The 2025 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 on All Rivers in California!
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. 2025 is a great year for rafting: a healthy Sierra snowpack and full reservoirs set us up for a long, full season of whitewater rafting fun that will go all the way 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 (June – October)
Summer and fall rafting in 2025 will be excellent! Upstream reservoirs 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 once the river flows get to normal levels in late 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!
2025 California Rafting Season – River by River
South Fork American
The rafting season on this fan-favorite river opened in April and will run through October. Excellent flows for rafting are guaranteed six days a week (no Wednesdays) through Labor Day, September 1, and four days a week later in September (Thursday-Sunday) and October (Friday-Monday). The best time for the Class I-II Tom Sawyer Float Trips on the easy section of the South Fork will be from late June through September.
Middle Fork American
Rafting on the Middle Fork began on Memorial Day weekend with scheduled normal flows starting on Saturday, May 24. Rafters will benefit from reliable releases six days a week (no Mondays) through Labor Day, September 1. This year’s long season provides a great opportunity for our wonderful overnight river trips through Middle Fork’s wilderness canyon.
Merced River
With plenty of snow stored in Yosemite National Park’s high country, the mighty Merced River delivered a thrilling season of big roller coaster waves and plenty of forward paddling. Trips began in April, and ran through mid-June. While the river may remain runnable a little longer at lower flows, we wrapped up our Merced season as flows dropped and shifted our focus to the other incredible rivers we offer.
Tuolumne River
The Wild and Scenic Tuolumne River is a great rafting choice this season! Rafting trips kicked off in April, with Moderately-High flows continuing through most of the spring. By mid-June, the river is settling into its Normal summertime flows, offering thrilling Class IV+ whitewater through Labor Day, September 1.
North Fork of the Stanislaus River
Back for its third season in a row, North Stan’s healthy low-elevation snowpack provided us with a short season lasting through early May.
North Fork of the American River
This most difficult of the three forks of the American River has had a great season this year. April and early May offered the best opportunity to raft through its narrow gorge. By mid-May the river flows dropped too low and the season here is done until 2026.
Kaweah River
The southern Sierra didn’t see as much snow as areas farther north, but the Kaweah River still delivered plenty of excitement – we offered trips through June 8 this season.
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 11-12 and 18-19.
California Salmon
The river flows on this northernmost river we run will be good for rafting through the end of June this year. Our annual Cal Salmon weekend already happened in late April and was a great success, but additional trips may be available for larger groups – please contact us.
Cherry Creek / Upper Tuolumne
The rafting season on Cherry Creek will start once river flows decrease to normal levels, which is expected to happen in the second half of June this year. The best time to plan a Cherry Creek trip will be between early July and September 1, which is the last day of planned water releases for rafting on this river.
If you want to dig into greater detail about the flows for each river, check our Real-Time Flow Reports for California Rivers for more information about this year’s seasonal flow projections.
We’d love to help you choose the best time and the best river for your rafting trip! Contact us by phone, email, Live Chat.
Keep Reading – There Is More to Explore:
Updated on June 11, 2025
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.
