White Water Rafting
Up here in Cairns, we are blessed with some of the country’s most unvarying white water rafting river rapids right on our doorstep. In fact there isn’t another place in Australia that can claim that they have commercial rafting operators operating on 4 local rivers.
The rivers that are located locally are the Barron, Tully, Johnstone and Russell Rivers, as well as lots of smaller creeks that only the locals are stupid enough to attempt}. This truly must make Cairns White Water rafting something unique. Both the Barron River Whitewater rafting and Tully River Whitewater Rafting run using whats called controlled release. This happens when the water is released at a set time from a dam or Hydro Electric Scheme. These two are easily our most popular rivers with both full and half day tours operating daily. The Barron River has grades 2-3 rapids while the Tully has a more challenging grade of 3 to 4 and even 5 during the wet season.
The Johnstone River runs after our monsoon season, but offers Heli Rafting extended trips with up to Grade 5 rapids. This tour is quite adventurous.
The Russel River uses inflatable 2 man sportsrafts, which is a little different from the standard inflatable rafts, they are still loads of fun and easy to use. This run does unfortunately have a short trek in to the launch zone through some untouched rainforest. The Russel River has rapids in the range of grade 2-3 with possibly a few grade 4′s after upstream rain.
All rafting is done under the watchful eyes of highly certified river guides, and all raft operators hold the mandatory Government licenses and Insurance. So there is nothing to worry about if you want to have a go at some white water rafting while on your holiday in the tropical north of Australia.