Zephyr Whitewater Rafting

Zephyr was the ideal outfit for my first river rafting experience. The water level may have been low, but our guide Phil made it so much fun!
Phil was the best guide. He was talkative, energetic, and clearly passionate about rafting and adventures. He did a great job instructing us to paddle as a unit and to have fun.
I would highly recommend using Zephyr for your whitewater rafting trip and ask for Phil to be your guide!

This company has some amazing customer service. A big shout out to the guides Adam, Jess and Lindsay! They made sure my experience was top notch by providing a memorable journey through the scenic Merced River. Their knowledge about the river and rafting was commendable and they were gracious enough to hang out with us later that evening too! A highly recommended activity at Yosemite! Kudos Zepher!

our trip was great. guides super friendly and knowledgeable. we took our 7 and 9 year old girls down the Merced from Indian flats campground. They loved it! well worth the money and what an experience. the photographer did a great job of capturing the moments so we didn’t need a camera. on a side note our 72 vw bus had mechanical issues and our bus driver Jim went above and beyond finding a mechanic while we played who could work on our car. I cant thank him enough for that he saved my week.

I haven’t been able to sleep all night because my smile won’t go away.
Yesterday the family (myself, my wife and my 10 yo son) were guided down the Merced River and had a fantastic time!
Having rafted with other organizations before I can tell you Zephyr was a quality adventure company. Our guide was excellent, the gear we were provided was in good condition. I think they sincerely wanted to share a great time, all at a very reasonable price.
My wife has never rafted before and our guide, Joe, seemed to pride himself as the nervous nelly specialist. I don’t know if it was his concern for everybody’s safety or the all out fun of the river but my wife has said and I quote «found a new obsession.»
My 10 old son thinks this was better than Disneyland, with the rolling waves pounding over him and the drops into the mad swirling holes, I challenge any «Imagineer» to design a ride like this!
Throw in the amazing scenery and wildlife abundant to the area and it is easy to conclude the experience was priceless! Met some great people and definitely would recommend!

We went on the two-​day Tuolumne trip last year and had a blast!
The general store you meet at it kind of in the middle of nowhere and isn’t a general store anymore, so don’t count on buying any last-​minute essentials there. When the trip is over, that’s where you’ll be able to look at your photos.
There’s a big dirt parking lot where you separate your gear into what’s getting packed onto the rafts (i.e. you won’t see this gear until you stop for the evening) and what’s going into your day bag (each boat has a wet bag, but if you bring your own it will be more convenient for your sunblock, snacks, etc.).
The trip to the put-​in is down a seriously hairy canyon, so if you get motion sickness, be sure to pack your meds in your day bag.
Down at the water, you get fitted with your pfd and helmet and get safety training and rowing practice. Pay attention or you’ll end up getting knocked out of the raft later.
I ended up bringing way too many snacks. These people feed you magnificently. You can bring beer, but make sure it’s in cans (no glass on the river!). They also have a great drinking water filter, so don’t bring bottled water — just your reusable bottles.
The water is fast and cold, so wear protective clothing that you can move in. They manage to make the stops by great swimming holes, so make sure you take advantage of that. Bring towels!
The guides are wonderful. Pay attention to them and you’ll have an incredible time.

Our second fantastic year in Kings Canyon. Very knowledgable and friendly guides who do especially well with children — telling them jokes, and as willing to play volleyball with them as to teach them about the river. The food is good if basic. The river experience itself is great. Kings Canyon is a wild place, and you absolutely come away feeling like you’ve just enjoyed a rare human experience.
A couple of minor things:
1. The staircase down from the road to the overnight camping area is nothing less than «accidental death lawsuit in waiting.» Please PLEASE put some real effort into making this accessible for all people of all ages (especially parents carrying tents and camping coolers), not just mountain goats and gymnasts. Stair heights of two feet, iron rebar protruding in the middle of the path, and a slope of close to 45º. Sooner or later someone’s gonna go down HARD on this staircase and then they will own Zephyr — if they live.
2. Please make some coffee a little earlier. General consensus among the group: We can wait forever for breakfast if we could just have some coffee at dawn!
Can’t wait til next year.

We did a ‘streamlined one-​day trip’ last Saturday on King’s River. This trip far exceeded my expectations! It was my first time rafting, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. The river was beautiful! The guides (Lydia and Dave O.) were knowledgeable, accommodating, and had a great sense of humor. The lunch they prepared and provided was a treat. This was such a great experience that we are already trying to figure out when we can plan another trip, this time staying and camping at their ‘base camp’ and rafting for two days.

I had the BEST time with Zephyr (and SunCal Adventure group — see review below by Michael M.). Tessa was an AMAZING rafting guide. I cant wait to go back.

Kim Tess
I just did this trip for my 50^th birthday! Such a great trip with 12 of my friends!
We had two boats Tess and Adam were our guides and they were amazing!
The five meals that they prepared for us were yummy! They even made me a birthday cake! The kings river is so beautiful and our guides pointed out so many cool things as we were rafting. I will return to this spot again and will be bringing my family next year! I want to thank Zepher whitewater for making my 50^th birthday a one to remember!

My family of 4 booked a trip via their website towards the end of July. The Merced river was still running well and we were able to take our 7 and 9 year old down it for the ½ day trip. They were the best priced in the area and our experience was excellent.
Our guide was professional and knowledgeable. The put in point is across the street, so after the initial paperwork and safety brief the fun starts immediately. We went down several class 3 and 1 class 4 rapids and it was great! At several points along the river you have a chance to jump out and swim before tackling more rapids, that is if you haven’t fallen out already. It happened to a member in our party but nothing to worry about, the staff is fully trained and you are safe the whole time. The rafts fit 6 plus the guide and you go down the river with about 6 – 7 other rafts. You will be spread out so you get privacy but close enough that if something happens there are our guides to help.
At the end you are picked up in a bus and drinks are provided, so if you do the ½ day trip then water is really needed.
Great for family’s with kids!

We are at this place for July 4^th weekend and it’s really awesome. They have an awesome camping place, really nice and helping crew. Rafting was a real cool experience. I have been to rafting before in PA and other places, but this was the best I have seen from all perspectives like, training, guiding and fun.
I would recommend everyone if you are looking for a real great deal for camping and rafting.

I’m sure everyone’s experience will be different depending on which river, how rapid it is, and their guide, but having dealt with another rafting company before (mainly W.E.T who I would not recommend), I found Zephyr to be absolutely awesome, helpful, and honest.
Because of my bad experience with W.E.T, I wanted to make absolutely sure that the river we chose had fun rapids and was not mostly flat. I didn’t want to be bored as I had been with W.E.T on the south fork river (even tho they kept saying there was going to be a lot of rapids. it was mainly flat). Speaking with Bob @ Zephyr, he really listened to what I wanted and made the recommendation of Merced River (and boy did he deliver! It was an exciting river with many Class ¾ rapids). He was very patient with all the questions I had and also honest. When I asked him about the camping options (again had a horrible camping experience with W.E.T), he was honest in saying if some of the campgrounds were too crowded, etc.
What’s great about Zephyr too is that they include the wetsuit in the price. Most of the other companies, you have to pay additional for the wetsuit. They also gave us wool sweaters, jacket, and helmet too. A little smelly but that’s gonna be a given with wet clothing.
On to the day of: because the water levels were high, they gave us a little swim test for safety reasons. We were a group of 8 so we split into 2 groups. All of us LOVED our guides: Sean and Bob.
Sean was my guide, and he just rocks! Very friendly and playful, fun, and an experienced guide. Able to keep the conversation going and keep things fun. Some of his family also work at Zephyr so you know he’s someone who’s done this for awhile even though he’s young.
The other group also raved about their guide Bob, saying similar things.
The lunch they provided consisted of sandwiches and cookies… the tuna salad was yummy. The additional drinks at the end of the trip was nice too.
Also, for the Merced river meeting spot, there’s an RV campground next door where you can use bathrooms and the hot shower which was awesome, esp coming from the FREEZING merced waters (def wear wool socks if u come during the cold water season).
Overall just a fun and exciting, well organized rafting experience. I felt that everyone there really cared about their clients and wanted to show them a good time while still being safe. I know I will be using Zephyr again!

Rafted with Zephyr last year on the Kings. Have been on Oregon’s beautiful Wild & Scenic Rogue numerous times. I was blown away by the big water on the Kings, the austere beauty of the canyon and the top notch crew at Zephyr camp. Thanks for a great time!

We had an AWESOME time with Zephyr Whitewater Rafting @ Merced.
Our guide Sean was laid back, fun and totally knew what he was doing.
If you are doing a Merced River white water rafting, I recommend the full day (vs half day). There were couple Grade 4 rapids we had at the end of the trip (not included with half day trips) that should not be missed!
Make sure you take:
1) poly pro top & bottom (that you can wear under the wetsuit) — again it’ll make a huge difference on staying warm. Water is FREEZING!
2) Woolen socks (no cotton!) — this will make a HUGE HUGE difference.
3) Your own water bottle (filled with water)
4) Sunscreen
5) I think having a pair of sunglasses with the band to keep it secure is a good idea. I didn’t have my sunglasses and at times it was difficult to keep my eyes open. Sunglasses are particularly useful for contact lens wearers.
They provide wet suit, wind blocker, wool sweater, helmet, and life jacket so you really don’t have to take much else.
Thank you Zephyr for giving us a memorable white water rafting experience!

Whitewater rafting on Kings River is so much fun and it’s even more fun when you don’t have to worry about all the details. That’s the beauty of going on trips with a group like Zephyr.
You pay one price, your food, everything related to rafting, and all the little details (minus your sleeping conditions) are all taken care of for you. The guides are awesome and really know their stuff when it comes to the river. The food is good too.
Come out and see the outdoors!

Just took another trip down the Merced River with Zephyr last weekend and it was awesome!!! The water is lower than it was on my last trip but it was still a fun adventure and a great way to spend the 100 degree day! I took the full day trip, which is 16 miles and lasts about 6 hours with a break for lunch on the beach about halfway. My guide was Matt and he was super nice and patient and taught us all how to paddle our way through the rapids and stay in the boat. We even had the option to get out of the boat and swim through one of the rapids toward the end of the trip. At this water level I would recommend that anyone try this trip– there were even two young-​ish girls in my boat with their mom and dad and they loved it! I am again really impressed by the hospitality and service Zephyr provides their guests. Go rafting on the Merced with Zephyr! It’s a perfect way to experience one of the most beautiful rivers in California!

Zephry operates rafting services on several rivers in California. We went on the Kings River trip.
Getting here is an experience. Their base camp is located on Trimmer Springs Road just past Kirch Flat Campground. It will take you about an hour and a half from Highway 99 to reach them.
This is an extremely remote area. There are no services. There is no phone, electricity or running water. Cell phone service is available at one spot about 15 minutes south of the camp) look for the large turnout with a wooden «cell site» sign. The camp does have a satellite phone for emergencies. The nearest store is a one hour drive back down the canyon.
The camp is very basic. The bathrooms are clean, again there is no running water but the toilets are RV type and flush with water from the river. There is one outdoor shower. Camping is a typical rustic campsite. There is poison oak in the camp area and rattlesnakes so be careful where you walk and camp.
They offer several packages, we went with the 2 day/​2 night package. We opted out of the food package, it added quite a bit to the price. There was another group that did get the food provided. It was actually impressive with dinner including tri tip, corn and salad. The staff does a good job for lacking a modern kitchen.
On the days you raft, you board a bus. It is an hour ride further up the canyon on an old school bus. This was the most terrifying part of the trip. We had to cross an old bridge that was straight out of Universal Studios. The single lane dirt road stretched high above the river with a sheer drop on the right side of the bus. At one point, we had to get out to walk a section of road while they drove the bus across a scary damaged area.
At the ‘put in’ area, you are suited up with a life vest and given instructions and brief training. An experienced guide is in each boat. We went in mid-​July. The rapids were a class 3, the river was flowing at about 6000 CFS. I felt safe with my 10 year old on the trip. They have a minimum age limit of 7.
The rafting was great and loads of fun. The guide had intimate knowledge of the river and knew the names of the various rapids and even some of the more significant rock hazards.
You will get soaked on the rapids. Bring a waterproof camera or you may be able to buy pictures from the various professional photographers they partner with that position themselves along the river. We got some great pictures from them though there is a cost for this.
You are able to swim in certain areas of the river. The current is very strong so be careful, watch your kids and do not swim alone. On the rafting trip, there was an area called «forever eddy» where the current circled and basically you could jump in and circle around and around on the river. Although other trips stopped here and let everyone swim, we did not. Apparently this was due to «time considerations.» The staff was in a hurry to get back to start on dinner for the other group. This was the only bummer of the trip because we got shorted.
All in all, this is a great experience and something you can take the whole family to.

we just returned from a ½-​day trip on the merced. we had an 11-​year old with us and a variety of ages and we were almost all first-​time rafters. we had an absolute blast! we are all hooked and want to go again. we loved the ½ day for the ages we had with us! we went in the afternoon and the cold river kept us cool in the hot sun. it was really sweet because the staff accommodated a 79-​year-​old fit grandma in another group and she said she had so much fun. we will definitely do this again! (i do have to say that we all felt this would have been way too much for my tall and athletic 7-​year-​old nephew.)

BAD BUSINESS! My group was unable to get to our rafting trip because of a wild fire and we were charged for our entire trip. They refused to give us a refund and did not offer a free trip in the future. It was a total loss. They are greedy. Please book with a more fair rafting company.

i definitely recommended this one to anyone who asked me which one we chose for the Memorial day escapade. Nothing’s better than knowing youre in good hands. They do provide you with very skilled and seasoned rafters, pretty much equipped, and very friendly staff… (Hello andy! it was so nice to meet you, too bad you didnt enjoy our company)
Kudos to Shawn, for his welcoming attitude and his warm smile – making u feel safe from start to finish. If you decide to do the whole day trip, they provide you with lunch– food was okay, although i didnt have time to look how they prepared it while we were having fun taking off the wet suits for lunch…
Will definitely do it with them in case i go back. I agree with Dennis, Zephyr is awesome, they should get a 5-​star!