Lets do this by supplying you with 2premium New Mexico Rafting Companies and 1 Kayaking Information & Guide website. All with outstanding reputations for excellence in safety - experience and customer service.
Company Philosophy
Since our founding in 1990, Kokopelli's goal has been to provide a quality recreational experience to people of all ages. Kokopelli guests can expect the highest quality custom trips, great food, personalized service, and, of course, an exceptional guiding staff. Our professionally-guided tours focus on the natural and cultural history of the region, with plenty of fun and adventure mixed in. We provide everything you need for a comfortable outdoor experience--whether it's for an afternoon or a week.
Commitment to the Environment
The owners and staff of Kokopelli Rafting Adventures love the natural world and do what they can to protect and preserve places of natural beauty. Our most important act of environmentalism is the teaching and example setting demonstrated on all of our trips. We strive encourage and support appreciation, and preservation of our rivers and natural areas. Kokopelli Rafting practices techniques and policies, such as Leave No Trace practices, to minimize impacts on our rivers and riverside environments. Setting this example of reverence and respect for our natural world is our greatest environmental mission. In addition, we seek to run a sustainable operation and improve our practices whenever possible. We recycle all of our food and beverage containers, print release forms on recycled paper, purchase green electricity credits for the power used at our facilities, and consistently look for more areas to improve our operations.
Yahoo Customer Review:
If you have time for a little adventure while you are in the area, this is the company to call. You can book half day, full day or overnight trips that include class II and III rapids. The two-day trip to the Taos Box and the Lower Rio Grande Gorge is a trip to remember. Prices range from $45 for a half-day run to $185 for the two-day trip. The company provides all the equipment. If you are looking for something a little calmer, ask about the kayaking tours.
551 West Cordova Road
Santa Fe, NM 87505-1849
+1 505 983 3734 / +1 800 879 9035
Open Hours9a-5p daily
Good-humored, responsible, dedicated to the outdoor life. They have received the best training on the river and SAFETY is their top priority.
Equipment Counts
We use larger self-bailing rafts on the harder/high water runs. They are safer and drier. For late summer we pull out our sport fleet, smaller boats and funyaks that make threading the low water rock gardens big fun! New Wave provides you with the best boat for the job.
Great Food
Robust meals, including our lavish all-you-can-eat lunch buffet, are standard operating procedure.
Protective Gear
We want you to be comfortable. On the Taos Box, we offer you wet suits, booties, rain gear and even gloves! Raingear (tops and bottoms) is also provided on all other trips.
You're Special
We wouldn't be on the river without you. We like our guests and love our work. We don't take you for granted.
This full-day river trip traverses 16 miles of wilderness gorge, encountering demanding rapids guaranteed to get you wet. This is our most exciting rafting adventure and is NOT for the timid. The Taos Box trip meets at the Rio Grande Gorge Visitor Center at 10 AM, and returns there at approximately 4 PM.
Weekend: $115 Weekend Group of 10+: $100 Weekday: $100 Weekday Group of 10+: $90
New Wave Rafting P.O. Box 70, Embudo, NM 87531 Phone: 1 800 984-1444
Email: sales@newwaverafting.com
Headquarters Located at:
2110 Hwy. 68, at Mile 21, 21 miles north of Espanola, and three miles south of the Taos/Rio Arriba County line. Please feel free to stop by.
Kayaking - Its own specialty sport - Be Skilled and cautious - Only experienced Kayakers should try this alone or without the safety net of a guide accompanying you. Use this informative site below when preparing, I recommend them for safety and a myriad of information on the local area - rivers - and best agencies.
Not only are New Mexico's infrequent rivers lifeblood to the arid state, but they're also a source of wet ecstasy for intrepid Kayaking adventurers who regularly ply their waters in all manner of craft, from kayaks to canoes to hypalon rafts. Given that nearly all of the waterways rely on melting mountain snowpack for sustenance, it makes sense that the most exciting whitewater runs abound in the northern part of the state where most of the mountains are located. The unbridled Rio Grande west of Taos is the river of choice for experienced whitewater kayaking enthusiasts, while a tributary, the dam-controlled Rio Chama, is preferred by those seeking a gentler ride. Apart from these two premier runs, which are regulated by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), an assortment of smaller rivers can be navigated during the short spring runoff season, which typically begins in April. Portions of other dam-controlled rivers, including the Rio Grande from south of Santa Fe to the Texas border, can be floated year-round when enough water is released.
Rafting, canoeing and kayaking are wilderness experiences and take place miles from the nearest telephone and often the nearest road. Boaters are on their own to solve problems that arise and they must have corresponding skills. Like most wilderness adventures, boating is not predictable.
Commercial River Outfitters
For those lacking such skills and experience, 16 outfitters offer trips on the Rio Grande in northern New Mexico and 12 companies will take boaters down the Rio Chama. Excursions range in length from half-day to multiple days. The Bureau of Land Management maintains a list of outfitters at:
For other general information, including maps on these two rivers, you may also contact the Bureau of Land Management, 226 Cruz Alta Road, Taos, NM 87571; (505) 758-8851, www.nm.blm.gov. For recorded river information call (505) 758-8148.