Ride the thrilling rapids through Horseshoe Canyon. Experience exhilarating whitewater on the Bow River, with an optional cliff jump.
A half-day whitewater tour is for adventure lovers who want rafting thrills and excitement close to Banff, Canmore, and Calgary. The Horseshoe Canyon section offers spectacular scenery, big waves and up to class IV whitewater. Experience a sense of remoteness while you raft through shale canyons and awesome whitewater.
The Horseshoe Canyon rafting experience:
- Predominantly class 3 and 4
- Three major rapids
- Your trip finishes with a short stretch of calm and relaxing Class 1-2 rapids
- This finishing section will become a class 3+ or 3 by the end of the season when the water level drops due to reduced snowmelt
- Intensity Level: Moderate
Wondering what the class levels mean? Check out our Whitewater Rafting Rapids Classification Guide.
See this Banff area raft trip for yourself in the video below!
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James's Pick
"You never forget jumping 10 metres into the glacial-fed Bow River! With big rapids and a remote feel, you can see why so many movies and TV shows have been filmed in the canyon." - James McKinlay, Raft Guide (Senior Trip Leader)
The best parts of the tour for most people include the following:
1.5 - 2 Hours on the Bow River
Optional cliff jump and swim
Free photos
Everything is provided!
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James's Pick
"You never forget jumping 10 metres into the glacial-fed Bow River! With big rapids and a remote feel, you can see why so many movies and TV shows have been filmed in the canyon." - James McKinlay, Raft Guide (Senior Trip Leader)
For those taking transport from Banff, the pickup time is 7:35am from behind the Mt Royal Hotel in Banff (hotel address: 138 Banff Ave) and in Canmore the pickup time is time is 8:00am from the Coast Canmore Hotel (hotel address: 511 Bow Valley Trail). Please allow 5 hours for those taking transport from Canmore and 5.5 hours for those taking transport from Banff.
The Nakoda Lakeside Lodge has clean port-a-potties, male and female change tents and ample free parking.
If you don’t have your own vehicle transportation is available for an additional fee on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from the public bus parking behind the Mount Royal Hotel in Banff (7:35am) and the Coast Canmore Hotel and Conference Centre in Canmore (8am). Please select your preferred pickup location during the booking process.
You can wear sunglasses/glasses as long as these are secured with a strap or piece of string, and contact lenses are usually okay if you are comfortable swimming with them and tell your guide. Sunscreen is great on a hot day for any areas not covered by the wetsuit, but avoid putting it above or near your eyes. You can bring your own waterproof camera or GoPro which can be secured with your own chest harness or on a helmet with a GoPro mount, but we are not responsible for loss or damage of your equipment.
Guests should be physically fit and have a reasonable swimming ability. If you have never rafted before or do not know how to swim, we recommend the Kananaskis Whitewater Rafting Tour, as the rapids and river are not as strong as the other tours.
The tour is run by Chinook Rafting who have been operating whitewater rafting tours as a licensed company in the province of Alberta since 1983 and all of the rafting guides are trained in Swiftwater Rescue and First Aid & CPR. What this means for you is that they are confident that they can manage, not eliminate, the risks today to offer you an exciting and fun day on the river, creating as safe a framework as they can, given what we are doing. However, it is important to remember that we are not on a track, this isn’t Disneyland! The fact that we’re not on a track adds excitement to what we’re doing, but it also adds inherent risks.
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James's Pick
"You never forget jumping 10 metres into the glacial-fed Bow River! With big rapids and a remote feel, you can see why so many movies and TV shows have been filmed in the canyon." - James McKinlay, Raft Guide (Senior Trip Leader)
- The minimum age is 12 years and the minimum weight per person is 90 lbs. If the guest is unaccompanied by an adult then the minimum age is 16 years old.
- The maximum weight per person is 350 lbs.
- A waiver must be completed prior to the trip and is a condition of participation, this will be sent through upon booking. In addition, a Parental Consent form must be completed by the parent or legal guardian of any child under the age of 18 years prior to arrival at the riverbase. This is especially important if you are bringing someone else’s child (under 18 years old) rafting.
- Photo ID may be required for identity verification.
- Please note that this tour requires a minimum of 8 participants, please call the day prior to confirm the tour.
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