We love river running: Big whitewater, little riffles, flat water. Rafting, kayaking, paddle-boarding, canoeing. Day trips and multi-day trips. We started RiverBent to share our experiences and tips about river running—with both old hands and newcomers.
So who are we? Audrey Crockett and Michele Crockett (daughter and mom). Along with our husbands Pete (Audrey’s) and Harry (Michele’s), we have accumulated rafts of various sizes, hard kayaks, inflatable kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards. We do several multi-day trips and a bunch of day trips each year with family and friends.
Based in Colorado, we primarily paddle rivers in the Rocky Mountain West. We have plenty to share about how to plan and organize multi-day trips on iconic river stretches like the Middle Fork of the Salmon. But we also seek out lesser-known river sections that we’ve discovered in years when we didn’t pull any of those prime permits. In our view, any river is better than no river (and we’ve taken that to extremes in some cases).
Our mission with RiverBent is to get more people who aren’t surrounded by former river guides to make river-running a way of life. We believe that sharing river running information will help newcomers break through some of the barriers that keep them from putting in.
In this hyper-connected world, we’ve found that floating a river—with no access to cell service for days on end—is the best imaginable way to press the mental reset button. We’ve made a few converts over the years, and we’ve realized that it comes down to information. The more people know about how to organize a river trip, what gear to pack, and how to stay safe, the more likely they are to become addicted to river running.
In addition to passing along getting-started advice to new river runners, we hope to spark some discussions with more experienced boaters. Our river-tripping group is (probably like yours) an opinionated bunch. We have had passionate, extensive discussions about everything from the best groover to the best dish-washing system to the lowest water level we would actually put in at Boundary on the Middle Fork.
Our river running content focuses on three general areas:
- Trip Planning—tips for organizing your trip, from choosing your crew to dividing up chores, assigning cooking duties, and the dozens of other logistical details involved in a private river trip. Here are some of our most popular posts in that category:
- River Info—information on running specific stretches, including put-in and take-out info, permit processes, camp info, etc. for some of the most popular river trips in the western U.S. (such as the Middle Fork of the Salmon and Browns Canyon on the Arkansas, as well as a few overlooked gems (such as the Gunnison Gorge)
- Gear, including boats, wearable stuff, and river camp set-ups, including these popular posts:
- Picking the Best River Toilet—we’ve tried almost every groover, so use our experience to compile your own shortlist
- Game-Changing River Camp Kitchen Gear—this stuff makes river kitchen camp so much more efficient, so you can spend more time hiking or fishing
- 11 Essential Inflatable Kayak Accessories—including the often-overlooked but critical thigh straps
- Tips for Choosing and Using Dry Bags for River Trips—dry bags for every river situation
- 5 Essential Accessories for Your Stand-up Paddleboard
- Resources—a compilation of go-to information we use ourselves to plan river trips, buy gear, and learn about river issues
- Community—a collection of stories about groups such as Diversify Whitewater, Protect Our Rivers, Team Riverrunner, and American Whitewater, whose team members are fighting to keep rivers healthy and accessible for us all
- RiverBent Bookshop—our curated list of favorite books about rivers, from nonfiction resources to favorite river-related fiction reads
The Dogs of RiverBent
We love bringing our dogs (not all of them at once) on river trips when it’s appropriate. Not sure how well your dog will do on your next float trip? Check out “10 Questions Before You Bring Your Dog on a River Trip.” In that post, we share a few tips for taking dogs on river trips, which has ups and downs. Although we have our share of Labrador retrievers, we’ve discovered that unlikely breeds (we think Mabey is a terrier-Maltese mix?) can unexpectedly crush it on a stand-up paddleboard.
Thanks for checking out RiverBent.
Disclaimer
Outdoor adventures, especially river running, can be dangerous in various ways. We urge you to always take safety precautions and never, ever jump into any outdoor activity that makes you feel uncomfortable. The tips and guidelines we share here are for your consideration only. It’s up to you to take personal responsibility for your own safety. RiverBent is in no way responsible for any scrapes you might get into out there. For more information about how RiverBent operates, check out our Disclaimer.
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