That’s it! No more Kaweah, no more Merced. We’re cleared out of the bug, said goodbye to Dorletta and her tasty burgers for the year, and put the Merced t-shirts in storage until next year. If you missed these rivers this year turn your attention to the trifecta of summer-long reliability that are the South and Middle Forks of the American River, and the Tuolumne.

The South Fork is of course the family trip par excellence–fun rapids, not too long, not too short, and jsut exciting enough. The Middle Fork is a step up with more miles, a more remote canyon, and higher adrenaline rapids. Two-day trips there are AMAZING because the river is so close to civilization but seriously feels a world apart. The Tuolumne is even more remote and step higher in the difficulty dept as well. A beautiful canyon, stunning water, and lots of wildlife. Plus, it’s just near Yosemite if you want to do some world-class camping and try your luck hiding food from crafty bears. Then there’s Cherry creek, which is actually the upper section of the Tuolumne River. I hardly think I need to tell you that the Creek is the most challenging commercial river trip in California, if not the United States. yeah, we’re pretty hard-core like that.

http://www.aorafting.com/river/south-fork-american/welcome.htm