Kings River Expeditions

Welp,
Drove to the river expecting an exciting weekend but there was no river at all nor a drop of water in the bed. No prob I can always find something to do in central cal and so I just headed over to Tulare to explore the sex trafficking capital of California!

We thought with the drought this might not be the best experience but it was great! When you arrive for the one day trip you are greeted with snacks followed by a fajita lunch. The staff is friendly and knowledgable. The river was fun since I had no idea how it was going to be. Plan to get wet. We had a great dinner and dessert afterwards. There is horseshoes to play. Think of it as a one day camping trip. You may want to take games or cards. There is not cell service. Have fun!

WOW WOWOWOWOOOWOWOWOWOW!!! I had soooooooooooo much fun!!! So, my experience with KRE started through a meetup group that I’m a part of. The family of one of one of the members does an annual trip and they apparently have a loooooong history of camping and WWR through KRE. I have to say, that relationship and the respect and heck, I’ll say it… LOVE that both sides have for each other was touching. You RARELY see a business that really treats it’s customers like FAMILY the way KRE treated this group. I was truly impressed.
Antyway…
We arrived Saturday and the campsite was very clean and the bathrooms were pretty immaculate. The equipment for activities (volleyball setup, horseshoes, etc) was in great condition and the area for camping was nicely situated along the water. Well, you could hear the river rushing through but you couldn’t really SEE it from the camping spaces… it was only a few feet away though.
We set up camp and pretty soon they were ringing the bell for our orientation. They went over a bunch of safety stuff and just the lay out of what was going to happen. The guides were young college aged looking folks and they were super cute and funny… but you could tell that they had lots of experience and they made sure to highlight the things that they wanted to make sure you took seriously.
We got our gear and you had the option of getting the full wetsuit, booties and jacket or you could just get what you need. They had a WIDE range of sizes for the wetsuits… even REALLY BIG sizes (I’m a tall and plus sized lady and they EASILY had my size).
After that we changed and headed for the old school bus to take us to the top of the river. On the way there the group sang songs and everybody was in great spirits!
Once at the river «put out» we got a little more instruction on safety and procedures.
We practiced a bit in the still water and then headed down the river! OH MY GOSH! I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared but had so much fun in my life!!! It was the most awesome experience EVER!
We made it down the 10 mile river safely and ended up right back at our campsite. soooo awesome!
I have only 2 «cons» for this experience!
**Our instructor/​guide was great HOWEVER I would have liked more instruction on THE PROPER FORM for the forward and backward strokes. I feel like she just told us to «paddle backwards» without going into HOW to PROPERLY paddle backwards. I was worrying about proper form to protect my back, you know? Maybe that’s jut me cuz I’m old. LOL.
**That night the staff members were SUPER LOUD while we were trying to sleep! We were going to have to get up really early the next morning and after a full day I was dead tired… but the staff members were in the dining area laughing and joking until like 2am! And because of the setup their voices carried down the hill and right into my earhole! SUPER ANNOYING!!! I wanted to say something but I didn’t want to be a party pooper… later I was thinking CONSIDERING THE MONEY I PAID I SHOULD HAVE JUST YELLED AT THEM TO SHUT THE HELL UP! LOL. But I’m nice… I don’t do things like that.
This was SUCH a frickin great experience though! I hope to go back next year!

Although the drive out to Twin Pines Camp had us questioning our wisdom (was Deliverance filmed out here?), once we arrived at Kings River Expeditions all fear and hesitation was forgotten. The staff was super friendly and helpful as we checked in and even provided snacks and refreshments in the waiting time before all the festivities began. Lots of fun things were offered to fill the down time, such as volleyball, ping pong, Uno, and horseshoes. Our trip was the 10am option although an earlier choice and a two-​day trip are also offered by KRE.
After orientation, a safety briefing, and lunch, we embarked on a bus trip up the canyon to the launch point. Four hours of exciting, soaking, bouncing, swimming, thrilling hours later we arrived back at the camp. Our guide, Jason, was fun and informative. He shared natural history, local lore, and his own stories with us which made the whole while seem like a gathering of old friends. Many laughs were shared. When my hunny dislodged himself (or was pushed, jury’s still out) from the boat, Jason skillfully and tactfully managed to both direct and retrieve him as well as give rowing commands to us remaining in the boat throughout the rapid. A camera crew was part of the armada of rafts traveling downriver and managed to capture a lot of great moments during the trip, which were later shown to us as a video during the dinner hour and made available for purchase.
It would be hard to choose whether the meals or the adventure itself made the trip the great experience that we enjoyed. We were provided lunch and dinner as well as the aforementioned snacks and pre-​dinner drinks (Happy Hour?! Great accompaniment to an afternoon in the waves and sun!) with various munchies. Everything was delicious, filling, and fresh. It was a full restaurant experience under a canopy beside a river.
I’ve been rafting on several rivers will several companies in Northern California and Oregon but this was by far the best experience I’ve had. I will definitely be recommending it to friends and talking about the thrill for a long while.

My fiancée and I had a blast! The entire staff did a great job preparing two meals for us. Our guide Karina was outstanding in her field ;) We would recommend this trip for beginners and the experienced. It’s a great way to spend a hot day enjoying good food, water, thrills and hanging with great people! GET IT!!!

KRE is an awesome adventure! Very professional and experienced guides. we had a blast! We had two delicious meals, one before the trip and one at the end with beer and wine. Free tshirts and they photographed and videotaped our trip. will definitely be doing this again! We went in may water was 56 but air temp was 93 so no need for wetsuits. Would recomend a rash guard, hat and lots of sunscreen. Rapids are better after a heavy rain and or a winter with a lot of snow. it was perfect for us!

HELL YEAH!!! I could give another star. I really loved this place. I went to this place with my girlfriend and we had fun being at this place. Anyone who would like to go for rafting. this is a good place to start with… also the food at their camp was really delicious … didn’t expect that kind if service. I got a pretty good deal fro. living social. check out for deals before you visit them. Finally I would say this is awesome.!!

Had an awesome time last week! We signed up for the one-​day 10am trip on a Thursday. It took us about an hour and a half to get there from Clovis. The drive up was long and windy but beautiful! The only traffic we encountered were some cows threatening to cross the road.
A quick welcome and safety orientation was followed by lunch at 11. Bathrooms were clean. No showers. Some people had camped out the night before. There was a volley ball court set up and a huge canopy with tons of picnic tables.
Wetsuits and booties were available to rent ($ 7 & $ 3).
At noon we boarded the bus and took a 45 minute drive up the river. The driver drove backwards across a bridge, at one point with NO HANDS! That takes talent.
Once we got to our destination spot, we were greeted by our tour guides and water to drink. They provided string to tie your hat or sunglasses to your lifejacket so you wouldn’t lose them. We were assigned to our boats and met our guides. Travis was our guide and he made the whole experience that much more awesome for a first timer. Once on the boats, our guide took the time to go over the paddling (forwards, backwards, left side, right side), and other general directions. Then we were off…
And I must say, river rafting on this river is not as scary as I expected it to be. At times it was exciting, and at other times it was relaxing. For a first timer, it was the perfect mix. Overall a great experience! They took pictures and video. A cd-​rom of the pics was $ 65 ($ 5 extra copy) and the dvd or the video was $ 50 ($ 5 extra copy).
After about 2 hours of rafting we reached the camp site. Snacks (popcorn, check mix, chips, veggies) and drinks (sodas, wine) were served while we waited for the video dvd and pictures you be put together.
During this time some of the guides were preparing dinner (tritip and chicken I belive) but we didn’t stay for dinner. We didn’t want to be driving on the windy road in the dark so we left after we got our video dvd.
PS my whole body was sore for two days LOL But it was well worth it. So much fun and will be doing it again real soon!

Just cam back from KRE (Kings River Expeditions) and let me tell you, for a first-​timer I had a great time. I was a little worried about the whole camping and drowning in the water thing. But I have to say I had one of the best times.
When I got to the camp site, it was clean and luckily some people from my group saved some spots right by the water. There were a few bugs, but that’s whats to be expected. There were bathrooms and sinks but it was a far walk from where we set up our tents. The bathrooms themselves were very clean and actually kind of nice.
As for the rafting, it was an experience I will never forget. There was more water then usual because of the snow fall this past winter. The drive up was kind of scary because they take you up this road just big enough for the bus. The driver drives in reverse across the bridge and your view is of the rapids you will be going down.
Once you get to the point where your adventure will begin you are assigned to a boat and instructor. The instructors were awesome especially JASON, our instructor, The whole time he kept us save, taught us a few things, and we even rescued someone from the water. We even rode a rapid backwards which was the highlight of the trip. In the words of Jason it was «TOTALLY TUBULAR»
After our adventures down the rapids we were given a lunch of hamburgers, chips, cookies, fruits, beans, and soda. It was good after a long 2-​hours on the water.
All I have to say about KRE is that I WILL definitely be going again.

went in sept. water was not very high but rough enough that people fell out. weather was great. water was refreshing but not freezing. guides were friendly. just wish it the rapids were more rapid.

Ok — Yay I’m a fan but not of the horrible facilities. The showers were broken and the toilets were not well ventilated, not to mention that the lights were broken so you had to bring a flash light w/​you at night. — But, this all is nothing for true campers. Me, I’m a city rat so I don’t deal well w/​nature.
That being said, this was my first rafting trip and I hope it won’t be my last. It was incredibly cold but tons of fun. I actually wish that I had gone the 2^nd day but the 1^st day out just took it’s toll. The people are great — very easy going and friendly. The most important thing to bring to the trip though is a good attitude and alcohol.
The cost includes meals which really aren’t very impressive. My favorite was the steak — very yummy for camp food but warm to slightly cold by the time everyone gets it, and sammies for lunch.