About Class III Inflatable Kayaking
Spend a day or two rafting Class III white water in inflatable kayaks (Fun-Yaks). Our Christian staff and guides will teach you the basics of white water kayaking on some calm water before we head down the river. You will work in pairs to navigate your yak through waves, around rocks and through the rapids. This is a one of a kind, fun, challenging and growing experience!
The South Fork of the American River in Northern California has two, ten mile sections (the Upper-Chili-Bar Run and the Lower-Gorge Run). Both are perfect for one or two days of white water inflatable kayaking. Each section is full of adventurous fun for Church youth groups, families, individuals, or Christian private schools. Â The Upper and Lower sections of the South Fork of the American River take about 4 hours to yak. While you can request the Upper or Lower, we are currently not always able to guarantee which section you will experience. This adventure is for High School & Up.
What is Included
Class III Whitewater Inflatable Kayaking with a professional whitewater guides in attendance.
Safety & Whitewater Instruction
Professional Rafting Photos from Hotshot Images
Lunch
What you need to bring
You and your Friends. Ages High school & Up.
Swimsuit / swim trunks / Athletic Shorts
Footwear that will stay on your feet (no flip-flops or Crocs!)
See our What to Bring List for full details
What we provide
Kayaks
Paddles
Life Jackets
Helmets
Guides
Drinking Water
Food (varies by trip, but all include lunch)
Wetsuits (if needed)
Instruction & Training
Games, Fun, Leadership and Team Building – Time permitting
 American River rafting trips include all transportation once you get to our camp.
Technical Whitewater Information
Rafting versus Kayaking
There are quite a few obvious differences between white water river rafting in a raft versus in an inflatable kayak. First, the most significant end result is that on day trips with 20 people rafting you might see one or two people accidentally fall out (more likely none) at some point in the trip. While if those same 20 people are in kayaks, you might only see one or two people stay in their kayak the entire time. Basically, when funyaking we expect that you will get a much more up close and personal experience with the river.
Secondly, while we include more guides on our kayaking adventures than our rafting tours, most of the kayaks will not have a guide in it. This means that often times you’ll find yourself and a friend battling the waves together. You will have to rely upon each other’s abilities instead of resting in the expert abilities of your guide. Now this doesn’t mean that you’ll be touring the river all on your own. Your guides of course will be close by, assisting you, giving instructions, showing you where to go. Furthermore they will also help by picking you and your paddles out of the water when you suddenly go for a swim.
Finally, inflatable kayaking tours are best suited for older youth, in good physical condition, and excited about some added challenges. They should be comfortable with the probability of falling out, and eager to take control of navigating the rapids.
River Classification System
Learn about the river class difficulty rating system, and how you can use it to get a general idea of how one rapid or river might compare to another one. Note: Water levels can vary Spring through Fall which will affect the intensity of rapids.
Water Flow Statement from El Dorado County
El Dorado County ask that all rafters on the South Fork of the American River be aware that "Water flows in the South Fork American River result from releases from facilities located upstream. Such water releases are not subject to the control of El Dorado county or commercial rafting companies operating under permits from El Dorado County."
Details & Possible Upgrades for River Rafting in California
By default, each of the above multi-day rafting trips have you arrive around 7 PM the night before (eating dinner before you arrive), and leaving around 6 PM (eating dinner on the road) at the end of your last adventure.
If you live more than 3 hours away, or you just want to finish your trip with even more awesomeness, we recommend you add dinner and another night of camping & campfire time to the end of your trip for just $35/person.
Want a Northern California rafting trip that’s a little more adventurous? Try our Middle Fork American River Class IV California Rafting Trips. Again, please contact us if you have any questions, or are not finding exactly the rafting experience that you are looking for.
T-shirts can be ordered for the whole group at $20/person.
Deposits and Cancellations
All Inclusive Pricing
The prices listed on this site contain all relevant fees, rentals, and taxes. There are no hidden costs.
Minimum Numbers
We can often accommodate groups of less than 6 people, but on some dates we might need to require you bring a minimum of 6 people for multi-day Class III California whitewater rafting trips, and a minimum of 10 people for trips that include a day of IV rafting, or III kayaking. The minimum number of people that you sign up for is used to determine your non-refundable deposit amounts.
Deposits
For rafting trips booked at least a month in advance, you will have 2 weeks to pay a non-refundable deposit of just 25% (based on the minimum number of people you plan to bring) is all that is required to hold your whitewater reservation. If you are booking your river trip at least 3 months in advance, we’ll spread that payment out into two payments over two months to make things easier for you. For trips booked less than 30 days out, full payment will be due shortly after booking your whitewater trip.
If you signed up for a range of people, 3 Fridays before your trip you will tell us the final number of people that you plan to bring. Two Fridays before your trip is also the date at which you will be responsible for paying for the number of people you have reported to us even if someone cancels out last minute.
Cancellations
We are used to playing in the outdoors under a wide variety of weather conditions in California, so rafting trips typically happen rain or shine. We will contact you should we need to cancel your river trip in advance for any reason. In the infrequent event that Rock-N-Water cancels a trip, you will of course receive a full refund.
Unique circumstances are a part of the complexity of daily life. While we can not promise to give you grace on your deposit or final payment, we can promise you that should you need to cancel or bring less people, we will individually evaluate your unique circumstances to determine if exceptions can be made.