When visiting a new town, where to eat is always a number one question. We are happy to share our recommendations for meals in Taos that will have you feeling like you are in with the locals! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, especially if you are coming rafting on our afternoon trip! For stellar eggs benedict, check out a cute little café on the north side of the plaza called Gutiz. The Farmstand has a beautiful location and a menu that boasts dishes sourced from many local farms and the outdoor seating might be the best in Taos. If you are looking for a later breakfast before your New Mexico rafting trip, head south to the town of Dixon for the BEST New Mexican breakfast around at Zuly’s. Their red and green chile stands up to any in the state and the eggs are always cooked to perfection! Lambert’s of Taos is located very close to the plaza in Taos and is a great place to have lunch. They have nice light indoor dining as well as a nice patio to enjoy one of their lovely salads or sandwiches. The village of Arroyo Seco is fun to check out on your trip to Taos and you can grab a quick fresh lunch at the famous Taos Cow or New Mexican fare at Abe’s. What better way to cap of a lovely day in the high country than with a green chile cheeseburger and a cold local beer from 5 Star burgers. Their happy hour is legendary and the menu has something for everyone! If you are looking for something a little more formal, Medley is a new restaurant in town located at the beginning of the Taos Ski Valley road. Lastly, the Kyote Club is a fantastic restaurant offering up a tapas menu along with large plates. The chef, Ky Quintanilla, has been on a couple of our wine pairing trips and knocked the socks off of our guests both times. Your guide can also give you other restaurant recommendations if you are looking for something different.

The first annual Rio Grande 94 was put on this year by one of our all star guides, Wendy Meyer. She is a veteran racer having completed two of the most prestigious and brutal river races in the country, the Missouri 340 and the Texas Water Safari. The 94 mile race started at the foot of the Little Arsenic trail in the Wild Rivers Recreation Area just before sunrise. The racers enjoyed the sunrise while navigating through the La Junta rafting section and getting warmed up for the famous Taos Box. The first check point was at the Taos Junction Bridge and our very own Devin Beck was leading! The next two check points were after the Racecourse section and right before the White Rock stretch. The racers had to navigate through NINE dams on this section!! The race ended at the Cochiti Reservoir where all participants were met by Wendy with her trademark smile and a cold beer. Tying for first in the kayak division were Garret Schooley and Sebastian Munoz and first place in the inflatable kayak division was Devin Beck and an honorable mention going to Luke Kriken. The total race time was around 22 hours. We are excited to see how this race grows in the future and to cheer on and support all the participants as they take on the fun challenge. If you happen to get any of the participants or Wendy as your guide next summer, be sure to ask them for their first hand accounts!

We are hoping for another winter full of favorable weather patterns here in the southwest that will dump considerable snow in the mountains and lead to substantial runoff in the 2017 spring and early summer. It is never too early to start planning your trip with New Mexico River Adventures! Give us a call or send an email with any questions. We look forward to seeing you on the river, whether you want to go rafting in Santa Fe or Taos, New Mexico!  We have the #1 Rated adventures in New Mexico!

NMRA is looking forward to sharing our love of white water rafting in New Mexico with you this summer! Whether you join us for a half day trip down the Racecourse or a three day trip on the Rio Chama, we have just the adventure for you! Our Stand Up Paddle Boarding program has become very popular as we are the only company in the state with professional and certified Paddleboard instructors and we look forward to sharing the fun new sport with you. Also, don’t forget about our Specialty trips on the Rio Chama.  Our Gourmet trip is always a hit and we also offer a beer lovers trip with Bosque Brewery as well as our annual Music Trip.  Call for more details!

New Mexico River Adventures is excited to invite larger groups to add on our famous Chicken and Veggie Fajita Lunch either before or after your adventure with us right here at our headquarters! We are offering Fresh and Hot Fajitas with tender chicken, sauteed veggies, black beans, red chile rice, our own special fajita sauce, fresh fruit, cold drinks and dessert at $10 per person. You can also feel free to grab a growler from our neighbors at Blue Heron Brewing to enjoy with your meal. Call our office to add this on to your trip! Don’t wait to book your trip- whether you are wanting to go kayaking, paddle boarding, or white water rafting in Santa Fe and Taos, New Mexico, we’re ready for you!

Lucky Us!  That seemed to be the shared sentiment a friend and I had as we got out for a quick paddle on the Racecourse and Bosque sections of the Rio Grande the other day.  As is typical this time of year in New Mexico, the Rio Grande has plenty of water and the weeks often bring some days with bright and beautiful skies and nice warm temps despite plenty of ice that has settled onto the Basalt rocks throughout the Rio Grande river corridor. One of the many special things about living in the Gorge is that the river flows throughout a good part of the winter exceed our Aug and September flows which means there is plenty of water to enjoy on practically all the sections of the Rio Grande that we run commercially and privately.  The other great aspect of paddling in the winter here is of course the wildlife.  Our winter residents include multiple pairs of Bald Eagles, otters, coyote, elk and deer to name a few.  The Bald Eagles are always active throughout the day and are easy to spot in the wide open winter cottonwoods lining the river banks. Find your favorite New Mexico rafting trip with New Mexico River Adventures and experience the Rio Grande for yourself!

The 5 best rapids on the Rio??  Usually this is an impossible task as each rapid is wonderful in it’s own way and at varying water levels.  However, as winter sets in and we dream about more whitewater…lets give it a shot.  We narrowed the list down to only rapids that are found on the sections of river we raft.  Here we go!

#5:  Thunderdome aka Big Rocks

This rapid is so much fun at all different levels.  At our lowest levels, it becomes the most difficult rapid on the Racecourse.

#4:  Rock Garden

Rock Garden is the longest and certainly one of the most consequential drops on the Taos Box section.  This rapid has great character as it starts very slowly and picks up speed culminating in a great stright away of high intensity moves around rocks and large hydraulics.  Don’t fall out of the boat!

#3:  Razorblades

The Razorblades rapid is basically a quarter mile long section of continuous class 3 and 4 moves in one of the most remote section of the Rio Grande.  Although this section is seldom runnable due to water levels being either too high or too low.  When the conditions are right, this rapid provides some of the highest intensity paddling of any other on the Rio.  Don’t miss this section if you like Adventure!

#2:  Powerline Falls

Probably the most well known rapid on the Taos Box rafting section.  This is also know as the steepest drop on the river.  At low and medium flows, the approach to Powerline is nothing less than stunning.  Hands down one of the largest and most daunting horizon lines of any rapid in the west.

#1:  Sous Hole

Sous Hole takes the prize as the best overall rapid on the Rio Grande for lots of reasons.  At lower flows, the splashes and surfing here are some of the best and certainly a spectacular way to end your time on the river on those hot July and August days.  At higher flows, this rapid is so big it attracts hundreds of spectators with lawn chairs set up just to see the action.  The pool below this drop often times feels like a Coliseum!

One of the great things about living in the Rio Grande Gorge is the changing colors of the fall.  As September comes to a close and October marches on, the face of the Rio Grande changes dramatically.  The cottonwood choked river corridor turns an amazingly bright color of yellow at its peak and electrifies the entire canyon.  While some people think that the Northeastern U.S. is synonymous with iconic fall foliage and autumn colors, we in New Mexico know differently, that this is truly a unique and incredible In terms of river running, the changing of the seasons often times means an increase in water levels.  This is one of the many reasons we are so lucky to live on the banks of the Rio Grande.  As the lowest water levels in Sept. and Oct. disappear and the snow starts to fall in Nov., our sunshine filled days often times bring increased flows for us to enjoy just before the dark of winter sets in.  The mix of these colder, crisp days, bright shining sun and beautiful colors on the banks makes for a truly spectacular setting.  We love New Mexico!

With the Holidays right around the corner, we’d like to say thanks by offering a special 20% off of our most popular trips for the 2016 season! This is the largest discount we offer each year and a great opportunity to Give the Gift of Adventure to friends and family.  This offer will be good through the end of 2015 and can be applied to Gift Certificates or reserved trips on the Taos Box, the Rio Grande Gorge or the Racecourse. It is looking like a great winter which means great water for the 2016 season.  As we can never guarantee this time of year, we certainly hope to see great, runnable flows for the Taos Box from mid May thropugh June and early July!  As for the Racecourse and Rio Grande Gorge full day trip, these will be available daily from April 1 until Oct 1.  Don’t miss this great opportunity to save huge on your 2016 adventure! Just enter promo code 2016Gift at checkout and we’ll see you on the river! Book Your Trip!