Must-Do Family Adventures Near Colorado’s Royal Gorge

We’ve lived in Colorado for over a decade.  I’m not exaggerating when I say our recent weekend spent with Echo Canyon River Expeditions was one of the most adventure-packed, fun-filled we’ve ever had.  Our experience included both white water rating and more, in a beautiful area near Colorado Royal Gorge.

My family loves outdoor adventures, but we have our limits. Generally, these are primarily driven by: 1) my youngest son’s age, and 2) his fearless, uninhibited personality.  Sometimes, we just need to protect the little bugger from himself!  So it’s not that I thought he’d be scared by white water rafting.  It’s that I wanted to wait until we felt confident taking him.  But at age 7, he was definitely ready.

Here are the highlights of our family adventures near Royal Gorge, and what you can’t miss about this fantastic area of Colorado.

Colorado’s Royal Gorge … A River Runs Through It

The Arkansas River runs through this region of Colorado, near Canon City and Royal Gorge.  Due to the pretty terrain, ideal rapids, and multiple put-in locations:  it’s a true hot spot for Colorado white water rafting.

Although snowpack was down in the Colorado Rockies this year, right now (as of June posting) the water levels were absolutely perfect for rafting.

White Water Rafting with Echo Canyon River Expeditions

A definite highlight of our visit to this area was getting to go [kid friendly!] white water rafting with Echo Canyon River Expeditions.

My son was easily cleared to go on the ‘intermediate’ white water tour through Big Horn Sheep Canyon.  Minimum size is 50 lbs, and they are good about placing your little one(s) in the center of the boat.  This stretch included Class II and III rapids, which were pure awesome.

Our raft guide was great about humoring my young son when he begged to paddle, allowing him to do so through the more gentle stretches.  Towards the end of our trip, our guide even gave him a quick rafting guide lesson in the Captain’s seat.

Needless to say, this is one of the most thrilling outdoor recreation experiences my family has ever had together.  We all LOVED it!  Although there are a dizzying number of rafting companies in the area to choose from, I felt very good about being in the capable hands of Echo Canyon River Expeditions.  Frankly, they are Top Dog along this stretch of the Arkansas.  You can read more in my post 5 Tips for Selecting a White Water Rafting Guide.

Those Gorgeous Royal Gorge Cabins

If you are in this area for a family adventure vacation including rafting and Royal Gorge fun, don’t bother driving into a nearby town to try and find a hotel.  You can stay in one of the luxury cabins RIGHT in this very spot, directly across the street from Echo Canyon River Expeditions. The Royal Gorge Cabins are new and oh, so lovely.

Oh, my stars… these cabins.  The photos of the amazing Royal Gorge Cabins speak for themselves, and do not lie. They’re so new (opened in 2017), they still SMELL new.  Trendy modern design with a rustic flair.  The kind of place you walk into, release a heavy sigh, and think, “Can I please just live here?” We stayed in a two story, with a complete kitchen and two bathrooms.

My favorite part was the two-way gas fireplace, enjoyed either indoors or outdoors on the patio.  And the views.  Those stunning views.  Pretty lovely way to start your day in the morning!

Royal Gorge Bridge… America’s Highest!

Four years ago, the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park fell victim to a nearby wildfire. It completed destroyed nearly all of their structures.  After determining this fascinating suspension bridge was still structurally sound, they began to rebuilt.  Quickly, and impressively the area was built back up and is now better than ever.

The suspension bridge, built in the 1920’s and the highest in North America, spans across the Royal Gorge below.  Even for someone scared of heights (that would be me) the walk across is do-able.

And if you’re really crazy pants – you can ZIP LINE across!  I was so, so proud of my husband and daughter for trying this.  At the time, even watching them stand in line made me feel like I was going to throw up.  But now I’m a bit jealous, and resolved to try it on our next visit.

“What’s that called, when you do something that really scares you… and then you feel like you can do anything?!” my daughter asked me afterwards, beaming with exhilaration and pride form her accomplishment.

That’s called empowerment, my sweet girl.  🙂

See it From Below… Royal Gorge Railroad

Royal Gorge is a somewhat famous landmark, known for it’s impressive and record setting suspension bridge.  Although I was very excited to see it, we actually started from the vantage point of the bottom of the gorge!

That’s right, the Royal Gorge Railroad runs a tourist passenger route, which follows the Arkansas River along the bottom of Royal Gorge.  Drinks and food is offered, as well as an open air car for viewing.  Narrator’s are on hand to tell of local gun slinging history, and point out interesting rock formations.   Rafters can be spotted navigating their way through this stretch of river with Class 4 and 5 rapids.

Once the suspension bridge comes into view, it’s pretty amazing to look up and see how far away it is.  The bridge is suspended nearly 1000 feet above the bottom of the gorge.

Royal Gorge Dinosaur Experience & High Ropes

But wait, we’re not done having fun yet!  The Canon City area is also known for some impressive dinosaur fossil deposits.  It’s the inspiration behind Royal Gorge Dinosaur Experience, another must-do for this area.  And as if the unique displays aren’t enough to reel you in (I saw creature skeletons here that I’ve never seen before)… they also have a high ropes course.

Ms. Scared-of-Heights didn’t make it too far, but my kids loved it.

I enjoyed the walking trail with animatronic dinosaurs along the way.  Seeing them in such a natural terrain, you could really imagine them roaming the earth.

Canon City’s Pizza Madness

If you do head into the nearby town of Canon City for food, be sure to check out the unique local hangout Pizza Madness.  Before we arrived, I had people giving me recommendations like, “My favorite is their Philly Steak!”… or “They have delicious pasta!”.

This left me wondering – wait, what?  Isn’t the pizza very good?

Au contraire…. The pizza is AMAZING.  It’s just that apparently everything else on the menu is, too.  Although I loved the slice of tasty classic pizza I tried, my favorite was the flavorful original with chicken and green chilis.  Savory!

How to Get There

I have to mention our ride, because it has quickly become one of my family’s favorite vehicles.  We’ve been able to test out a few different vehicles, but it’s hard to beat the Mazda CX-5.

To give you an idea of capacity, this road trip was 5 ½ hours one way to our destination.  We packed for 4 days, for my family of four.  As you probably know, it’s a compact car and gets great gas mileage.  So we were pleasantly surprised that we didn’t feel cramped using it on a weekend road trip like this.

Of course, once your kids try heated seats in back… they’re never gonna want to do without!  You’ve been warned.

The center console knob that you turn to control anything on the dash screen is really slick.  There’s even some sort of hologram-type thing that display your current speed and the speed limit, within your line of sight.

I love the Mazda’s responsiveness.  It is ZIPPY and so fun to drive.  I love that it crushes gas mileage, at 25 city / 31 highway.  The seats are noticeably comfortable, and I didn’t have any of my typical hip or back pain during our trip.  Two thumbs up for this cool little car.

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We were hosted by Echo Canyon River Expedition for a family media trip, and had a complementary loan vehicle from Mazda.  All opinions are my own.