Los Rios River Runners

This is a fantastic company to go rafting with. Our guide was knowledgable, experienced, and really helped us relax and have fun while staying and feeling safe. Highly recommended.

We were not sure what to expect, but this definitely exceeded any expectations we had. John gave us a clear directions and safety instructions. just in case.
John was a great educator to a couple of amateurs and not a bad story teller. We learned about «sleepers» and «surfing». This trip reinforced my respect for the power of water and what can go wrong if you do not.
We cannot wait to come back and will be recommending this place to our friends and family. Thanks for a memorable day.
Billy and Laura

Rafting with Bryan, Bruce and the Rios crew was a total blast. We did the 2 hour Racecourse trek, and honestly wished we’d gone longer. It’s a fantastic mix of adventure, relaxation, and group bonding.
Full disclosure: we had no idea what we were doing. The river was running low, which made for gnarly, technical rapids. But the guides were great. They kept us afloat during the tricky parts and laughing during the lulls, and helped us push ourselves further than we thought we could’ve. By the end of the trip, one of us had taken a dunk (sorta on purpose), and the rest of us were soaked through, sore, and itchy to keep going.
The gorge is beautiful, cutting through scrubby high desert beneath towering, crumbling cliffs. That the highway was steps away was the only bummer (though it did make for a super convenient trip).
Highly recommended.

We decided to do the half day Taos Racetrack as that Tiffany had never taken a whitewater rafting trip and didn’t want to commit to a whole day (and the class 3 rapids would be enough for a first timer).
We arrived at the meeting point and had our safety briefing and loaded up on the bus and traveled a mile to the start point. Life jackets were issued and checked by the guides and paddles were issued as well. We were assigned a raft and guide who was very polite and gave a few pointers before we headed down the river.
Our guide was a local that had been born in Taos and loved the area. Not only did he provide us with a great trip down the river, he shared his knowledge of the local geography, plants, animals, history, and events of the area.
In short it was a blast and we plan on doing the all day «Taos Box» the next time we are in the area. If your going to be in the area make time to ride the rapids with these folks!

My husband and I went on a Box Tour with Los Rios Runners. Eric was our guide, and he was patient, educative, and helpful throughout the journey.
The rapids were exciting, and we had sunny weather all day. Don’t forget to bring your sunscreen onto the boat with you!
Lunch was fantastic– they even had avocados and fresh pineapple.
I would recommend this for couples or families. We had a great time!

We had a perfect day on the river. This was a milestone trip for my 71 year old mother-​in-​law. She was in a near fatal car accident in September of last year and was not able to walk until January. After months of hard work she was determined to whitewater raft, something she has always wanted to do. She joined my family this summer for our New Mexico vacation a long with her husband, my wife and my two boys 8 & 10. Los Rios worked with me on planning this trip so she could try the calmer water in the morning and then make her choice at lunch whether she could continue or hang out with Katie the shuttle driver (who by the way was also awesome in setting up lunch for us). She had a blast on the upper section and would not even consider quitting before going through the race course. All and all we had an amazing trip. The boys had a blast and can not wait to come back and do an overnight trip. The river was perfect, Los Rios’s support staff were extremely helpful and accommodating, they had good equipment and the picnic lunch was exactly what was needed and then some. Now about our guide Che, I have worked with many different guides, instructors and outfitters around the country/​world on different excursions/​adventures and this young man was one of the best if not the best I have worked with. He was informative about the river and area, very attentive to my mother-​in-​law and her comfort without every taking the easy way or diminishing her first white water trip, he was very talkative with all of us and was constantly making sure all of us had a great time. So yes he was all fun and games until we hit the Rapids, then he went all business and you could tell he knew his business well. This is what I respected the most about him, for as fun as he was, he also knew when to clock in and keep everyone safe and he did an amazing job. You can really tell he loves what he does I will be recommending Los Rios to all of our guests at our condo and to all of our friends and family. Thank you for giving us some amazing memories.
TJ

Fantastic adventure with brad and Brian, our experience began with enthusiastic Cisco on the phone ready making us feel warm and welcome. we were was greeted with positivity and given excellent instructions prior to our launch. Our guide Brian explained all the land forms and previous setters on the area as we floated past between each amazing rapid. He guided us through the waves and Rapids with no swimmers or flips — we ended up all wet but the neoprene suits provided to us by Lis Riis kept us nice and warm. This is the best river rapid adventure I have ever had and will come back again. These guys are great!!!

We had a beautiful half day trip on the river, everything was well organized and our guide was a joy, sharing generously both his local knowledge & great stories.

We had an incredible trip on the Taos Box thanks to our capable guide, Miguel. He knows the river well and was able to point out many historical and geological features along the way. The Taos Box is a dangerous run, but Miguel made us feel safe throughout our journey. This excursion was definitely a highlight of our trip to Taos, and we would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a bit of adventure.

What a great group of folks. Knowledgeable, fun, encouraging, and patient — all the things you need from a group that will be commanding a group of green horns in a raft. They understood the history of the region, the geology, the flora & fauna: any question you might have, they knew the answer. And their ability to get us through the day long trip with accuracy, safety, and grace made it a great experience for everyone. We’ll be back!

Awesome rafting trip in July 2013. Our family of 4 including kids age 11 & 13 had a blast & we’d never done this before. Can’t wait to go again! We did the all day lower gorge/​race course trip. The drought has made the water level low but that didn’t cause any problems for us. Brad our guide was SOO much fun and very knowledgeable. They are very safe and have great equipment. All of the crew was very friendly & fun. Had a blast — definitely highly recommended!

So much fun! Just got back from our ride today. Friendly staff all around – from reservations to the guide. We had Richard as our guide. He was great! He seemed to know everything about the route, including some history and geology. He got me back in the boat when I fell in the river. And he’s damn cute :-) Highly recommended! (Other companies seemed to constantly be stuck in the river… not nearly as much fun.)

Friendly crew, great job getting everyone excited.
While the river was low, our guide, Eric, showed us a good time. He was excellent teaching us how to raft (I was a first timer), and told us about the area. Enjoyed everyone in our boat, great day. I can’t wait to go again the water is higher.
Ended the morning with snacks, fresh watermelon. Well worth it.

Fantastic time! When booking we were told the water was not high enough for the Taos Box and recommended the Double Racecourse. This meant we did the same course twice, first in a raft with a guide and then again individually in a ‘funyak’ inflatable kayak. Instructions were given prior to departure; they even had a check list of instructions, which impressed me. Very organized. The first half of the day was spent rafting with a guide through the Racecourse. Our guide, Bruce, pointed out the path we should follow when we ran the course later. With Bruce as our guide we had an opportunity to see the splendor and beauty of our surroundings, it’s a good thing, because when we ran the course individually it was hard to look at any of the scenery, I was concentrating on maneuvering the funyak. Its obvious Bruce enjoys his job, at one point he stopped the raft so we could jump to shore and view hieroglyphics and found garnet stones in the shallow water. Lunch was served after we finished the rafting portion of the trip; the guides prepared a tasty and well planned sandwich layout. These sandwiches were so much better than when I make sandwiches, how does that happen? The bus picked us up and took us back to the beginning of the racecourse and loaded us into our individual funyak’s. Given instructions again. The guides were stationed at the beginning, middle and end of our large group. They probably feel like they are herding cats! There were some scary moments for me when I flipped my funyak, but the guides had given me such a sense of confidence, I knew what to do and also knew the guides were closely watching each of us. At one point I flipped and needed helping getting back to my boat and a guide was there to help me out. Husband and I were very pleased with our trip and would do it again with Los Rios.

Best.time.ever.
Where do I even begin!?! We originally booked for Taos Box but on account of the unfortunately low water level and extreme winds we ended up doing the Lower Gorge tour. We were so blessed with our fantastic guide Bruce. Seriously if you guys want the best guide out there– ask for him. While we paddled against 40 mph winds (apparently twice the amount of paddling that would have been required for a two day overnight) Bruce kept us upbeat and very entertained. I can honestly say our adventure would not have been the same without him. When we go back. since we plan to… we will be asking for him.
As for the rafting– well you can imagine two LA city girls about 120 soaking wet in oversized blue waterproof hammer pants squealing with excitement. We did not tip over but got plenty blasted with the icy April waters. It suited our taste for adventure and cemented that we would be doing it again ASAP.
We walked away with a helluva story and some excellent reading suggestions from Bruce.

My friend and I went rafting for the first time on the Rio Grande Race Course (half day) during the first week of September. Apparently, the water didn’t flow as quickly as it does earlier in the summer and there were some serious boulders, but we had a great time!
Our guide, Brian, explained the basics of rafting and safety requirements while we were still on land, then made us feel comfortable the whole time we were on the river. He rescued a funyak rider who had an accident on the rocks and had to abandon ship, and brought him on board our raft for the rest of the trip. I found the whole episode strangely comforting — I was reassured that I wouldn’t get stranded on a rock or left on the shore if I fell out of the boat. Luckily, Brian was an able leader, and we managed to get through the trip without flipping the raft or falling into the river.
Also, Brian and the funyak guide, Brad, were able to assemble an impressive snack-​time set-​up — complete with a table and tablecloth — on the riverbank. I also really enjoyed listening to their explanations of various geographical phenomena that we passed.
I would love to come back to Taos for another rafting trip. Next time, I’d like to go for a full day (and I’ll have to take sunscreen a little more seriously!).

We had a good experience on our Lower Gorge float/​raft trip. Water was LOW — 288cfs. Guide Sean did a great job both negotiating the low waters and informing us about the area.
My only gripe (hence the 4 stars) is that the office staff wasn’t more realistic about the Taos Box. We had originally hoped to raft that stretch and they booked us for the ‘Taos Mystery Box’ as they can’t promise the water levels will be high enough. I completely understand that but it seems that the water hasn’t been high enough lately and it’s not day-​by-​day as they indicated.

I rafted the Taos Box in low water with a about 13 guys in total. Sean was my boat’s guide and did a stellar job all day steering the boat, keeping his cool, and keeping us out of doo doo in general. I’ve not been with any of the other outfitters in the Taos area but I’d roll with Los Rios again any day.

We went on a half day racecourse trip and had a great time! Our guide knew every little detail of the river and pointed out wildlife and vegetation along the way. He told good stories of the area and kept us entertained.
Our group had a great experience with this company and would recommend them to anyone who is looking to do some rafting or kayaking on the Rio Grande.

I went on a funyak (inflatable kayaks) on the Rio Grande Racecourse and it was tons of fun! Our guide was great and funny too.
They have rafts, single funyaks, and double funyaks. Our halfday trip was $ 55 per person.
They also work with a photography company so you can get action shots of you going down rapids if you so wish to purchase :)