Guest Letters & Trip Feedback

Boy Scout Troop 262 out of Clayton, CA rafted the South Fork American and had this to say about their California rafting experience…

Diana,

We had a BLAST. Our guide Kelsey could not have been any better. She set us up for success, instructed our Scouts on what to do, they did what she said (or close enough), and she complemented them over and over. Make sure you tell Kelsey we really appreciate her professional yet friendly attitude…..plus her obvious comfort on the water. Everyone on our boat had a great time, and we are already thinking that next year we may want to do a 2 day on the Class 4…..if my Scouts can start earning some money. Your operation was first class all the way. From the incredible amphitheatre at the start and the shining rest rooms to the case of ice cold drinks at the take out. Very well run organization.

We had our Troop meeting Tuesday and we had a slide show from the photos we bought and all the kids and parents that did not come are jealous and want to join for the next trip.

I hope to be getting with you next Spring.

Dan Condon
Troop 262
Clayton

A bit of feedback from down under from a couple who rafted the Tuolumne River…

Hello Ian!

i must admit emily and i had the best time of our lives!! our guide, Colin, was fabulous (it must be why he put us a lead boat) haha kidding. The food was awesome, everyone was friendly (even though emily thought it would be good to start a whip cream fight with “horse” but he was a good sport about it) and all in all just an amazing time. if i could rate it i would day 10 out of 10. We are now looking to do another trip for 3-5 days next year so if you have any recommendations let us know. i would love to get a few updates next spring but i live in Australia and this is my work email so too many personal emails and i will get in trouble (i don’t have a personal email).

thanks again for the awesome experience/trip and i will def recommend you guys to my aussie mates when they plan their trips to America.

Thanks again,

Ashley Ellison
Queensland, AU

Family of 3 out of Williamsburg, VA joined a Middle Fork 1-Day trip on their California vacation and sent us these remarks…

We had quite an exciting trip down the Middle Fork. It was definite a highlight of our vacation. I particularly appreciated the professional expertise of our guide, Joe. He prepared us for each rapid by explaining what we needed to do to execute it successfully, how to proceed if it didn’t go as planned, and what we should do if we were thrown from the raft. That eased my apprehension. Even though we were given the option of walking around Tunnel Chute we approached it enthusiastically, and its challenge did not disappoint us!

My 16 year old commented that she was certainly glad that we rafted with All-Outdoors (considering the problems that other companies experienced that day). Very insightful of her and I concur completely. Indeed, All-Outdoors deserves its accolades!

A bit of feedback from Mike C of San Francisco on his Middle Fork American River rafting trip…

Hi,

I would like to start by saying thank you Lenka and to everyone at All Outdoors. I would love to post a comment about our trip.

To start off I’d like to mention that All Outdoors is the most professional, exciting and helpful company I have ever dealt with. My experience with All Outdoors started off with very little notice. I decided I wanted to go rafting less than 24 hours before my trip. Lenka was handling my booking, she was very informative and quick to accommodate my request. We booked our trip with no problems and immediately tried to rent a car (a simple task, or so I thought). All car rental companies within 20 miles were booked out and everyone I new that could lend us a car happened to be out of town. AHH WHAT NOW? There is no refund for our trip on such short notice. I call Enka and explain my situation. We ask if we can change it to the following Monday. Within 20 minutes Lenka has us booked in and to my surprise (because of our specific situation) we are not charged for the change. Well All Outdoors you had me at hello. This alone would have been enough to bring me back time and time again to this fantastic adventure sports company.

So now for the trip itself, I print off the directions and have no problem finding the meeting location. As soon as I exit my car there is a friendly hello and a firm handshake combined with fresh mountain air beautiful scenery and an air of excitement around me as the rafts are prepared, and so begins our trip.

After a short ride down the mountain and a brief humorous introduction about safety we reach the river. The boats are loaded and my roommate and I have an idea who we like to be our guide (Louis) and of course this request is met (another point scored for A.O.). We get a little briefing and hit the river. We happen to be in the front, our guide is leading the pack SWEEEEET. Louis is going over the basics and explaining that the first big rapid a class 4 Tunnel Chute. A few tweaks here and there to our rowing and we blast down the river. The whole trip is brilliant, Tunnel Chute definitely being my favorite rapid. We get a nice break with some level 2s’ and 3s’ before lunch, during which Louis tells us all about the river during the gold mining days and how to read the water, mixed with some surfing (something I highly recommend if given the opportunity) we finally dock.

After lunch and a short swim we blast down the remainder of the river before docking and returning to the bus. I have rafted the American River once before and can say that Louis was the best guide we could have hoped for. He managed to combine a feeling of being safe with the all the excitement one would expect from the river and a knowledge of the area that left me feeling enriched by my trip.

Whenever I raft in California I will only raft with All Outdoors and will always request the same guide. If you are looking to experience the great outdoors and want to throw in some excitement try the Middle Fork of the American River and more importantly book your trip with All Outdoors. You would be a fool not to.

Once again thank you to the whole team and hopefully I will see you guys in about 10 days.

Sincerely Mike

Marie G of Carmel Valley, CA joined us for 2 rafting trips this month and had this to say of her experiences / adventures.

Hi Eric & Howard,

Wanted you both to know what a great time we had on both of our trips with AO. First on the Middle Fork with Matt Henry as our guide. Matt did a fantastic job of keeping us safe, focused & learning. Most of all Matt inspired us to book another trip immediately following that day on the Middle Fork.

On our next trip we had the pleasure of learning even more skills & gaining greater confidence with Noah on the Tuolumne. We were lucky to get paired with another adventure seeking group, they too hope to run Cherry Creek next year. Talking with Noah about Cherry Creek & preparedness was so helpful. He worked further with us on stroke quality, specifically the back paddle (we got bruises on the hip–we got it right!) & the importance of reading the river. We even saw a bald eagle, a very good omen!

All in all, AO has been fabulous to work with. Your staff is highly professional, prompt & attentive to every detail. We know we are in good hands as we aim for next year’s ultimate goal, thank you & extra thanks to both Matt & Noah!

Marie Gibb
Essentially M Design

Some honeymooners out of Watertown, MA joined a Tuolumne 2-Day trip on their California honeymoon and sent back these remarks…

Hi Lenka,

Thank you for the e-mail. Pete and I had a great time on the rafting trip last week!

We really enjoyed the rafting experience, and the variety of rapids we got to experience. The guides were all excellent, and we appreciate all that they did for us. They shared their knowledge of the Tuolumne, took us on interesting hikes, and were fun and knowledgeable guides as we navigated the river. The food was excellent, and we were impressed by the range of options at each meal.

Thanks for a great experience! We hope to be back the next time we visit CA.

Kristen and Peter Vallieres

The Shearer Family out of San Mateo, CA embarked on a 1-Day adventure on the South Fork American River and had this to say about their experience…

Just wanted to let you know that we had a great trip. Thanks for arranging the most perfect weather!!! I also wanted to compliment the guide staff we encountered on our trip. Everyone was positive, helpful and friendly. We were lucky to have Carson guide our raft. His enthusiasm for everything around him – the river, nature, people, – was infectious and most certainly added to the enjoyment for our entire family. Kudos to everyone, especially Carson!

Many Thanks!
Brigitte Shearer & Family

This bit of feedback hales all the way from Dubai, UAE.

Dear Lenka,

I would like to thank all at All Outdoors for making our first rafting trip run so smoothly. We thoroughly enjoyed our day on the South Fork American River. Lunch was delicious. The scenery was ‘awesome’ in the true sense of the word, not that over-used American way!!! A special mention for Sam our ‘raft master’ who was working his paddle far harder than the rest of us put together, we appreciate it.

Many thanks to all,
Jill Thorpe

The Neilson family out of Murrieta, CA recently joined a South Fork Express trip and had a great time…

Hi Howard,

we had an amazing day — and loved every bit of it. We will recommend to friends and hope to come back again next Summer. Colin our guide was EXCELLENT!

thanks for a great experience!

Margarete

A gentleman out Boise, ID (an avid Class V rafter) seemed to be pretty impressed with the challenge of Cherry Creek…

The trip was great! Hour for hour, the best whitewater rafting I have yet done, and our guides were super. Yes, please do contact me next year. I try to do one trip a year (and I have up to 4-5 friends I usually go with, although this year everyone had to drop out). We already have a reservation to do the Murtaugh portion of the Snake River (one of Cherry Creek’s few competitors for best commercial day trip in the Western U.S.) next spring, but if possible, I would love to do the Cal-Salmon as well.

Thanks again,
Mike