The 2026 California Whitewater Rafting Season Update
All-Outdoors operates professionally guided whitewater rafting trips on 10 California rivers. River trip options vary in a range of ways, including the level of difficulty, length of trip, minimum age requirements, driving distance, seasonality, and available itineraries. Consider what kind of experience you want for yourself and for your group before selecting a river and date.
Great Flows Spring to Fall!
We offer rafting trips in California from April until the end of October every year, and each river has its own season that ranges in duration depending on upstream reservoirs or the rate of snowmelt. While the Sierra snowpack is lighter this year, strong reservoir levels from prior seasons will support healthy flows and a full rafting season through October. Whether you are looking for a family-friendly trip with the kids or a thrilling ride for your group of experienced rafters, you will have great options to choose from this season!
Summer and Fall Rafting (May – October)
Summer and fall rafting in 2026 will be excellent! Upstream reservoirs are in great shape from prior years and will be releasing healthy flows for rafting on a consistent, regular schedule all summer and into fall. Summertime favorites include the South Fork of the American, Middle Fork of the American, and the Tuolumne River. Rafting season on Cherry Creek (Upper Tuolumne) will begin in June. Additionally, every October there is a special scheduled release on the Class IV+ Goodwin Canyon section of the Lower Stanislaus River near Knights Ferry.
Raft the American River!
This could be you! Paddle through fun, splashy rapids on the South Fork or take on the exciting wilderness of the Middle Fork. With options for first-timers and thrill-seekers alike, there’s an American River rafting trip for everyone!
2026 California Rafting Season – River by River
South Fork American
The rafting season on this fan-favorite river opens in April and will run through October. Excellent flows for rafting are guaranteed six days a week (no Wednesdays) through Labor Day, September 7, and four days a week later in September (Thursday-Sunday) and October (Friday-Monday).
Tom Sawyer Float Trips (South Fork Easy Section)
The best time for the Class I-II young kid-friendly Tom Sawyer Float Trips on the easy section of the South Fork American will be from late June through September.
Middle Fork American
Rafting on the Middle Fork is expected to begin on Memorial Day weekend with scheduled normal flows starting on Saturday, May 23. Rafters will benefit from reliable seven-day-a-week water releases through Labor Day, September 7. After Labor Day, river trips will be available every day except Monday and Thursday through the end of September. This year’s long season provides a great opportunity for our wonderful overnight river trips through Middle Fork’s wilderness canyon.
Merced River
Even with a lighter snowpack, Yosemite National Park’s high country holds enough snow to set the Merced River up for a fun spring season. Trips begin in April, and we plan to run them through the second half of May at the latest. While the river may remain runnable a little longer at lower flows, we’ll wrap up our Merced season as flows drop and shift our focus to the other incredible rivers we offer. Pair your Merced rafting adventure with a visit to the famous waterfalls in Yosemite Valley for the ultimate spring getaway.
Tuolumne River
The Wild and Scenic Tuolumne River will be a great rafting choice all season long! Spring brings the canyon to life, with lush scenery and a refreshing feel to early season trips. Summertime on the Tuolumne is all about overnight trips, warm days on the river, and very exciting Class IV+ rafting all the way through Labor Day, September 7.
Goodwin Canyon
Our Goodwin Canyon season will run for two weekends in October when water releases from the upstream dam are increased to help the spawning salmon. This hidden Class IV+ stretch of the lower Stanislaus River will be available during our Goodwin Canyon Double Runs on October 17-18 and 24-25.
Cherry Creek / Upper Tuolumne
The rafting season on Cherry Creek is expected to start in June this year. The best time to plan a Cherry Creek trip will be between late June and September 7, which is the last day of planned water releases for rafting on this river.
The following rivers are no longer running for the rest of the 2026 rafting season:
North Fork of the Stanislaus River
The North Stan acts like a free-flowing river, even though Spicer Reservoir is located 14 miles upstream at an elevation of 6300 feet. We rely on low elevation snowmelt below the reservoir to bring this beautiful river to life each spring. This year, an early March heat wave caused that snowmelt to come much sooner than typical, before any rafting trips could take place.
North Fork of the American River
This most difficult of the three forks of the American River had a shorter season this year due to a drier-than-normal winter and an early March heatwave. Late-season storms helped sustain raftable flows through April, but by early May flows dropped too low and the season has come to a close.
Kaweah River
Although the southern Sierra received a good amount of snowpack this past winter, much of the snowmelt occurred in early March. By the time the rafting season began in April, the Kaweah River was running at lower flows, with some support from late-season storms. By early May, the rafting season on this exciting river had come to an end.
California Salmon
Low snowpack in this northernmost part of the state did not support a rafting season on this outstanding Class V river in 2026, and we did not offer our annual Cal Salmon trip this year.
Keep Reading – There Is More to Explore:
Updated on May 6, 2026
Lenka Bostian
Lenka started working for All-Outdoors in the summer of 2005 when she followed her heart from her native Czech Republic out to California. After graduating college in Prague, she packed up her degree in International Business and moved across the pond for good. She’s been part of the AO family ever since, wearing different hats along the way. Besides trail running, tennis, and traveling, Lenka enjoys rafting and camping on the South Fork with her hubby (former AO guide) and their twin boys.
