It could be that I live under a rock. Adventure is typically my middle name. I am the person seeking cliffs to swoop off with paragliders and jungle canopies to zip line over. I can sniff out adrenaline-laced opportunities around the world. Apparently I am far less adept close at home in Canada. Last summer we rafted on the Bow River in Calgary. I didn’t know about that either even though it is literally in our backyard. Ryan our rafting guide stated the obvious. “If you write about travel and adventure of course you know about our white water rafting near Calgary.”
Pretending to look like I have half a wit I smile, give an ever so slight nod and remain silent.
I have no clue what he is talking about.
“You’ll have to come out next spring and check out the Class IV rapids on the Upper Red Deer River. You’ve heard of Sundre white water rafting right?”
I glance desperately toward Hubby hoping he may launch into everything we know about Alberta white water rafting. By his smiling I-don’t-have-the-slightest-idea silent response we are a clearly a pair of Alberta white water boneheads.
“Oh look there is the Calgary Tower!” My enthusiastic landmark identification an attempt to change the conversation.
Rafting the upper Red Deer River -Photo credit Mukwah Rafting Tours
White Water Rafting in Alberta
Often we are asked for recommendations for our best trip ever. Almost always we suggest the white water rafting Grand Canyon tour we did more than a decade ago. The glorious scenery, the thrill of the rapids, the complete wilderness; the rafting trip was a true travel gem.
However, to be completely truthful, the Grand Canyon white water rafting trip was very expensive. The rafting gear list required multiple trips to outdoor sports stores. That may be the ring of the cash register still echoing in my ears.
The logistics of arrangements to get to and from the whitewater rafting extravaganza, albeit a trip of a lifetime, made even this travel addict’s head spin.
White water rafting action with Mukwah rafting tours
So how is it I could love white water rafting and not know about some of the best white water rafting in Alberta? Let’s see an adventure travel writer who doesn’t know what adventures are in the backyard. I am embarrassed to say I have no explanation. Other than possibly living under a rock.
Mukwah White Water Rafting Near Calgary
Mukwah, the Ojibway word for bear, is seen as the protector spirit for Indigenous peoples. Since 1982 Mukwah rafting prides itself on honouring the tradition of their namesake, ensuring safety for each person who chooses this rafting Alberta experience.
Getting geared up at Mukwah base camp and the white water safety talk
A certified whitewater rafting guide accompanies each raft. Mukwah supplies a wet suit (they gave me two to be sure I wouldn’t get cold), life jacket, fleece jacket, paddling jacket, neoprene boots and gloves. Non swimmers are welcome as well as those with mobility challenges.
What no gear to pack? No logistics to puzzle over? Just river rafting in true Canadian wilderness. The peacefulness only disrupted by the squeals of delight. I confess that would be me doing the squealing.
Arriving to the Mukwah base we are struck by the relaxed atmosphere. Some of our fellow rafters are checking into the campground and we are encouraged to have a look around until lunch is served.
Exploring Mukwah rafting base camp before lunch
Go for a walk by the river? Lunch before rafting? No busloads of people being herded like cattle into lines? Just soaking in the beauty of being nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains of Alberta.
Is the Upper Red Deer River near Red Deer?
When we mention we are going to be rafting the Red Deer River to friends they respond with, ” I didn’t know Red Deer had rafting or rapids.” To be clear you are not driving to the city of Red Deer, which lies north of Calgary and south of Edmonton.
Map to Mukwah Rafting from Calgary
From Calgary the trip to the white water river rafting is approximately 2 hours. You can find full driving instructions here.
Tips for Mukwa White Water Rafting Trip
White water rafting trips can be booked from the May long weekend to the September long weekend. Children ages 12 and up are welcome any time. Ages 6 to 11 are discouraged from participating during the high water season in spring.
You don’t need to be a thrill seeker. Yes we are self admitted adrenaline junkies. Doing the four hour white water rafting tour full of rapids with names like Hidden Ledge, Staircase and Boulder Garden, the whitewater of spring season certainly gave us our fill of adventure. If you prefer more of a floating river experience you can look at the options here.
Bring a waterproof camera only. You will get wet and you will also be busy paddling on the raft. I used a small carabiner to clip the camera to my life jacket. Dave wore a GoPro on his helmet. Some of the Mukwah helmets come equipped with a GoPro mount. We suggest to ask the Mukwah staff for a helmet with a mount as soon as you arrive.
Plan to take your time on the drive to Mukwah base camp. The road winds through pick-your-jaw-off-the-floor wilderness scenery. Portions of the road are not paved.
There is no cellular service or WiFi at the Mukwah base camp or nearby. Plan to unplug and find the joy of connecting with nature.
The optional cliff jump
Cliff jumping with Mukwah Rafting Tours
Approximately mid trip the rafts pull to the side of the river for a break from the action. With the supervision of guides rafters can choose to jump off of a cliff. A totally optional experience.
Want to save this idea for a future adventure? PIN it!
Have you tried white water rafting? Now that we know one of the best places to go rafting in Canada we’ll be expecting your visit. It’s in our backyard it turns out.
We were guests of Mukwa Rafting Tours. All squeals and opinions are our own.
Discovering it late is better than never discovering it at all, right? What an exhilarating day that must make for!
That’s a great attitude Carrie. It was a spectacular day and what I especially loved was the complete wilderness. It truly did feel like discovering a gem. Thanks too for sharing the article with your Twitter audience. Truly appreciated.
Great post guys! Looks like a total blast of fun. 😎👍🏻
Thank you John. It was a fabulous time and really took us back to that amazing trip we had on the Colorado through the Grand Canyon.
We have been white water rafting twice on the Ottawa river but it was many years ago. The first year we went int he midst of summer & the second year we went much earlier when the water was high. Totally different experiences, both totally enjoyable!
Lynn that is a good point about the experiences being very different depending on the season. As you say both enjoyable just a different experience. For us this time no shortage of white water that’s for sure.
In the mid 1980s I spent a couple weeks camping on the Red Deer River with an outdoor group learning to manoeuvre either a double or single open canoe thru those rapids. Our gear list was simpler, neoprene suit, polypropylene underwear, rain jacket and pants with wool socks and runners. A dry barrel was issued for each person to store their second set of clothes “just in case.”
My skills became apparent the first week at some point each day I flipped the canoe hurling my partner and myself into those icy waters. The group leaders decided I should be “promoted” to a solo canoe earlier than anyone else! My fellow canoeists seemed to enjoy the second week more with me in the solo canoe.
Was that you doing the somersault off the cliff?
Yikes Allan I am not sure I would be up for those rapids in a canoe! I laughed out loud at your promotion. I can understand your partners not wanting to swim in those chilly conditions.
As to the cliff jumping we declined the opportunity. I stayed toasty warm in my double wet suit and was happy to watch the leaps off the ledge by others.
Wow, what an experience. Looks amazing, and right in our back yard.
Great video, thanks for that and your accompanying blog. Very entertaining as usual.
Delighted you enjoyed it Glo. So much to explore in this area. I keep thinking surely we must have found all the gems but I am beginning to think Alberta may have endless possibilities.
Love this post. I harassed my father into taking me on a white water rafting trip when I was in my early 20’s. We both loved it. Interesting that I now (MANY years later) live along that same river (Sacramento, California). Then in my early 30’s I was invited to join a group of crazies led by two professional rafting friends in rafting down the Salmon River (The River of No Return) in Idaho. These were some of the best outdoor experiences of my life. Although I could have used one of those wet suits on the Salmon River– the projected 80 plus degree weather was interrupted by an unseasonable cold snap. Boy did I love those hot springs! Good to know you have this amazing adventure in your backyard.
Wendy I didn’t know that you and your Dad had done a rafting trip. What special memories I’m sure. I recall your story of the Salmon River ‘winter’ expedition. Yes a wet suit or two would have been just what you needed. Or to take a hot spring with you. We had so much fun this day although I still find it hard to believe we didn’t know about this adventure so close by. Well now we do. Another adventure for your next visit. 🙂
Looks like a fantastic experience Sue. You love a bot of adventure don’t you? Never been rafting but always fancied giving it a try.
Jonno our theme is ‘Never too old to explore’. We love the idea of inspiring people of any age but especially those over 50 to seek out adventure. That could be close to home or around the world but to encourage discovery. Yes we love trying new things. 🙂
So many things to do in Calgary, but if I had to pick one this would be it!
I’m glad to hear that! This one is a couple hours from city center but easily done in a day. Yes we are very lucky to have so much available to us.
We often don’t see what is in our backyard. Sounds like an awesome place to visit, even if you don’t do the rafting! A fabulous report.
It’s so true Darlene. We are spending the summer at home and it’s amazing what is right under our nose. Thanks kindly for all of your support here and on Twitter. Always grateful.
Perfect…. I love white water rafting….use to do day trips up into the Rockies when we lived in Denver….haven’t done it in awhile, but keep thinking about the Grand Canyon…
Glad you got to experience a great time close to home. You are at the footsteps of some of the most beautiful mountains in the Rockies…great post…thanks for sharing…
Kirt it sounds like you have a lot of experience with white water. Living as close as you do to the Grand Canyon we would definitely recommend it. Meanwhile we are delighted to have discovered some rafting possibilities close to home. Definitely a beautiful setting at the ‘footsteps’ of the Rockies. Love that description.
Never too late to discover white water rafting in your backyard, Sue! Sounds like you put on that silent smile on very well and then go and discover what you don’t know 😀 4 hours of first time rafting in your backyard sounds like quite an adventure, and the names do come across as mini adventures as themselves. Very generous of the guides to give you two wetsuits…did you just end up one or did you really need two? 😀
Mable in the end I will say I was quite warm. With all of the paddling I kept completely toasty warm. So likely a good idea I think. Very thoughtful of them. A wonderful adventure in complete wilderness. We are definitely going to need to explore more of our own area.
This is my kind of adventure! Beautiful wilderness and a river that seems to be ‘appropriately’ wild!
Helen I’m delighted to hear it. Yes this one is for absolutely anyone. I do love when we share things and know that it’s right for all.
I just love it when an awesome experience turns out to be in my backyard! so this must have been a very cool find for you.
It truly was Amy. Sometimes we think we have to travel around the world to experience beauty and adventure. Then to find gems in your neighbourhood makes you realize discovery can be made close to home too.
It happened to me too, Sue. There were times when I was surprised to learn about interesting places in Jakarta I had no idea existed. Sometimes we know places further afield than those closer to home. But that only adds to the fun of “discovering” hidden gems in your own backyard, doesn’t it?
That’s a good way to look at it Bama. Rather than being embarrassed by the lack of knowing be thrilled in the discovery.
Brian and I did some white water rafting at my home town in Brazil, it was great. I would definitely like to do it again and this one looks fantastic. You do have some action packed stuff to do in your backyard 😄
Oh I’d love to know more about your experience in Brazil Gilda. That sounds fabulous. Yes we are very fortunate to have so much adventure close by. Living by the Canadian Rockies is a huge asset.
Way to sell ignorance Sue LOL. I too often find myself nodding without knowing, smiling without understanding. You seem to have had a blast at the place; this is all that matters. White water rafting is the rare thrill sport I can easily get on board with, no real fears there for me. Fabulous post.
Ryan
Ryan I’m glad to hear we have found an adventure up your alley. thanks for reassuring me I’m not alone I my unknowing ways. That’s the thing in life we always keep learning. I often think I do the most learning while we travel but the fact could be that I’m more inquisitive or open to it when we are away. At home I think I tend to get on the wheel of getting chores and such done. A good learning for me here.
I haven’t been rafting since I was a kid but would love to try it with mine someday. Great post! I’m thinking Alberta may be on the list for a summer family trip soon! I know we’d love all the gorgeous hiking and adventures sports.
Nicole I think your family would love Alberta trip be sure. Lots of adventure, hiking and exploring to do. Add the white water to the list. 😊
Wow… another cool adventure! I really enjoy the video. Great series, Sue!
That’s awesome! We used to swim in the river a little farther downstream from there when we had a small acreage up near Sundre. At that point the current is still strong, but I didn’t realize there was white water farther upstream. Hooray for you and your adventures! 🙂
Oh I didn’t realize that was where you had your acreage. Well that makes me feel better that you didn’t know either! What a beautiful area. I clearly need to get out more.
Adventurous 🙂
It was indeed Joshi!
We had a rafting once, in Thailand. It was bamboo rafting. Mediocre experience.
Sue, did you jump from this cliff?
It sounds like you would be ready for a more action packed rafting experience Victor. We declined the cliff jump. Pretty chilly on the day we went and I couldn’t bring myself to jump in the icy water, wetsuits or not. 🙂
The older I get, the less I am ready for such actions. Unfortunately.
It’s good that the world has so many options for us to explore. Last year we did a floating rafting trip through our own city. Lovely and calm and a great way to see the city.
Don’t you just love it when you find unexpected treasures close to home? 🙂
I’ve had the chance to white water only once and there was plenty of squealing by all of us! It was in Golden and if I remember correctly, on the Kicking Horse River. I don’t think we had any class IV but it was an adrenaline rush just the same!
I do love it and you are the master of finding treasures in your Toronto backyard.We are going to be staying close to home for the summer so hoping to do more of this exploring. We haven’t rafted on the Kicking Horse but I hear good things about it too. Here’s to finding adventure around the corner.
I have been white water rafting in Tully, near Cairns in northern Queensland. It was good fun but surely nothing like the rapids you experience in Canada Sue. I’m not sure I’d be able to concentrate on a raft over there, that secenery is gobsmacking.
Shannyn I think you would love it. From seeing how much you love being in the wild this would be a good fit. Yes you may need to focus on paddling rather than the jaw dropping scenery. 🙂
This is really cool, and I love the fact that this discovery was right in your own back yard. I have never tried white water rafting Sue. There is not a lot available in Southern Ontario, though I am aware of one company that runs the Ottawa River, about 5 hours away. And what a great video. At 1st I thought it was a promotional video for Mukwah Rafting Tours, until I saw Travel Tales of Life at the end. Such a well done article! 🙂
Thank you for the kind words Carl. We did work in partnership with Mukwah Rafting however Dave gets all the credit for the video. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. sounds like there is an adventure calling your name Carl. If you can fit it in-between those astounding long distance runs of yours!
Always a pleasure Sue. Love reading about your adventures. So awesome about your partnership with Mukwah Rafting. I know there will be some rafting in my future. In my trip to New Zealand 18 months ago there was plenty of opportunity, but didn’t allow enough time at some of those hostels that had nearby rafting. I know there is always next time! 🙂
Thank you Carl. We would love to explore New Zealand and I recall some of your posts from your time there. Enjoy the rafting. I bet they have some incredible rafting opportunities.
This looks like such a great day out, Sue! How lucky you are to live just two hour’s drive from such a fun-filled escape into nature. I have never tried white water rafting but I know I would enjoy it given my past experiences with kayaking and dragon boating. As ever, your sense of humor comes through especially in the first couple of paragraphs – it makes me realize how much I haven’t seen in the places I grew up! As travel bloggers, I think many of us are so transfixed on faraway destinations that we often miss the lesser-known wonders right in our backyards.
James I think you have summed it up perfectly. We see the world map on our wall and dream of all the far off lands yet to see. What we are coming to realize more and more that there is so much in our own area let alone our own country that is waiting exploration. I do hope you get to try white water rafting. Definitely with your water experience it will be a great fit for you.
I think we’re all guilty of ignoring the options in our own backyards, always wanting to look around the next corner or across the next ocean. I wonder how many other new local delights you’ll discover?
White water rafting looks cool. Definitely on my list.
Heather just yesterday we went to watch polo about 30 minutes away. Apparently the place has been going since the 1800s. All right maybe not as exciting as white water rafting but an example of how much we don’t know about our own backyard. I do hope you get to try white water rafting some time soon. Are there some possibilities in Australia?
There’s not much in Victoria but apparently the Mitta Mitta River in the Alpine National Park is supposed to be okay. But I think I’d save it for the mighty Franklin River in Tassie (especially having been a supporter of the protests to protect it back in the 1980s 🙂 ).
Oh that sounds like an extra special spot then. Hope to read about the adventure!
Wow, Sue. Love the honesty in your writing. Admire your self-deprecation. You’re critical of yourself in such a way that you see takeaways – such a beautiful way to identify and address while keeping the humor intact. My favorite is the cliff jump. Great shot there 🙂
Thank you Mahesh. I’ve learned to laugh at myself. So much for us to learn in life. I love the way the cliff jump photo turned out too. Really appreciate your kind words.
Well, this once again is timely. Terry and I have been talking about taking a white water river trip. As I am wanting to get back to your neck of the woods, this seems like the perfect outing. I have pinned this to my ‘future adventures’ board. Now just to get my hand back into paddling shape. Loved your video Sue!
LuAnn every time I hear about your plans to return to Canada I smile ear to ear. With your friends in Cochrane you are even closer to the Mukwah base camp.
How is that hand of yours coming along? I’m hopeful there is progress forward.
Thanks for the feedback on the video. All credit to Dave.
An awesome adventure, Sue! A beauty place for water rafting. Fun to watch the video. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you Amy. It is always such great fun to find adventure in one’s own backyard.