White Water Rafting Golden, BC

While driving to and from the RiverBase, for your Golden whitewater rafting adventure, plenty of stops can be made en route. Some stops may take only a few minutes, others invite visitors to linger! Driving to our RiverBase from Golden, please allow 20 minutes. 

 GOLDEN ACTIVITIES AND AREA ATTRACTIONS 

Things to do in Golden, BC, not surprisingly, involve being in the great outdoors. Golden is, after all, nestled between two massive mountain ranges and two massive rivers. Whether before or after your whitewater rafting adventure, take the time to enjoy the charming attractions this cozy mountain town has to offer. 

Kicking Horse Pedestrian Bridge: While exploring the charming downtown area of Golden, wander towards the river to see the longest free-standing timber-frame bridge in Canada. It is a beauty. The bridge spans the Kicking Horse River and serves as a connector for the 7km of Rotary trails winding their way around the town’s perimeter. 

Golden Farmer’s Market: Twice weekly throughout the summer, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, visitors can eat local, buy local and enjoy local! 

Live Music: Every Wednesday evening, down by the timber-frame bridge, live music fills the air. Bands, quartets and duos perform to fun-loving crowds in the square and surrounding restaurant patios. 

Art Gallery of Golden: Kicking Horse Culture starts and stops at the local Art Gallery, located in the heart of downtown on 9th Avenue North. The surrounding natural features inspire a vast assortment of local artisans: Carvers, weavers, photographers, jewellers, potters, and more. 

Golden Skybridge: Just beyond downtown Golden, on the way to the Wild Water Adventures RiverBase on TransCanada Highway #1, is the area’s newest attraction, Golden Skybridge.  Stroll across Canada’s highest suspension bridges before or after rafting the Kicking Horse River with us. Check out our Across The Bridge Down The River adventure package, and enjoy two of Golden’s most popular activities.

Whitewater rafting in Golden, BC involves travelling a remarkable section of the TransCanada Highway in order to arrive at our RiverBase. The Kicking Horse Canyon is notorious not only for rafting and kayaking but for cars and trucks, too, with near-vertical elevation above and sheer drop-offs below. It is an incredible marvel of nature. 

East of the canyon stands another marvel, a man-made marvel. The Park Bridge towers almost 300 feet above the river, and 1,200 feet across. It is a sight hard to miss. Pull over at the Kicking Horse Rest Area and saunter down the old highway, passing directly underneath the modern structure, and see where you’ll be rafting later in the day! 

Just a few minutes’ drive beyond the RiverBase is Wapta Falls, in Yoho National Park. A gentle 20-minute trail leads to a thundering river-wide drop that is spectacular at any time of the season. This is the Kicking Horse River, but not a section of the river that we raft! 

If driving from Calgary, Banff, or Lake Louise, Wild Water Adventures’ RiverBase is the closest location offering Kicking Horse whitewater rafting.  Driving to our river base location from the East saves guests valuable travel time to and from the river!

The beauty of our RiverBase is its location: It is close to the TransCanada highway and close to the Kicking Horse River. For rafters driving from Golden and more western points, we are perfectly situated on the doorstep of Yoho National Park for further Rocky Mountain explorations. For those driving from the east (Calgary, Banff or Lake Louise), we are the closest Kicking Horse outfit en route. The RiverBase is located before the town of Golden, and just a few minutes away from our river put-in and take-out points.

Our convenient location greatly reduces shuttle times to and from the river, and the overall time spent in vehicles. Wild Water Adventures prefers that guests raft the Kicking Horse river, rather than drive back and forth (and back and forth) on the road next to it!

From Golden, head east on TransCanada Highway #1, toward Lake Louise and Banff. After 10 kilometres or so, pass the Kicking Horse Rest Area on your left. After another 10 kilometres, pass the 10 Mile Hill Brake Check. In a few minutes (before entering Yoho National Park), take the right-hand exit onto Beaverfoot Road, noting the Wild Water Adventures billboard at the exit with two Canadian flags flying on top. Immediately make a hard-right turn onto our gravel driveway, continuing downhill to the spacious guest parking area and RiverBase DayLodge.