When
Friday night (arrive no earlier than 5 PM), Saturday and Sunday, May 16-18, 2025.
You may stay Sunday night. No instruction on Monday. Must be out of the campsite no later than 9:30 AM.
Tiny homes are available on Friday and Saturday nights only. Additional nights may be booked directly with the venue.
Where
Royal Gorge RV Resort, Canon City, Colorado (DO NOT Contact, the club is managing the reservation)
43595 W US HWY 50, Canon City, CO 81212
Tiny home cabins, RVs, vans, and tent camping available. During registration please indicate your lodging plans. This way your favorite volunteers can make sure everyone will fit. Registration includes shared tent camping site. We have 34 sites and plan to do at least 2 tents per site.
UPGRADED ACCOMMODATIONS:
We will have the following UPGRADED ACCOMMODATIONS available on a first come first serve basis.
Select your upgrade and camping preference on the registration page. You must go through the registration process twice for upgraded lodging.
RVs must register for one of 7 dedicated spots (if you have large RV or want dedicated hookup). There are also 20 shared spots allow for 40 shared registrations. This is additional registration to your event registration. You must go through the registration process twice for upgraded lodging. Once for your class and once for the tiny home cabin or RV spot.
Other nearby options if group camping is not your thing:
Royal View RV park resort (where we held the event last year)
Who Can Attend
Fees – How Much Does This Thing Cost?
Training Camp Participant Type | 2025 Cost |
---|---|
Standard Training Camp Participant | |
* Register by 5/12/2025 | $250 |
CW Kids Paddling Team Member (Code required) | $100 |
Instructors and On-Water Volunteers (Code required) Waived registration fee reserved for on-water sweeps and leads. |
$0 |
Fun Hog - person staying but not participating in courses | $60 |
Last day to sign up is 5/12/2025.
Refunds: Due to the difficulty of re-scheduling this large event, refunds are not available at this time.
Gear Note: Participants are required to provide their own modern kayaking equipment, including a full sized kayak. Play-boats are not appropriate for learning river skills in most of the classes offered (with the obvious exception of the play-boating classes!), and your instructor reserves the right to refuse service if your gear is not appropriate or safe. Our intent is not to exclude participation but to provide a safe environment that promotes learning for all. There are many options around Denver for gear rentals if needed.
In addition to appropriate boat, all participants will need a helmet, river shoes, type 3 or type 5
PFD, and appropriate dry top/pants/suit or other layers for the cold Arkansas water. Kayakers
should also have float bags and a skirt.
Level | Course Name | Short Description | Read this to decide which course is right for you |
---|---|---|---|
Runs you felt comfortable following someone on. Swims might still happen, but you aren't terrified of these runs. All of these recommendations are a spectrum not a requirement. If you don't live on the front range of Colorado, you may not have done any of them. If you've only done one of the runs on ths list (or at a similar level), aim for an easier class. Floating down the middle of a run is not the same thing as finding eddies and surf waves to play in along the way. Water levels vary. If you're a little scared following someone down the easiest lines at low water, drop down a level. If you're comfortable catching every eddy out front at higher water levels on a run, maybe think about stepping up. Instructors reserve the right to reassign anyone at any time for any reason. If you'd like a recommendation on what class send an email to the instruction coordinator with your favorite run (including relative water level), a run you didn't feel comfortable on, what your goals are for this season, and any other relevant information. |
|||
A | Introduction to Kayaking | For new kayakers. You must have taken a pool class and have been on moving water at least once. | Pool or Lake, River Run Park (S Platte), Golden Play Park <100cfs (Clear Creek) |
B | Beginner | For kayakers who have been on more than 5 moving water trips. Learning the skills to move beyond class II. | Class II: Deckers (South Platte), Filter Plant (Poudre), Milk Run (Ark), Grizzly Creek (Colorado) Play Parks (Clear Creek) |
B/C | Boating Betties | For the ladies, taught by the ladies! | Play and practice, instructional, in your hard shell kayak. Strokes, edges, river reading and maneuvering; roll practice/refinement; and intro to surfing. A river roll is not required, but interest in progressing is. At minimum, you should be comfortable and experienced on Class II/II+ with a desire to develop competence on Class III water. REGISTRATION CODE REQUIRED: Email Noelle at riverevents@coloradowhitewater.org for your code. |
B/C | Go With The Flow | Like a club cruise, an opportunity to float with friends and mentors. | A safe, mellow, float trip for those who prefer a low- stress experience. No intensive skills drills, this is a fun but instructional cruise requiring mild effort.The group(s) can determine their own focus, whether it’s discussion about reading whitewater or safety scenarios, or what-have-you. Talk to your Trip Leaders to customize your trip. |
C | Intermediate Fundamentals | Skills for class III boaters. Punching big waves, using cross current speed, basic surfing, catching smaller eddies. | Easy Class III: Lower Blue (Blue), Rincon (Ark), Leading on Pumphouse (Colorado) or Apple Valley (St Vrain). Sometimes rolling in current (or at least attempting ;-) ) |
D | Advanced Intermediate | Learning the skills to advance beyond class III. Hard moves in easy water. Boofs, jet ferries, using surfing to get lateral speed, | Harder Class III: Fractions below Miracle Mile (Ark) Bridges (Poudre), Tunnel 1 Down (Clear Creek), Maybe Foxton (N Fk South Platte), Maybe Waterton (S. Platte), Maybe Shoshone (Colorado). Usually rolling in current recommended |
E | Advanced | We're not surviving the big rapids, we're styling them. Linking moves, slaloming rapids, boofing over holes. | Starting class IV: Browns (Ark), Royal Gorge (Ark), Fractions (Ark), Maybe Numbers (Ark), Maybe Stephens Down (Poudre), Maybe Upper or Lower Clear Creek. Roll Required |
E | Play The River! |
Surfs, spins, spats, cartwheels, tailies and loops! This course will introduce you to the world of playing on the river. We'll mix time in a playpark working on boat control, foundational skills and traditional "freestyle" tricks with time on a down river section applying those skills, learning some down-river tricks, working on fear control and learning to play in a natural river environment. |
You'll be upside down more than any other course so a good roll is required. We'll be making rapids you're comfortable running harder and more fun! |
B-E | Rowing | Two day rowing clinic is a fun and immersive way to learn and build on rowing, water reading & scouting, and river safety skills, working up to class III+ whitewater. | No experience necessary, for beginner and intermediate rafters. |
Kids Team | Must be enrolled with Kid's Team. REGISTRATION CODE REQUIRED: Email Noelle at riverevents@coloradowhitewater.org for your code. |
See list of courses in the prior section.
On Water Volunteers
Please keep in mind that this is a fund raising event, and the proceeds allow Colorado Whitewater to sponsor conservation activities such as river cleanups, special events, and helping protect and fix neglected or abused sections of rivers we've grown to love. Even though we are a volunteer organization, we are able to promote the sport of whitewater kayaking for all abilities - from newbies to the more experienced. Your support helps provide our members with ACA certified instructors, allows for discounted swiftwater safety classes, free CPR/First Aid training, and so much more!
Thanks to these awesome companies: