White water rafting through the Grand Canyon sounds like the holiday of a lifetime for many people. And for many it may be the beginning of a love for river raft trips that will have you returning year after year. In either case, it is best to begin with river trips with a certified and experienced outfitter who can ensure that you and your family find the adventure and serenity you are seeking on your holiday.
The Grand Canyon River
The Grand Canyon River is part of the Colorado River. The Paiute Indian name for the canyon is Kaibab, which translates as “mountain lying down” or sometimes as “mountain turned upside down.” It refers to the creamy white Kaibab Limestone underlying the surface of the park. Some 5 million visitors view the canyon each year.
Even though it is one of the world’s most spectacular canyons, the Grand Canyon is neither the deepest or the longest. Its average depth is 1 mile and and it is 277 miles long. The Canyon was formed when the river cut through metaphoric schist rock, which geologists estimate is 1.75 billion years old. That’s just under half the age of the earth itself, which is 4.5 billion years old.
Rafting trips in the Grand Canyon
Rafting is a highly popular sport, and more than a quarter of all Americans – about 28% – have been on river rafting trips or intend to try river trips.
River rafting trips can last from 8 to 16 days and use motorized rafts or wooded dories. Each raft caries four to eight rafters. Whitewater rafting trips are an adventure for the whole family, suitable for anyone between the ages of 8 to 80 years old.
Days of adventure on the river are rounded off with camping under the stars, beside the rushing water. This is a time to shut off the cell phones, talk or think or just watch the incredible beauty of the natural world that out should life and it’s problems in perspective.
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