I was really looking forward to going white water rafting, especially after speaking with the gentleman on the phone. He was patient, informative, and took the time to answer all my questions, which gave me a lot of confidence before we even got there. When we arrived, the three ladies at the sign-in shack were just as friendly and helpful. What stood out most to me was how focused they were on making sure everyone understood the process--not just for fun, but also from a safety standpoint. I really appreciated the way the staff in kayaks guided us, giving us clear heads-ups and reminders throughout the trip. That kind of attention helped a ton. The experience itself was absolutely exhilarating--riding through the rapids with friends was so wonderful. Our guides, Margo and Thea, were incredible. They were both friendly and supportive the whole time. At one point, during the last rapid, my friend lost his balance and fell into me, and almost knocking me out of the raft. Thankfully, Margo and my wife reacted quickly and grabbed me before I went overboard. Special thanks to Margo for that! Honestly, the whole trip was so much fun I was ready to go again immediately, but we had to check in our hotel and grab dinner. I just wanted to say thank you to the entire team, especially Margo and Thea, for making our first rafting adventure such a great one. We'll definitely be back soon. read more

Swiftwater Adventures - Rafting hitting some rapids - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Carlton, Minnesota

This was super fun and a lovely adventure with a group of teens! The people who work here are friendly and helpful. I like their website. Rafting is always fun! Only four stars for two reasons. If you've never been rafting before, you will love this! If you have done some rafting in other states, this river will feel tame. Swiftwater adds in some time at a nice little beach where you can ride over a small rapid and hike up and the guides will show you berries! This makes up for the less exciting rapids. Also, and I'm sure this rarely happens, but the camera malfunctioned the day we were there and we didnt get pictures of our group. Bummer. read more

Our guide fletcher was super rude and a terrible host on our boat. He was always negative and had a terrible attitude. The actual water and the river was fun but fletcher made it so terrible for our spirits. Would raft again but with someone that is not that angry man. read more

Amazing experience and beautiful sights to see! We had one of the newest guides, Andy. He was awesome to raft with and he really seemed to be getting the hang of the job! You can tell he loves what he does already. All the staff was incredible and attentive! I can't wait to take more trips down the river with them. read more

Swiftwater Adventures - Andy guiding us down the river - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Carlton, Minnesota

Our experience with Cliff and Swiftwater Adventures was truly top notch. We ran the Upper St. Louis river on September 22, 2014 on what turned out to be a cool, overcast day with lower flows but that did not change the excitement level for us, two sea kayakers just getting our feet wet in the whitewater world. Cliff was very patient with us and really made us feel safe at every challenge, explaining the line, what to do if things went pear shaped and just generally being supportive in a way that was deeply appreciated by both Cali and myself. Having limited Class II+ experience I was hesitant to commit to the III+ Electric Slide rapid at first, but the assurances Cliff offered really stoked my confidence. We ended up going over it twice and I got a chance to practice my combat roll on the second go round... now we can't wait to get back in a river! Charging the rapids would have been enough, so the addition of insightful discussion on everything from technique to geology, eco-tourisim to the biology of the river was just icing on the cake. Cliff is a really remarkable guy with expansive knowledge of the sport and the world it exists in. And of course no review would be complete without a Cost/Benefit analysis, even if it means shooting myself in the foot for our return trip. The current price of $45.00 a person, all inclusive, is a ridiculous bargain... Out here in California we're hard pressed to find boat rentals for that amount, much less a guided tour by a consummate professional. Once we have more hours on the river logged we hope to return for Cliff's creek boat clinic. Bottom line? Better grab this deal while you can! Swiftwater Adventures embodies everything kick ass about Minnesota to be sure! read more

Swiftwater Adventures - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Carlton, Minnesota

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We had an amazing time! The guides were incredibly kind and knowledgeable. We always felt safe and prepared for the rapids we were about to approach. The adventure swim was a fun midway break. The scenery is beautiful! We had such a blast and can't wait to go again. The age range for our group was 10-60, so it's definitely something the whole family can do. We also loved the professional pictures available at the end. Great memories! Thank you! read more

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The good is the staff and their attentitiveness The bad is the rafting Boring and with much more flat water than moving water. Lots of lame paddling. No excitement Nothing against this outfitter in particular, but whitewater rafting and Minnesota do not belong in the same sentence. read more

Really knowledgeable guides. 6 sets of Rapids that you go through one had a 6' or so drop. Felt safe and well prepared for the trip. There are a couple spots you can go for a swim. I'd recommend this to anyone who wants to try whitewater rafting for the first time. read more

Have you ever had an experience where it completely changes how you feel about life? My first ever whitewater rafting experience yesterday was that for me. I signed up at the last minute and am an older, overweight, have rheumatoid arthritis and am a not in the best shape grandmother. My thought was gee I better do it now because who knows if I will be able to next year with the RA and my joints hurting more and more. I got to Swiftwater and everyone on the team was so helpful and helped me with my life jacket and finding a lighter paddle. I was prepared for some physical activity but when I was paddling in the beginning, I was not using a good form or digging deep enough. The guide was kind but blunt and explained that I needed to get the paddle all the way into the water and use my body to be effective and to stay in the raft in the areas coming up. After the first rapid and surfing (mild compared to the last two rapids), I was literally thinking what in the hell did I do and asked Lucas, our guide in the kayak, if it would be possible to get dropped off on shore and walk back. He said it would be a 4+ mile walk and if I was scared I was getting the best ever experience. There was no quitting and I was scared and it was hard but I loved it. I highly highly recommend this company for your trip and Lucas, Trent and the guides in training were amazing. They truly will work with people of all abilities but to be safe and not put others at risk, you will need to be able to paddle. In two short hours I went from thinking this would be a once in a lifetime experience before I was too old and my arthritis could be too progressed to knowing I can and will do this again and I need to work hard to get to where I want to be physically for the next trip. I went from being the grandma that thought I can tell my grandkids about this to thinking that if I change things up now and dig deep,, I may be the grandma that rafts with the grandkids someday. I was so sore afterwards, but once again everyone was kind and helped me unclasp my life jacket when I couldn't get my fingers to cooperate, made sure I made it across the gate ok when walking back to the van, etc. The trip was fricken amazing and thank you once again. read more

Wow! I can't say enough good things about these guys! We took a trip down with a group of coworkers and I never imagined how much fun it was going to be! The raft guide was very, educated, safe, and had a lot of things to share about the surrounding environment. I.e. he pointed out a 150 year old growth white pine!! I would highly recommend these guys and as I look on there website, swiftwatermn.com, I see they offer even more then last year! Can't wait to get on the river again!! Thanks swiftwater read more

What a memorable experience! Our first time whitewater rafting and right here in MN. Cliff, Luke and Brian were all great. We learned all the basics of rafting/safety and they tested us before we took off. Loved every minute of it. Half way through the trip we stopped for a short hike to an overlook, and what I appreciated the most was the little stops to learn about the local plants. Our entire family had so much fun. It made our next day suck in comparison. :-p read more

Swiftwater Adventures - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Carlton, Minnesota

This was mine and my significant others first time white water rafting. It was so amazing. Obviously we were scared and nervous being new to such an activity but the guides were very informative and friendly. It was the most beautiful day and we did the upper of the st.louis. There was quite a bit of paddling in the beginning and the end which was the only negative. Wish there would have been longer Rapids or more as this only has 6. This is a must! read more

Swiftwater Adventures - Getting geared up to go white water rafting. - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Carlton, Minnesota

Cliff and the gang really made this trip fun. Our 10year old was really nervous but Henry put him to ease and now he wants to raft every weekend. We will be lifelong patrons read more

This was an awesome experience! We rafted in Colorado and couldn't believe the difference here. This was definitely more exciting! The staff was wonderful- definitely a must do experience. read more

From start to finish the trip was well organized and moved smoothly. The water in the river was low but the trip down was still fun and the scenery was quite lovely. If you are nervous about trying this I wouldn't be. We were all given clear instructions on what to expect and what to do and there was always at least one kayaker nearby, as well as the other boats, in case you got into trouble. No one did on our trip. I would love to do this again, earlier in the year when the water was higher. read more

My buddy and I had a fun time rafting down the St. Louis River with Luke and his crew on a sunny Friday afternoon in May! We had lots of personal attention from the professional crew and we learned a lot about rafting, and most importantly had a blast! Got some great GoPro footage as well. Thanks guys! read more

We had an amazing experience from start to finish. The leader was well versed and explained everything thoroughly before and during the trip. His sense of humor made it easy to listen. Under the direction of our incredible guide Whitney we headed straight on into the rapids and she made us feel like experts. She even got the teens to sing row row row your boat in a round. That is skill. We loved every minute of our ride. Thank you!!! read more

Had a great time here last weekend! Reasonable prices for a great time. Guides are awesome and so knowledgeable :)

My daughter and I had an awesome time whitewater rafting for the first time!! Would definitely do it again. The team at Swiftwater was great!! read more

This is a must do! Cliff, Luke and Brian are all super friendly, and have great humor. They have lots of knowledge of their surroundings. The pictures came out great as well, and I got them via email super fast. Best first time experience! read more

A group of my military coworkers and our spouses and friends took a rafting trip down the St. Louis River yesterday with Swiftwater Adventures and we had the best time! The guides were so much fun along with being extremely knowledgeable about the river and surrounding area and it made us want to make plans to do many more trips with this company! For any organization or individual this would be a wonderful trip to take, but their support of the 148th Fighter Wing and all other branches of the military mean the world to is. This is not only an amazing company but a locally owned business that supports the military and veterans and offers military discounts that are wonderful and truly appreciated. They don't only do rafting, there are many other things available, adventure is in the title for a reason so I would encourage anyone looking to have a great time while in the area to check them out, by far the best rafting and adventure choice in the area! read more