My friend and I just had such an amazing experience last weekend! His mom bought a deal from Living Social (their staff were incredibly helpful and friendly too) - worth every penny! We started off with the high ropes course, each of us trying the zipline and rock wall. Both were awesome.. The Living Social staff were walking around offering snacks and water the whole time. Then we had a lunch of sandwiches (gourmet toppings like pesto and artichoke hearts on top of your usual fare) and fresh fruit. Next, we split into groups for the rafting portion. Kyler, our guide, was really helpful and super fun! It was my first time rafting and he made me feel very comfortable. The river was pretty low but it was still an adventure! None of us lost any teeth though haha. We got back to camp to play some games, rinse off in their solar-heated showers, and then enjoy a delicious feast for dinner. They had barbecued tri-tip, chicken, sauteed summer squash & zucchini, rosemary mashed potatoes, garlic bread, and salad. It was seriously better than most restaurants. S'mores for dessert too! After dinner, we watched a slideshow with all the pictures from the river. That night, we stayed up playing catch phrase and watching the Perseid meteor shower.. The staff had already set up our tents for us so we just passed out. The next morning, we woke up to pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage, and fruit for breakfast. Then we packed our bags and took off. The guides make the whole deal worthwhile - they are so friendly, knowledgeable, down-to-earth, and amazing cooks! They are just as exhausted as you by the end of the day but they still cook, clean, and set up camp without any complaints. All in all, it was an incredible experience and I met a lot of really cool people. But one word of advice - bring cycling shorts if you have them... The rafting part is pretty rough on your behind and some extra padding wouldn't be a bad idea... read more

On 7/21/16, I took the kiddos on a great adventure! 10.5 miles on the South Fork of the American River, rafting the Chili Bar run. The Guides at ML were amazing. Great senses of humor, fun facts about the river shed, an informative walking tour at Sutter's Mill, an excellent lunch, and a safe and fun-packed rapids trip. I recommend this "unplugged family day" to all. A special thank you to our boat guide, Chris, who's sense of humor, sincerity, and mad river skills, made the kids and adults feel at home and part of the ML family. I wholeheartedly recommend Mother Lode River Center. We will definitely return! read more

We came here with a group after getting a Living Social deal. This best part of this place is the staff! Very friendly, helpful, and fun. Our "day" included the climbing wall (including blindfolded), a walk along a log that is 20 feet in the air, a suspended cable walk that requires a partner/team approach, trapeze jump, and a zip line. We had about 12-14 people total in our group with 3-4 guides. What I really liked was that this was laid back and not rushed. Usually when you go to these types of things the guides are like robots - trying to get people through the thing as quickly as possible so that they can be done. Our guides were patient, knowledgeable, and fun! They seemed genuinely interested in learning about us and what we wanted to try on the course. Overall, great fun! The guides were great and you felt like you got your $$ worth because you can do whichever thing as many times as you want! read more

I went on the two day trip, which included the Gorge and Chili Bar run on the South Fork part of the river. Overall, it was an awesome adventure, especially for my first time. It is class 3, but I'm an adventure seeker, so it wasn't too scary or uncomfortable. I enjoyed every moment of it, from the big rapids like "Meat Grinder" and "Hospital Bar", to the more relaxed class 1 and 2 rapids. The river was pretty crowded from other rafting companies and kayakers as well, but it did not interfere with the enjoyment. I have tried kayaking and canoeing, all of which were fun, but rafting was the best! It was light paddling and a lot of excitement! Our guide, forgot his name, was superb and always made sure we were comfortable and safe. He had us to twists, spind, and backwards stuff through all the rapids, and one of us even got to stick their heads straight into the rapids. Overall, it was a fun trip. However, be advised there will be alcohol around the campsite, even if they say none allowed. The cabin tents were comfortable enough considering the fact that we're outdoors. I can't say much about the food since our class had to provide our own meals. I checked the prices, and realized it was pretty expensive compared to all the other rafting companies, but I'm sure it was well worth it. read more

Came here last weekend with a few friends and had an awesome time! Kevin was our guide for white water rafting and camping. He was really chill and funny at the same time. The water itself was pretty calm, with a few big rapids. Kevin had us riding backwards for part of the trip to enhance the risk factor! Our meals were really good as well. For lunch it was a basic sandwiches, fruit, and chips. I really enjoyed that they had a lot of different spreads and fillings, like artichoke hearts and sundried tomatoes. Dinner was excellent, but I think we were really lucky that another group was cooking Korean BBQ. I think they don't typically serve Korean BBQ, but we certainly enjoyed the ribs, chicken, and steak. For dessert, Kevin gave us a very pretty platter of graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate for making smores. He even helped us set up the camp fire! Breakfast was also delicious breakfast burritos (that they had catered), fruit, and bagels. We thought it was strange that tents and sleeping pads were not included in our "all-inclusive camping package". So we were charged extra for them over the phone. But when we got to camp, we found out that they actually have these cabin/tent structures with cots that we could have stayed at for free. It would have been nice if they had explained this over the phone, or if they just allowed us to use the tents for free! Kevin was awesome though, and had already set up our tents for us. Thanks, Kevin! The actual campsite was really nice with hot water showers and private bathrooms. Overall, we had a wonderful time and it was a true "glamping" experience. read more

I can't put into words the run we took down the Middle Fork. Scott is the best guide I've ever had. He put us on the spot all the way down the river. All the staff were knowledgable and made the entire day full of laughs and memories. You should hit these guys up for the ride of your life! read more

This is definitely worth your time! Great experience too! I came here this past weekend with my friends (group of 12ppl) and they setup tents and feed us dinner and breakfast. The people/staff there are great and very friendly. We did white water rafting first! Totally safe and I don't swim so I was frantic before going. We went on levels 1,2,3, and a bit of 4. Made me think that I can even handle level 5! Then we did ropes the next day. I do urge you to try everything. As scary as it looked, it was very safe and they are very careful. I'm already looking forward to the next time I go :) Warning: at night, it does get chilly, so bring something to keep you warm read more

It looks like a very nice place to camp. Right next to American River with beautiful site seeing. We did not camp there just visited for rope course for Labor day weekend. I was disappointed with this activity. We got it at a discounted price $49 per child and it still wasn't worth it. The course took 4 hours and there was about 15 people with two instructors. Only one person per activity and others are just waiting for their turn. There are four activities and my kids spend total of 20 minutes having fun and there remaining 3 hours (or more) was just waiting for their turn. I think that water rafting would be a better choice. Rope course was boring. Since we had a lot of waiting time we walked around and the place looks very nice for camping. Even though it was a holiday weekend the park was fairly empty at least in the area where we were. read more

Such a fantastic company! The guides were not only knowledgeable, but fun as well! I loved seeing girl guides kill it on the river! I will definitely be returning! Keep up the good work! read more

Mother Lode River Center - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Lotus, California

Me and my friends had an amazing time. We'd recommend anyone do this, it's safe and fun! The staff is amazing, helpful and funny. If any one is looking for a good time this is the place to go. read more

My two teenage granddaughters and I had a great time rafting the South Fork and Chili Bar on the American River. Our guides were experienced, friendly and provided an excellent adventure. The accommodations were clean and well kept, the food was good, especially breakfast! I got a great deal on Groupon! but, even at full price it would have been well worth it. read more

Use this company! Mother Lode is an outstanding outfit in an area where rafting companies are everywhere! We were camping in the area and having some difficulty because there was no RV parking nearby. Laura (absolutely lovely young river guide who had a great sense of humor!) offered to pick us up at the nearby park. Transportation is not included so it was a sweet gesture to help us out. Riding with the crew to the put out was hilarious and the other river guides were all nice & inclusive. The rafting itself was great - the entire raft of people had a fantastic time! Through luck of the draw we had wound up with Laura and she did not fail to wow us! Her knowledge of the river was wonderful and she was able to share information, navigate class 3 rapids, keep 6 people from injuring themselves AND make us smile while being only about 90 lbs!! You won't be disappointed! read more

For Labor Day weekend, me and boyfriend purchased a 2 night camping/1 day whitewater rafting package and had an awesome time from start to finish! All of the staff were very friendly and helpful, and our river guide Scotty was fantastic! The rafting tour was a few hours and he was informative, fun, and helped us feel really prepared for the river. We had a lot of fun and got a lot of great waves! We would certainly use them again and are planning on doing a class 4 river next time. You will definitely have a good time with Mother Lode! read more

This place was awesome! We had so much fun rafting and camping at Mother Lode. Our guide Ryan was great and had a lot of knowledge about the river and it's inhabitants. I'm a first time rafter and I thought the class III rapids were just enough excitement for me. We saw deer, geese, a cool water bird with a mohawk, and an Osprey carrying a fish! The camping was nice and there are changing rooms with showers and clean bathrooms. We camped near the river with a sky full of stars, it was beautiful. There are also cool rock fire pits and if you're not into tents on the ground there's some really nice glam tents with cots to rent. Overall great experience I'm ready to do it again. read more

This has been by far the best experience of my life and the best vacation ever! The crew was amazing. Our guide Alec made us feel like family. The weather was great and lunch was fantastic. Going back for sure. read more

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Just yesterday I went up to auburn and did my first kayaking day on the river. I had been rafting before and thought I could handle it. However after my raft started leaking air and I had been dumped out a few times on some level 3 rapids I called it quits. I wasn't sure how I would get back to our truck but I wasn't going to get back in the kayak because I really felt like I was going to get pinned under the water and I had already sucked down a bunch of water. Brandon and this company stopped and picked me up and gave me a ride down to where our truck was and I'm truly grateful for their kind gesture. I had a blast in the raft and I would recommend using this company for the future. I owe Brandon my life because I really thought I wasn't going to make it out of those rapids alive. Thanks man!!! read more

My family went up for a half day zipline and high ropes course. We had the best time! It was challenging but not too difficult where my 8 and 10 year old didn't want to try. The equipment is well maintained and everything is thoroughly explained. Thomas and Brandon were incredible guides for our group. In the the boys were already asking when we can plan our next trip. Can't wait to come back and try rafting! read more

What an amazing adventure! My husband surprised me with a white water rafting trip for my birthday. My mother and grandmother joined us and we had an amazing time! Our "punny" guide, Kayla, made the trip so much fun! She made sure we were all having a great time and kept the puns going the whole trip! She even taught us about the secret guide move of the "flying squirrel". You will only be able to see it in action if you raft with Mother Lode! Kayla was so wonderful in fact, that the family who joined our group on the raft actually requested her from another rafting trip they did the day before! We had an absolutely fabulous time and all of the guides were funny, helpful, and informative about the river, land, and animals, as well as how to navigate us safely through the rapids. I would 100% recommend Mother Lode as your destination for fun and adventure! read more

We went white water rafting with my squadron, all the guides made it a fun time! Our boat had Thomas as a guide, he was great and made our trip so much fun! 10/10 would reccomend for people to go and enjoy! read more

Mother Lode River Center - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Lotus, California

I recently came to Mother Lode River Center as a chaperone for a 7th and 8th grade end of the year camping trip with my students. We had a fantastic time! We camped in the tent cabins, participated in the low and high ropes courses, and did river rafting in the rain. It was really a perfect end of the year trip for us. My students had so much fun, and they are already asking me if we can come again next year. Not only do they have great programming, but the facilities are wonderful as well. They loved using the volleyball net, and the location was gorgeous- right on the river. The food was great too! They even made sure there were options for me as a vegan. I was really impressed by the outdoor education guides, the hospitality we received from our host, and the knowledge of the river guides; they worked hard to make sure everyone had a fun and safe experience. I highly recommend Mother Lode River Center for group trips and team building activities. I would definitely go back again. read more

Mother Lode is a terrific whitewater outfitter. I've taken a number of trips with them down the South Fork and the Middle Fork of the American. Their guides are highly qualified! They're great at listening to their clients and making the trip fun and exciting. They also provide really great food! If you're going to do the middle fork, ask for Aaron or Courtney as your guide! They're both AWESOME!!! read more

I purchased a Living Social deal and along with 3 other people, we made reservations for the weekend of 9/8. Most of us had never rafted before and we loved it SO much, we'll be back for next season!! The deal was for a ropes course, 10-mile Class 2 & 3 rafting trip, overnight stay and breakfast, lunch and dinner (with s'mores for dessert!) Since it was actually 2 crews running the show (Living Social and Mother Lode), I'll comment on each one separately. Living Social: The overall organization of the staff was great and friendly. Everyone was social and knowledgable making my group feel comfortable and welcomed. They jumped in and helped the ML staff with clean up, setup, etc. and anything else needed. Mother Lode: Super friendly people who ran a great show from beginning to end. The staff that led the rafting trips were the same people who guided the ropes courses (ziplining, pipe line, leap of faith, rock wall and one other I can't remember.) Everyone had positive and friendly vibes who knew what to say and do to calm your nerves or encourage your own. On the water, all the guides looked out for one another's boat staying behind to assist if people fell out and I really enjoyed seeing and feeling that sense of camaraderie. Rafting trip: We were outfitted into groups of 6-8 to a boat. Prior to getting into the water, the staff went over safety and the gear, all the while making sure to remind us to have fun by staying safe. There was definitely the calm before the storm and it was just a gorgeous place to be in the late summer. Our boat was up for some adventure but nothing too crazy and our guide Sarah did a FANTASTIC job of making accommodations for us by showing us her favorite maneuvers and we all had a blast!! Overall: The place itself is a great size for a group of 50. Our tents (supplied for LS and ML) were setup down by the river, enough to hear the roaring water but far enough away to not fall in. We found a perfect spot to spend the night and it was fabulous! The sheer number of bright stars at night was enough to lay out for a bit to soak in all the beauty and calm. We were well fed throughout the 2 days with delicious food. For lunch they fed us build-your-own sandwiches, light appetizers of hummus, cheese, crackers and baby carrots, BBQ dinner with tri-top and BBQed chicken followed by a campfire and s'mores and a full breakfast complete with pancakes, eggs, sausage, etc. Even without the LS deal, I would definitely be back again. We had such a fabulous time overall, a few of us are considering making it our new hobby! read more

Love this place. We spent an amazing weekend on the river, and our good time had a lot to do with how nice and knowledgeable our river guides were. (Shout out to Chris and Christie!) The river is challenging and peaceful. A perfect way to unplug from city life. The camping was nice for camp standards. Indoor showers with cold and warm water, indoor toilets, plenty of garbage cans, etc. And the meals were really good! It's camping for people who don't totally wanna rough it. read more

Let me start by saying we only did the high ropes challenge course. We had a bachelor party group of 6 guys and had a great time. There were 6 different activities/challenges: rock climbing, high balance beam, two-person high wire walk, jumping onto a swing bar from high up on a tree, zip lining (~300 ft), and lastly a 12' wall team challenge. Overall had a great time! read more

Spent a weekend here that included rafting and stay in one of the canvas tents. Absolutely great experience. Very friendly and helpful staff. The canvas tents are so comfy. takes the pain out of camping. Bathrooms and showers are clean and functional. Overall a great way to relax and recharge! read more

For Father's Day, my family thought it would be a great to go rafting. After figuring out that a class 1 / 2 raft trip would suit all parties, I started researching Rafting companies on the American River. I found that Mother Lode River Center (MLRC) seemed life the best fit for the 4 of us. It turned out to be an Excellent choice! I called the office number and got in touch with Brandon, who manages operations at MLRC. Brandon was not only informative, not pushy, and very accommodating - he was just a laid back and cool person which made booking the trip a piece of cake. When we got to MLRC on Fathers day, The staff, including Brandon, greeted us, were friendly, efficient in getting us signed in, and introduced us to Sean - our rafting guide. Our 2-3 hour rafting trip was a great experience thanks to Sean's knowledge as a guide, his fun personality, and his ability to throw some cool thrills in to round out a great trip! After returning to land, Sean and Brandon made sure we had a great trip with MLRC and wished me a great Fathers Day! I highly recommend MLRC as a rafting operator due to our experience and the truly terrific folks like Brandon and Sean that keep things running smooth and the trips a blast. We will be back as a family for a Class 3 raft trip in the near future and know it will be a great trip! read more

Definitely fun experience! Ramy was our guide during rafting. He really knows how to make an excellent adventure! He very kind and friendly. He studied Chinese from us and set the command by using Chinese words :) The trip is self is also amazing. You can jump from the cliff, and ask the guide to adjust the intense level. 5 stars experience to me! read more

Great time on my 2 day, 2 night business Mastermind retreat at Mother Lode. What an awesome way to mix business and pleasure. Staff, food, riverside (and shaded) setting, customer service and more - all great. Really a friendly experienced team. We even threw in a Zip line and small ropes course for excitement and diversity. If you want an awesome quick get-away for business, family fun and just yourself, you are in good hands with Mother Lode. read more

I'm just going to say this: I'm surprised that this place has such stunning reviews. Or maybe my group was the exception, not the rule. What is the point of having an itinerary if they had no intention of following it? Part of our group showed up on time and part of our group showed up about 30 minutes late. But it seemed it didn't matter what time we got here because no one was there to greet us or tell us where to go or what was going on. And this was the theme of the trip! "What's going on? What are we doing?" The highlight of the trip was definitely the rafting. Our guide was really enthusiastic and nice and pretty much saved the trip. Oh, and the food was pretty decent. I edited this post to include this. Though there were no smores like I was hoping, everything else was pretty good. So pat on the back for that part. Will I be going back here? Probably not. Not even with another deal. read more

I signed up for Mother Lode's Rafting Guide School in April 2021. The owner of Mother Lode, Scott, was fantastic at communicating with me on the phone and through email, answering any questions I had about the program. The campsite is a beautiful river front 12 acres, with multiple bathroom/showers, full kitchens, and tent platforms with large canvas "glamping" style shelters. Scott was also wonderful in letting me borrow some camping gear from them free of charge. During the program meals were included, and we were instructed in how to cook and serve meals for large groups. During guide school, we rafted the South Fork of the American River 6 times, and each of the students took turns guiding and learning to read whitewater. The staff provided us with any gear that we needed such as wetsuits, splash jackets, life jackets, and helmets. The guides (Brandon, Randy D, and Randy W) were exceptional in teaching us lessons, providing mentorship, and answering any questions we had, as well as following up with us after each trip to let us know what we did well, and what we needed to do to improve. Over the course of the 3 weekends, we learned the basics of guiding commercial river trips, and I was surprised about how much progress the other students and I had made by the end of the course. We started out needing basic instruction in paddling, and by the last weekend, we were successfully navigating class 3 rapids by ourselves. Mother Lode is a great company, they have a strong focus on safety, they are environmentally conscious, and I strongly recommend their guide school or commercial rafting trips to anyone. read more

Wow! My husband & I had a great time on the ropes course and rafting! We did the ropes course in the morning from about 9:30-noon, then they made us a delicious lunch (marinated chicken or pulled pork sandwiches, coleslaw, potato salad, fruit & veggies) and after lunch we went rafting. All the guides were truly amazing - during the ropes course they were so positive (we heard phrases like "you CAN do this!," "come on, you got this,!" "great job!" throughout the morning), down to earth, very helpful - they ALL had the best attitudes. It was such a positive and fun environment, even for me who is very afraid of heights. I was able to jump off the 35 foot tree platform and catch the trapeze ("Leap of Faith"), which I thought I could never do! The white water rafting was great with several rapids and a nice spot to stop and jump off a 15 foot rock into the water. The same guides from the ropes course led the rafting trip and they were very experienced on the water as well. Just a great day overall - highly recommend them to couples, singles & families! :) read more

Had an amazing day on the south fork w/ guide Sean. Had a group of 7 friends, some terrified, and some excited for the experience of rafting. With the amazing guidance of Sean everybody had the best experience possible. It was exhilarating, educational, and addictive. Can't wait to return and do some more rafting with this great group of guides! read more

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Had an amazing time on the river! Staff was friendly, professional and knowledgeable. The three guides who took us out were also educators in the community in one way or another. Our guide (can't remember her name, sorry!) also took at risk youth and people with disabilities on the river. Really great people working here! Thanks for the adventure, will definitely be back! read more

Mother Lode River Center - Great time, thanks for the adventure! - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Lotus, California

Such a fun time with family. We rafted the lower fork and did the high ropes course and Ali was the best. Not only did she put up with our crazy family, but she joined in with the jokes and craziness. A truly incredible trip. Glad we made some new friends and we can't wait to come back and have Ali take us on the class 4 and 5 rapids ;) Couldn't have asked for a better experience. read more

My best friend and I just returned from an amazing adventure with the Mother Lode Rive Center staff. We arrived and had fun on the ropes course. The zip line is prefect for beginners. Lunch was yummy, dinner was plentiful, and the coffee at breakfast was good and strong. Kristie our river guide was fun, professional, and skilled. She made our trip adventurous and safe. Thanks Kristie - you're the bomb-diggity! We purchased our tickets from Living Social and their staff was thoughtful, helpful, and friendly. We didn't realize they would have their to help host, too. This added additional thoughtful touches like snacks, availability for questions, and all around cheerfulness added to the pleasantness of the trip. Thanks August 18th/19th Living Social Crew. PS - Don't forget to bring a flashlight. read more

The staff is what really makes this place GREAT! We purchased a 2-day trip on LivingSocial for 8 people: rafting on day 1 and the high rope challenge course on day 2. Tents with cots, meals and smores were include in the deal. Chris was our guide for the rafting portion and he was beyond awesome. We had a non-swimmer in our group who was deathly afraid of the water, but Chris was attentive and made sure she didn't fall in the river. We were able to play games, pick berries, swim and jump off the rocks in between the rapids. All of the guides seemed really fun, but I think that we got the best one! On day 2, our group did the challenge courses: rock wall, high balance on a log, pipe challenge on a cable, and the leap of faith. Ryan, Samara, and Olivia were all so patient, especially with those of us that had a fear of heights. You can really tell that they wanted you to have a good time. I have to mention that the food was much better than what I anticipated. I expected store bought danishes and some toast for breakfast, but was pleasantly surprised. The staff got up early and made 3 different flavors of pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon and coffee. Dinner one night had the most delicious risotto (thanks Samara!) and the next night was you-pick-the-toppings pizza from scratch. I can't say enough about how great the staff is. Everyone is so friendly and you can tell that they really care about your experience. This trip was amazing and I recommend it to everyone. Our group had ages 9-65 and everyone had a blast. We are already talking about plans to go again next summer. read more

We had a blast with the white water rafting. Staff was friendly. We just didn't get to do the ropes course we had booked because they require more people to book but they did offer to compensate us with a second day of rafting and more meals. Food wasn't bad either. Can't wait to go back with a bigger group. read more

Mother Lode River Center - An experience to remember - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Lotus, California

We booked a South Fork Tour with our family. We had a great time and learned a lot about rafting. Our tour guide was knowledgable and helped us feel comfortable on the river as well as teach us some skills to navigate the class 3 rapids. None of us had experience with rafting but our guide helped us learn what we needed to know. He knew a lot about the wildlife and the river which was nice. All of the staff was friendly and the food was terrific. The accommodations are really just fancy tents which was fine but if your are expecting more than a tent sent up you will disappointed. I would definitely book another tour through Mother Lode. We had 3 kids with us ages 12, 13, and 14. They had a great time too. Thanks to everyone at Mother Lode. read more

Just spent the day on the river water rafting with this outfit. Our guide Mike was thorough in his safety explanation, knowledge of the river and. Preparing us for each rapid. Well worth the time and expense. You leave refreshed and telaced read more

Amazing place for a family trip. We go here every year with our school with kids ranging from 8-11 and they love it. Not bad for the parents either. Staff is amazing - friendly, efficient and they do an excellent job of teaching kids on the ropes course and river. They also make amazing food. Campgrounds are great as well. Highly recommended!! read more