Arkansas River Rafting Colorado – The Gauntlet Rafting
Advanced Arkansas River Rafting Trips:
Rafting the Arkansas River: Pine Creek and the Numbers
The Gauntlet: Pine Creek and The Numbers
Full Day
Advanced + Class IV & V
Check In: 8:30 am
$129, ages 15+
Leaves from AVA’s Granite Outpost: Map It!
Located 14 miles north of Buena Vista and 19 miles south of Leadville in Central Colorado.
Want to experience some of the wildest Arkansas River rafting Colorado has to offer? Then rafting The Gauntlet is a must! AVA runs more guests down these sections than any other company in Colorado, so you’re in good hands with highly experienced and safe guides. Blast down the Arkansas River and enjoy the most technical, steepest, and most continuous sections of whitewater rafting the Arkansas River offers. We launch in the sleepy mountain village of Granite, which quickly fades away upon entering Granite Gorge (Granite Gorge by itself is a trip appropriate for the whole family). Warm up for The Gauntlet rafting adventure in this gorgeous canyon on Class III whitewater rapids such as Maytag, Car Crash, and Hopscotch.
— WillI was super impressed with your operation. Our guide, Miles, was incredible. I’m in the process now of pulling together a much bigger trip for Labor Day…
By the time you catch your breath, you’ll be headed into our Class V section of Pine Creek, followed by the Triple Drop. The river narrows to about half its width and drops 200 feet over the course of one rapid! This continuous, steep, technical section will keep your paddle moving and your knuckles white. Continue the rest of your white water Gauntlet rafting trip down our notorious Class IV section of the Numbers. At the very end of the trip, enjoy our hot fajita lunch riverside. You won’t leave disappointed or dry! Be sure to stop back in our outpost to check yourself out on the monitors and purchase a picture for a souvenir of your Arkansas River rafting Colorado adventure through The Gauntlet!
Fun Fact: 61% of the people who rafted Pine Creek in 2010 went with AVA. There are 11 companies that run Pine Creek commercially, but none even come close to our experience!
Our Granite Outpost is located between Buena Vista and Leadville. Located just off Hwy 24, 19 miles south of Leadville or 14 miles north of Buena Vista, this trip is perfect for those looking for a challenging whitewater adventure!
Exhilarating whitewater experience on The Gauntlet rafting trip!!
- Full Day and ½ Day Advanced Class IV & V
- Meets at our Granite Outpost
- Minimum requirements: 15 years old and good physical condition
- Trip Duration: approx. 5 hours on the river
- Approximately 16 miles of travel down river
- Meet time at 8:30 am
- 200 Foot drop over the course of one rapid– Arkansas River rafting Colorado style!
- Hot Fajita Lunch
- Rappel a 75 foot cliff down to your raft for an additional cost
- Rafts on this section accommodate up to 6 people plus the guide
- Life jackets, wetsuits, splash jackets, and helmets are provided
- Peak Season for rafting the advanced trips on the Arkansas River: mid-May to mid-August
As you marvel at the beautiful Colorado scenery, keep a lookout for Big Horn sheep, river otters, deer and other native wildlife. If you’re lucky, you may catch a glimpse of a mountain lion or bear!
The Gauntlet and Zipline Package
Full Day Raft + Zipline Adventure
$218 adult, 15+ on the raft trip
Check in: 8:30 am
Granite Outpost: See Map
Here we have the best advanced whitewater rafting combined with exhilarating ziplining all in one day! Experienced rafters find Pine Creek to be the steepest, most technical and most continuous whitewater on the Arkansas River. The gorgeous Granite Gorge will get you all geared up before the river narrows to half its width and then drops 200 feet in the course of just one rapid! You won’t have long to recover from that excitement before you hit the Numbers. You’ll certainly work up an appetite for lunch after this rafting trip, so our hot chicken fajita lunch will be the perfect fuel you’ll need to enjoy one of the most exciting summertime Colorado mountain activities—ziplining! You will zoom from cliff to cliff while taking in all the beautiful scenery around you—snow-capped mountains, lush aspen and pine trees, and the breathtaking Arkansas River. The 44-acre Gold Damp property has all that and more! You must be at least 15 years old to participate in this tour, and you must be in good physical condition.
The Gauntlet with Rappel
It’s the ultimate adventure when you combine our Class IV and V full day Gauntlet rafting trip with a rappel down the walls of Granite Gorge to the river to meet your raft.
Full Day
Advanced + Class IV & V
Check In: 8:30 am
$194, ages 15+
Leaves from AVA’s Granite Outpost: Map It!
Located 14 miles north of Buena Vista and 19 miles south of Leadville in Central Colorado.
The Gauntlet with Rappel and Ziplining Package
Full Day Raft + Rappel + Zipline
$283 ages 15+ on the raft trip
Granite Outpost: See Map
Just when you thought it wasn’t possible, add a little more excitement to your already adrenaline-filled trip! Show up early and rappel seventy-five feet down to the river, where you meet your raft and the rest of your trip. Then get ready to enjoy the best advanced whitewater and the thrill of ziplining into one action-packed day! Pine Creek is the steepest, most technical, and most continuous section of whitewater on the entire Arkansas River. After your rappel, we’ll get you warmed up in the beautiful Granite Gorge before the river narrows to half its width and drops 200 feet in the course of a single rapid. You barely have time to catch your breath before starting on the notorious Numbers. We’ll break for a hot chicken fajita lunch and then take to the skies with one of the most exciting and popular Colorado mountain summer adventures – ziplining! Our zipline course is integrated into the wooded and craggy surroundings of our mountainous 43-acre Gold Camp property. Take in the views of snow-capped peaks and the Arkansas River as you zip from cliff to cliff between the pine and aspen trees. Minimum age 15. Good physical condition required.
The Gauntlet trip can add excitement to all Colorado excursions!
- Great addition for any meeting or convention
- The Gauntlet rafting trip is a unique activity for team building or improving leadership skills
- That extra something special for adventurous family reunions and summer vacations
- Check out all of our other rafting trips and activities for easier levels of rafting or trips for younger family members
Our Arkansas River rafting Colorado trip is over, now what?
Buena Vista and Leadville are small towns with big history and lots to do!
- Leadville is a special place…a treasure…a gem in the middle of Colorado. Located within easy driving distance from Denver and Colorado Springs, along the Top of the Rockies Scenic and Historic Byway, Leadville is a legendary frontier mining town with seventy square blocks of Victorian architecture, and adjacent 20 square miles of mining district
- Take a historic steam engine train ride in Leadville
- Continental Divide ATV Tours in Leadville
- Hike a Colorado 14-er!
- Relax in the nearby Mt Princeton or Cottonwood Hot Springs in Buena Vista
