Home On The River
Planning Your Trip
By Kimberly Bonnell
There are two very important considerations when planning to take your kids on a rafting trip. Find out if this trip is: a.) suitable for children and of what age; and b.) has built-in downtime for kids to romp on shore, since there's a risk of restlessness if they're confined to small boats four or five hours a day. (Obviously, kids' ages are a factor in their ability to sit for an extended time.)
Most outfitters indicate age requirements in their brochures, based on the class of rapids, length of trip and nature of the trip. When you speak to a prospective outfitter and any clients they refer you to, ask each to describe a typical day.
A good guideline in planning the duration of a river trip is your child's age: roughly one day on the river per year of his or her age. Our three-night, four-day voyage on the San Juan was perfect for Moses at ages 3 and 4. At 5, he'll be ready to spend four nights out and ride somewhat bigger rapids. We traveled about five miles a day, an ideal pace that allowed for a balance of river time and shore activityhiking, setting up and taking down camp, collecting firewood, river-bathing, cooking.
Our guide Marc had assembled a small flotilla for this trip consisting of: two oar-powered, Kodiak-style inflatables, in which we stored provisions and sleeping gear; a Mad River canoe; and two inflatable kayaks. The canoe and kayaks were strictly for fun, diversion, and development of our solo river-running skills. Besides Marc and our family, we had Marc's nephew Mike, 8, and three other adultsone river"virgin" and two experienced rafterson the trip. Having a choice of craft made the trip interesting and challenging for adults and kids alike; before long, we each had a favorite vessel and savored mastering the river's every little riffle. Even Moses, kayaker extraordinaire, can't wait for this year's trip.
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