Experience one of America’s most popular rivers. Despite the name, the Arkansas River runs through Colorado, and is Colorado’s prime river to raft on. The Arkansas River is responsible for carving out many popular and renown destinations such as Brown’s Canyon and the Royal Gorge. The Arkansas River in Colorado is a good mix between Mid-West and desert scenery. The Arkansas River typically has rapids class III and above. Trips runs May-August, and earlier spring months again has the best water levels.

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The Arkansas River originates in the state of Colorado and flows Eastward into the Mississippi River. The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the river. The Arkansas River is the fourth longest river in the United Stated, and the second longest tributary in the Mississippi River system.

From Colorado, the Arkansas River then runs through Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, before meeting up with the Mississippi River. In total the river runs 1450 miles, which makes the Arkansas River the longest tributary in the Mississippi-Missouri water system.

Carving out many canyons and gorges, perhaps one of the most well known is the Royal Gorge. With a width of 50 feet at its base and a few hundred feet at its top, and a depth of 1200 feet in places, the 10-mile-long canyon is a narrow, steep crevasse through the granite of Fremont Peak.

One of the most popular recreational activities on the Arkansas River is whitewater rafting . Popular Colorado rafting trips are commercially run through the regions of the Arkansas River. Brown Canyon, Narrows, Bighorn Canyon, Numbers, Royal Gorge are all popular section and spots on the river that whitewater rafters often hit. The river is often too large to run your own private trip through unless you have previous experience and proper equipment.

Rafting America Information on the Arkansas River.

Written by  Ryan Hutchings.

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