation Policy:  If you cancel with at least two weeks notice prior to your departure date we will refund your deposit minus a 10% of trip cost processing fee.  If you cancel within the two weeks prior to your trip, you forfeit your entire deposit.