The Upper Canyon

5-7 Day White Water Rafting Trip From Lee's Ferry to Pipe Creek

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The Upper Canyon

White water rafting the upper Grand Canyon covering 88 miles of river from Lee's Ferry to Pipe Creek and the ascent to the South Rim.

White water rafting the upper Grand Canyon covering 88 miles of river from Lee's Ferry to Pipe Creek and the ascent to the South Rim.

Duration
5–7 days
Start
Lee's Ferry
End
Pipe Creek
Cost
$2,385–3,295
Trip Type
Oar and Paddle

The sequence of rapids through this 88-mile river trip couldn’t be better orchestrated. Beginning with the medium sized (Canyon Scale!) Badger, House Rock and Unkar rapids, the crescendo begins with Nevills rapid then builds quickly with Hance (the longest) and Sockdolager. Amplified by the imposing walls of the Upper Granite Gorge the grand finale hits its high notes at Grapevine and Zoroaster rapids, and the last few miles finish with a quiet serenade.

The Upper Canyon
The Upper Canyon

Ferns, Fossils, Native Ruins, and a Hike Out

The trip leaves Lees Ferry and floats into Marble Canyon named in 1869 by its first explorer, Major John Wesley Powell. It’s polished limestone, layered with bands of sandstones and siltstones rises dramatically above the river with each mile passed, soaring thousands of feet to the rim. This same seemingly impervious limestone has allowed the river to scoop out the huge expanse of Red Wall Cavern at the river’s edge, one of the many attractions in this stretch.

Underground springs gush from the fern-covered rock at Vasey’s Paradise and side streams carve bowl-like pools at Silver Grotto, Saddle, and North Canyons. Nautilus fossils are readily viewed in the streambed of Nautiloid Canyon and ancient Puebloan granaries await the hiker high above the river at Nankoweap. Ancestral Puebloan sites are spread throughout the Canyon and this section features many of the larger sites found along the river.

The final destination point for the river portion of this trip is Pipe Creek Beach, one mile downstream of Phantom Ranch, where the Bright Angel Trail meets the river.

 

Start planning your upper Grand Canyon rafting trip

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Trip Information

Trip Logistics:

At the start of your trip:

  • You will need to arrange flight, ground transportation, or personal vehicle to Flagstaff, AZ.
  • You will need to book overnight accommodations at Americana Motor Hotel, which includes breakfast the next morning.
  • Outdoors Unlimited will provide van transportation to Lee’s Ferry on the morning of your trip launch.

At the end of your trip:

  • You will need to arrange overnight accommodations at the South Rim for the day you hike out of the Canyon.
  • You will need to arrange flight, ground, or personal vehicle transportation from the South Rim to your next destination.