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Read moreAre you ready for an unforgettable outdoor adventure? Our recent bikerafting trip on the Colorado River in Moab was exactly that. In this article, we’ll take you through our experience and share all the details you need to plan your own biking + packrafting journey in this stunning desert region.
Packrafting in Moab: A Last-Minute Decision
Moab is just a hop, skip and jump away from our home base in Durango, so we planned a fall camping adventure trip with some of our #vanlife friends. We had initially planned for a big bikerafting adventure on Saturday, but as we were wrapping up work on Friday morning, we checked the weather forecast and it showed a 65% chance of rain. Rain in the desert is not very conducive to adventure (think mud caked on your tires so thick they can’t move), so we made a spontaneous decision to squeeze in a shorter trip on Friday afternoon while the weather was still warm.
To make our adventure happen, we reached out to our local expert partner, Melissa from Desert Highlights in downtown Moab. She quickly assessed our needs and confirmed that four packrafts were available for the same day.
Renting Packrafts and Getting Ready
We sped to the shop to pick them up and after a quick demo, we had our 4 Alpacka Rafts ready to roll down the Colorado River. Because we’ve packrafted this river before, we did a self-guided adventure, but we highly recommend a guided packrafting tour for those new to packrafting or the Moab area. If you’re looking to learn all the ins and outs of packrafting or bikerafting (pairing a packrafting adventure with a biking adventure), taking a course is a great way to ramp up quickly.
- Total time: 3 hours 16 minutes
- Moving time: 2 hours 40 minutes
- Total distance (bike and paddle): 13.24 mi
- Awesomeness rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Bike Packrafting the Colorado River in Moab
We decided to put our packrafts in at the Gold Bar Campground north of town. First, we inflated our rafts using the bag inflation system which took about 10 minutes per raft, and ended up being only slightly longer than an SUP pump once we got the hang of it!
Next, we strapped our bikes to the packrafts carefully so that the chainring was facing outward so it wouldn’t cut into the rafts. We used gear straps to attach the the bikes to the provided carabineers and were ready to float down the river. Bringing along our bikes allows us to skip the shuttle and ride back to the start. Once ready, we dropped our rafts into the river, inflating one last time after hitting the cold water, where they lose a bit of air.
On our comeback list: We’d like to spend more time at this campground and go explore the Corona Arch Hike and The Jeep Arch hike on our next trip! Stay here, play here.
Consider taking a guided packrafting trip with the highest-rated local guides in Moab, UT. You can even combine multiple adventures into one trip and add on a canyoneering or mountain biking excursion to your packrafting adventure.
The beauty of guided trips is that you can learn a new activity, skip the stress of planning, and discover the local’s best kept secrets.
The Paddle
The float down the river was a super mellow, flat water paddle with breathtaking views of massive canyons and mesas surrounding us. The timing of the day was beautiful and the sun had lit up the red rock all around us. We knew that the 6.7-mile paddle would take a few hours and that our bike ride back would most likely be in the dark.
The Pedal
Our absolute favorite thing about bikerafting is the concept of eliminating the shuttle and doing a fully human-powered adventure! It’s a fantastic way to extend the adventure, even when the paddle is over. Packrafts are ultralight and easily packable, thus allowing you to access more remote sections of a river, either by biking or hiking to the put in.
We finished our paddle at the Potash Boat Ramp, which is a large and paved boat ramp that was easy to spot. By the time we finished the paddle, the full moon was beginning to rise and the temps were starting to drop. It took us about 15 minutes to deflate the rafts, roll them up, and strap them to our bikes. We threw on our headlamps and pedaled off for the relatively flat, 6.7-mile bike ride back to the start at the Gold Bar Campground.
We’ve also done some bigger bikerafting trips that required off-road bike travel that we’re excited to share with you soon!
Paddle and rappel your way through Moab’s stunning canyons! Experience the perfect blend of adventure and tranquility with our canyoneering+packrafting adventures.
Apres Adventures in Moab
A great way to finish the day was to head to Proper Brewing Company in Moab, grab some grub and finish off with their delicious vegan milkshake that we earned.
We hope that this article has inspired you to spend more time IRL with friends, away from the phones, unplugging, and creating new memories.
Check out our full list of epic outdoor adventures in Moab.
Meet Julie & Reet
We’re Julie & Reet, the outdoor adventurers behind TripOutside. We love human-powered outdoor adventures and have traveled to hundreds of destinations that you see on TripOutside.
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