Cañon Blanco Expedition
AT A GLANCE
Highlights
- Expedition Style Adventure
- Unique Southwestern River
- High Desert Wilderness
- Only Company to Offer This Trip
Overview
After leaving the steep valleys of the Sangre De Cristo Mountains, the Upper Pecos River flows into a little known desert canyon which the original Spanish settlers named “Cañon Blanco”, or “White Canyon”, for its beautiful layer of white and multi-colored Glorieta Sandstone. The area around the river represents a transition zone from alpine to high desert and one can expect to find prickly pears, agaves and cholla growing beneath ponderosa pines and blue heron rookeries. Large sandstone cliffs, meandering oxbows, steep class III whitewater, and glimpses of rural New Mexican lifestyles and Spanish history characterize this unique stretch of river. On top of all of that, the lack of dams upstream mean that camps are large, sandy, and virtually unused.
Cañon Blanco is a tightly held New Mexican secret that offers whitewater, wilderness, and breathtaking high desert scenery. As an added bonus the steep gradient, intermittent flows, and wilderness campsites keep this section of river under the radar, meaning it is unlikely to see any other people on the river!
Two small lineing/portage problems and a short season make this unique trip fit for a more adventuresome and outgoing rafter and kayakers.
Far Flung Adventures is the only company to offer guided trips on this incredible resource, and we can’t wait to share it with you!
Itinerary
*All itineraries are tentative and subject to changes due to weather, water levels, and unforeseen and/or uncontrollable circumstances. Sit back and relax, its a river trip!
Day 1: All participants will plan to arrive at our rendezvous point in Santa Fe, New Mexico on the day of the trip. After meeting we will enjoy an 1 1/2 hour drive through beautiful northern New Mexico to our put-in site at a historic, stone Spanish hacienda site on the banks of the Pecos River. After getting on the river we will make our way downstream and drop immediately into the most continuous whitewater of this section of river and make our way down into some of its best canyonlands. After a great day on the water and a potential side hike up one of the water-filled side canyons we will stop at one of the many big sandy beaches along the canyon there. We will make our way down to a nice riverside camp and enjoy a beautiful, crisp New Mexican evening complete with campfire camaraderie and starry skies!
Day 2: After a leisurely morning and a hot breakfast we will shove off through the deepening Pecos canyon. Enjoy views of the deep canyon as we zip around corners and encounter more class II-III(IV) rapids! One mile above our takeout we will encounter an easy lining/portage problem around a diversion dam. Once we reach our take out at Tecolotico we will have a scenic 1 1/2 hour drive back to Santa Fe through the high desert springtime landscape of northern New Mexico.
Lodging and Airport Shuttle:
We will plan to arrive back in Santa Fe in the afternoon after we get off the river. We will say our final goodbyes, and those that have their own cars will depart. If you have flown and are looking for a hotel, there are many hotels in Santa Fe that offer an airport shuttle. We are happy to help with your lodging reservations if you wish. Please contact us for more information: info@farflung.com
Camp Scene/Gear
Get ready to pitch a tent, sling a hammock, throw down a pad, and relax! Every day we will prepare and serve you a delicious riverside lunch, not limited to, but often including an array of home-roasted sandwich meats and homemade dips and salsas (see some of our recipes here). In addition, our camp dinners and breakfasts are a classic staple of the Far Flung experience, as 40 years in business has not only taught us the principles of reading white-water…but also of cooking and camp ambiance!
***Please let us know ahead of time about any allergies or special food requirements***
Camp Gear:
Following is a list of required and recommend items for this three-day camping excursion. You will also receive this list as part of your confirmation email. As part of the trip we will provide tents, waterproof drybags for all of your personal items and camp chairs for fireside relaxation and enjoyment. Sleeping pads and sleeping bags are not included, though if needed we provide a sleep kit (1 sleeping bag and sleeping pad) for an additional $12/night.
Please click here to look at a more in-depth list of required and recommended camp gear:
Itinerary
Day 1: All participants will plan to arrive at our rendezvous point in Santa Fe, New Mexico on the day of the trip. We will then take 1 hour drive to Villanueva State Park, where we will prepare our boats, go over some preliminary river safety information, and get on the river. The beginning of our first day we will encounter a bit of very nice rural farm land and float through the village of El Cerrito and have one quick and easy lining maneuver over a small diversion dam. In the afternoon we drop into a wonderful ponderosa and juniper lined desert canyon where we will camp for the night. We can expect a relatively continuous stream of Class II(III) rapids on this day.
Day 2: After a great breakfast we will set off downstream and into the heart of the high desert canyon wilderness. We will stop to explore the ruins of a stone Spanish hacienda site, enjoy a side hike up one of the many tributaries and encounter many more rapids of increasing difficulty (Class III).
Day 3: After a leisurely morning and a hot breakfast we will shove off through the deepening Pecos canyon. Enjoy views of the deep canyon as we zip around corners and encounter even more class III(IV) rapids! One mile above our takeout we will encounter an easy lining/portage problem around a diversion dam. Once we reach our take out at Tecolotico we will have a scenic 1 1/2 hour drive back to Santa Fe through the high desert springtime landscape of northern New Mexico.
Lodging and Airport Shuttle:
We will plan to arrive back in Santa Fe in the afternoon after we get off the river. We will say our final goodbyes, and those that have their own cars will depart. If you have flown and are looking for a hotel, there are many hotels in Santa Fe that offer anairport shuttle. We are happy to help with your lodging reservations if you wish. Please contact us for more information: info@farflung.com
Camp Scene/Gear
Get ready to pitch a tent, sling a hammock, throw down a pad, and relax! Every day we will prepare and serve you a delicious riverside lunch, not limited to, but often including an array of home-roasted sandwich meats and homemade dips and salsas (see some of our recipes here). In addition, our camp dinners and breakfasts are a classic staple of the Far Flung experience, as 40 years in business has not only taught us the principles of reading white-water…but also of cooking and camp ambiance!
***Please let us know ahead of time about any allergies or special food requirements***
Camp Gear:
Following is a list of required and recommend items for this three-day camping excursion. You will also receive this list as part of your confirmation email. As part of the trip we will provide tents, waterproof drybags for all of your personal items and camp chairs for fireside relaxation and enjoyment. Sleeping pads and sleeping bags are not included, though if needed we provide a sleep kit (1 sleeping bag and sleeping pad) for an additional $12/night.
Please click here to look at a more in-depth list of required and recommended camp gear:
BOOK YOUR TRIP TODAY!
Join us for an adventure that you will never forget!