We start with three miles of Class II rapids, giving you plenty of time to warm up and learn the art of paddling. After lunch the hills close in, the river narrows, and exciting rapids such as Satan’s Cesspool, Hospital Bar, and Surprise Rapid challenge you. We reach Folsom Lake where we load the boats onto the trailers and head back to camp, a 20-minute scenic trip.
A day on the Middle Fork American River gives you the opportunity to enjoy a day of challenging Class II-IV+ rapids, plus the famous Tunnel Chute Rapid, Class V, while rafting in a beautiful high-walled river canyon. In the spring the California poppies and blue lupine grow out of the granite walls that line the river.
Plummeting out of the Desolation Valley basin near Lake Tahoe is the dam-controlled (Oxbow Dam) Middle Fork American River, with 18 miles of easy and technical rapids. During the 1849, California Gold Rush, the Middle Fork American River was crowded with gold miners. This is an historic river!
- Combining one day on the South Fork, Class III, 11 miles, with one day on the Middle Fork, Class II-Class IV+, 18 miles, gives you the opportunity to raft as many miles as possible, 29 miles in total.
- One of the spectacular features of the Middle Fork River Canyon is the narrow canyon, the 1000’- high cliff walls, the lush pine trees, and the incomparable Ruck-a-Chucky, a boulder-filled waterfall and portage.
- We can also run this combination as a Middle Fork (18 miles) / South Fork, Chili Bar Run (10 miles).
Tour Itinerary
Evening before your trip: Camping at the Mariah’s South Fork of the American River Campground this night is included in the price of your trip. We request that you come anytime after 6 PM. Our Camp Hostess will greet you, give you any rentals you have reserved, and show you where you may camp. There are several nice restaurants nearby where you may enjoy a lovely dinner.
Day 1: The day begins at 8 A.M. with a delicious breakfast, usually pancakes, sausage, fresh fruit, cereal, yogurt, juice, fresh coffee, tea, hot chocolate. Let us know if you have a special diet. By 10 A.M. we have gathered at the picnic tables for the Trip Orientation, a thorough, 30-minute presentation given by your Head Guide.
He/she will go over the safety features of the trip, and demonstrate paddle techniques. You will be introduced to your guides, launch your boats from our campsite and begin rafting a fun and easy three-mile section of the river, with time to warm up and practice your paddling in the many Class I-II rapids in this stretch. You will even have a chance to swim one of the easier rapids.
About noon we stop for a hearty and nutritious picnic lunch at our private lunch site. Lunch includes a variety of deli meats, cheeses, breads, condiments, vegetables, fruit, chips, cookies, lemonade, ice tea, and water. We always have peanut butter and jelly. We may decide to shuttle you to the Hwy 49 Access Area, three miles upstream from our camp, in which case we will then be able to have lunch at the Mariah Campground.
After lunch, we re-board our boats and continue rafting into the Gorge, where we'll tackle fun and challenging class III rapids like Satan's Cesspool, Hospital Bar and Recovery Room. Keep a smile on your face and your paddle in the water, because our kayaking-photographer will be looking for the best shots to take, for viewing back at camp.
After the last rapid we will get a motorized tow to our take-out at Salmon Falls, Lake Folsom, load the boats onto our trailers, grab a cold soda or water, and board the Mariah vehicles for the 30-minute drive back to camp.
Back at camp, you may take a shower, play volleyball, horseshoes, ping-pong, walk our unique Nature Trail, sit by the river, read, relax, socialize with old and new friends, shop in our walk-in camp store and buy a souvenir t-shirt. Hors d’oeuvres prepared by your guides are served about 5-5:30 P.M. Every Saturday evening, during hors d’oeuvres, we have a special wine-tasting presentation in our Beverage Garden.
There is plenty of soda for the kids. We receive rave reviews for the quality and quantity of food we serve for dinner. You may be able to enjoy barbequed steak, chicken, and salmon, colorful salad with lots of veggies to add to it, baked potato, garlic bread, soda, water, and a small amount of wine, beer. Our photographer will present the slide show of the day’s rafting. Enjoy the campfire, tell stories, sing, and relax under the stars before going to bed.
Day 2: The day begins at 7:00 A.M. with another delicious breakfast. This morning you will be able to tell the guide-chef just what you want in your made-to-order omelets. By 7:30 A.M. we have boarded our Mariah vehicles for the one-hour drive to the Middle Fork Put-in. Once we start our descent down to the Oxbow Bend Put-In, we will drive through a beautiful, and isolated section of the canyon.
You already know your guide, and you are already an accomplished paddler, so we will launch into the current. You have a short opportunity to warm up before meeting your first Class II rapid and then a fun Class III rapid, Last Chance. We have time to admire the beauty of the canyon and river before we get to the Tunnel Chute rapid!
At the end of the rapid, after having successfully paddled through the tunnel, we take a short break before heading down-river for Kanaka, a big Class IV rapid. After that we have a few miles of lovely Class II-III rapids. We raft past spectacular 1,000’foot high cliffs, and possibly see modern-day gold miners.
When we get hungry, we will beach the boats and enjoy a hearty lunch. Our lunch site offers spectacular canyon vistas. After re-boarding our rafts, we paddle through lots of different rapids and several stretches of calm water until we will come to Ruck-A-Chucky, a Class VI rapid and maze of huge boulders. We will portage the boats around this and the guests will make a short climb up some boulders in order to walk around the rapid.
After re-boarding your rafts you will raft through several smaller rapids in a very narrow, and beautiful gorge. About 3 P.M. we will arrive at the take-out, Greenwood Bridge, enjoy a beverage, and drive the 30-minutes back to our South Fork Campground Back at camp, our photographer will present the slide show of the day’s rafting.
You may take a shower, buy a souvenir t-shirt, and say farewell to the new friends you've made on California’s South Fork of the American River rafting trip. You should be ready to depart for your next destination by 5 P.M.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
- Minimum deposit: $75.00
Price Includes:
- 29 miles, 2 days of rafting
- 5 meals
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USA
California
Canoeing/Kayaking/Rafting
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