NZ’s biggest volume grade 5 rapids!
Rangitata Gorge
Grade 5
Grade 2 to 5, you choose!
Your chance to navigate 10kms of one of NZ’s most beautiful rivers, our exhilarating grade 5 adventure will get your heart pounding. Starting off on the calmer upper stretches of the Rangitata river, you’ll have plenty of time to perfect your paddling skills and warm up through the grade 2 & 3 rapids before arriving at the grade 5 section of the Rangitata Gorge. At this point you can choose if you want to continue rafting through the thunderous rapids, tight gaps and rocky outcrops of the Gorge itself or would rather walk around and admire them from the side. To cool off after all the action, there’ll be a chance to go for a surf and take a dip in the calmer sections. Scroll down for a full run-down of the day.
No experience necessary
Along with your guide who will be in the boat with you, our photographer will be on the river bank catching all the action on camera and a safety kayaker will paddle alongside you on every trip. For more information, check out our FAQs or see some photos.
Feeling nervous? If some bits are too much you can walk around them with our photographer.
Trips depart twice daily October – April 8am + 12.30pm
Transport available
Meeting at our base in the shadows of the Southern Alps, we’ll get you wet-suited and booted before driving through breathtaking scenery to our starting point – the top of Rangitata Gorge.
We wouldn’t drop you in the deep end without the key skills. So we’ll kick off our adventure on (mostly) flat water, teaching you the paddling and safety skills needed to tackle the river. When you’ve got the hang of things, the fun really begins.
Before we hit the big time, we’ll start running a series of fun grade 2 and 3 rapids, so you can get a real feel for what to expect at the Rangitata Gorge.
Before you drop into the big ones of grade 5 Gorge section, you’ll get the chance to jump out of the boat and have a look at what’s to come. If it looks a bit too much, you can walk around the Gorge with our photographer. Otherwise, you’ll jump back in the boat and raft down the wild canyon.
It wouldn’t be a Rangitata Rafts trip without some good ole Kiwi hospitality. So while you have a hot shower and check out the action shots, we’ll put on a classic Kiwi BBQ full of delicious South Canterbury sausages. We can cater to your dietary requirements – just let us know on the day. And if you fancy an alcoholic drink with your food, there’s a selection available to purchase.
Preview the complete circuit of the grade 5 experience.
See Grade 2 adventure
Getting Started
Meeting at our base in the shadows of the Southern Alps, we’ll get you wet-suited and booted before driving through breathtaking scenery to our starting point – the top of Rangitata Gorge.
LEARN THE ROPES
We wouldn’t drop you in the deep end without the key skills. So we’ll kick off our adventure on (mostly) flat water, teaching you the paddling and safety skills needed to tackle the river. When you’ve got the hang of things, the fun really begins.
Warming up
Before we hit the big time, we’ll start running a series of fun grade 2 and 3 rapids, so you can get a real feel for what to expect at the Rangitata Gorge.
Hit the big time
Before you drop into the big ones of grade 5 Gorge section, you’ll get the chance to jump out of the boat and have a look at what’s to come. If it looks a bit too much, you can walk around the Gorge with our photographer. Otherwise, you’ll jump back in the boat and raft down the wild canyon.
Grab a hot shower and BBQ
It wouldn’t be a Rangitata Rafts trip without some good ole Kiwi hospitality. So while you have a hot shower and check out the action shots, we’ll put on a classic Kiwi BBQ full of delicious South Canterbury sausages. We can cater to your dietary requirements – just let us know on the day. And if you fancy an alcoholic drink with your food, there’s a selection available to purchase.
Rangitata Rafts
53 Waikari Road, Peel Forest 7990
South Canterbury, New Zealand
