Yampa River Rafting with Del Sol String Quartet

Don’t miss the pre-trip meeting at Holiday’s headquarters in Naples, Utah, at 7:00 p.m., Mountain Time! This is when we’ll hand out waterproof bags and provide instructions on how to pack them. Buy any last-minute items from our store (see our packing checklist for a list of items you can find at our store) and ask any last-minute questions!

Meet back at our warehouse bright and early, toss your packed bags into a raft for transport, and then we’ll hit the road for the 90-minute drive to the put in at Deer Lodge Park in Colorado.

Once on the river, Yampa Canyon swallows us up, and we’re off! Rapids begin almost immediately: small, but splashy. We’ll pause for lunch along the shore, and set up camp in a grove of juniper trees just above Teepee Rapid.

The soft lilt of stringed instruments will be your wake-up call. Enjoy the first morning concert from the members of the Del Sol Quartet, then meander down to our camp kitchen for breakfast. Teepee Rapid starts the day: a big splash in a raft or an even bigger splash in an inflatable kayak! We’ll hit several more rapids on our way to lunch, and possibly hike up Starvation Valley, the side canyon that feeds the second big rapid of the trip, Big Joe. Camp tonight at Mather’s Hole and sleep in a natural amphitheater – perfect for another musical performance.

Another sunrise concert and gourmet breakfast give way to a gentle float past The Grand Overhang and Cleopatra’s Couch. Visit the Mantle Cave, an archaeological site, and then float past Tiger Wall, a striped sandstone overhang. They say kissing it brings good luck for just a few miles downstream we’ll run Warm Springs Rapid. In 1965, a massive debris flow from Warm Springs Draw choked the Yampa with boulders, forming the river’s largest rapid. Celebrate our successful passage with a meal of chicken fajitas and homemade sopaipillas! Listen to the quartet work through its evening tuning session while the stars turn on and the Milky Way glows.

Today’s morning harmony is a prelude to the confluence of the Yampa and the Green rivers at Echo Park. Here the canyon widens and the rivers flow together around Steamboat Rock and into Whirlpool Canyon. The afternoon may be spent hiking or lounging at Jones Hole Creek: a picturesque trout stream with a waterfall and pictographs. We’ll camp downstream for one more night of music, stars, and camaraderie. Feast on steak or salmon and a decadent dessert before drifting off to sleep with the sounds of the river soothing your slumber.

Soft string sounds send us off into a peaceful morning in Island and Rainbow parks. Paddle an inflatable kayak in calm water and look for bald eagle nests in the cottonwood trees along the river. After lunch, we’ll run the last rapids of the trip. Split Mountain Gorge includes Moonshine, SOB, Schoolboy, and Inglesby rapids. One after the other, the splashing continues all the way to the take out. After loading up the boats and gear, it’s a 30-minute ride back to Vernal. Our expected time of arrival back at our headquarters is 4:00 p.m.

Please note: this is a sample itinerary and is solely intended to give you an idea of what the trip will be like. Keep an open mind, be flexible, go with the flow, and enjoy!