Where to Whitewater Kayak in Golden

Gold River - The "Bachelor Paddle" section contains wonderful whitewater that is fairly steady right from the get go. Its a boulder garden wonderland with many boof friendly drops (up to 2 meters). At low and medium flows, the run contains short pools and numerous eddies between the drops. The character changes drastically as water rises above 25-30 cms. All the pools rush together and the run feels more continuous, and contains more bigwater features like diagonals and wave-holes. However even up to 70 cms the run maintains a grade IV feel (much like its distant neighbor the kickinghorse). That is with the exception of the biggest rapid on the run which pushes class V at higher water. This rapid is situated midway down the second half of the run (middle gold) and can't be mistaken as it is a much more significant horizon line than anything up to that point. Its a long rapid with big holes and pour-overs to dodge and runs through a steep sided valley that is moderately challenging terrain to navigate. The drawbacks of the run are it's remote location and its tendency to collect trees (large trees). However, as of 2017 there were minimal portages necessary and its short enough and high enough quality for multiple laps.

Kicking Horse River - Continuous white water, pretty full on in spring and early summer. As the water level drops this section of the river becomes manageable for a myriad of ability levels. From Paddling ABC: A demanding big water river run full of pushy currents and large holes. It is pretty much non-stop action from the put in for a few kilometers. The beginning of the run is a few back to back Class IV rapids. As the water level rises in the spring eddies disappear and you need to use micro eddies and the train tracks on river right to scout and portage. It can be tricky to see features as the water is usually milky due to silt. Underneath one of the train bridges is a play wave that comes in at moderate water levels. The last couple of kilometers into town are more mellow class II water. Definitely a run where a solid roll is key.

Blaeberry River - The following river description has been taken from BC Whitewater (https://www.bcwhitewater.org) and re-posted here with the author's permission (Michael Reeder). BC Whitewater is a non-profit whose goal is to provide a unified voice for whitewater paddlers in British Columbia, advocating for publicly accessible, free flowing rivers and speaking in support of river conservation. Sign up to become a member here: https://www.bcwhitewater.org/users/sign_up and donate to the cause of accessible, free-flowing rivers here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=MYYAA7WFJRE9U&source=url ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This seldom run, but decent quality run provides a good intermediate option close to the town of Golden. It is slightly on the "adventury" side of class 3+ due to wood movement. While not the most classic section of whitewater, it is well worth the effort if you are in the area and looking for something besides the Kicking Horse.

Blaeberry River - The following river description has been taken from BC Whitewater (https://www.bcwhitewater.org) and re-posted here with the author's permission (Michael Reeder). BC Whitewater is a non-profit whose goal is to provide a unified voice for whitewater paddlers in British Columbia, advocating for publicly accessible, free flowing rivers and speaking in support of river conservation. Sign up to become a member here: https://www.bcwhitewater.org/users/sign_up and donate to the cause of accessible, free-flowing rivers here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=MYYAA7WFJRE9U&source=url ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The canyons below Thompson Falls are a great addition to the low water, late season runs around Golden. Proximity to town, ease of access, beautiful canyons, stunning water colour and exciting whitewater combine to create a classic section of river. The run starts off with a ferry and a portage around a beautiful waterfall before seal launching into a gorgeous class 2 canyon. A brief break in the canyon walls signals the beginning of the whitewater. When the canyon walls go vertical again you are treated to a short, ultra-continuous class 5 canyon. After this there is some fun class 3 boogie before the river mellows out and a short section of "BC flatwater" brings you to the takeout where you can head back up for more laps, continue on downstream for some woody braided channels that lead to a lovely set of class 2+ canyons, or call it a day.

Kicking Horse River - This secion is used for some of the raft companies float trip section. Overall it is mainly continuous Class II, the first rapid right of the hop though is pretty pushy with water in it and is considered Class III. Overall a tree dodge, braided float trip with the odd fun eddy line, wave and feature.