White Water Rafting in Downtown Oklahoma City
Oklahoma may not offer much in the way of white water rafting down the likes of the Colorado or Snake River, but we do have a pretty cool alternative. You can have a class 4 urban white water rafting experience in the downtown OKC area. The facility is more or less a hop and a skip from Oklahoma City’s entertainment district, Bricktown. You won’t be in the boat paddling for hours through the canyons, but it’s not a bad way to get an adrenaline rush.
If you’ve got kids in tow, you can easily spend half to a full day burning off energy. There’s a zip-line, rock-climbing wall, a ropes course, and some pretty cool high-speed slides. The brave at heart can do some-what of a mini bungee jump, the Rumble Drop from the top of the SandRidge Sky Trail. There’s also tubing, kayaking, paddle-boarding, and a whole slew of other adventures. All in all, it’s a great place to spend the day as a family with plenty of things to do.
What a day at RiverSport OKC looks like
It’s been a while since the kids and I have been able to visit, but much remains the same. The biggest change is the number of available activities. We went in the fall of 2018 and without diving into a long and depressing monologue, 2019 was a miserable year and 2020 brought the pandemic. We are finally getting back into the normal swing of things and hoping the world doesn’t roll back again with the emergence of the new variant. That said, our last (and first) visit was a blast. By far, white water rafting is one of the best things to do in OKC for families who enjoy adventure.
Our day started with a rafting “trip.” The rapids were a little much for my older daughter who isn’t too keen on rocking the boat, literally or figuratively. She’s a cautious one but she was brave and, while glad she participated, expressed she didn’t need to relive the experience ever again. She did have some fun and wasn’t completely miserable. I’m pretty sure it was the near-ejection that put her future in white-water rafting into question. Alternatively, my younger daughter is some-what of an adrenaline junkie.
Things to Do Besides Rafting
After a few trips around the “river,” the girls headed over to the Sky Trail. It’s not overly challenging but it’s fun enough to keep kids, and maybe adults, entertained. The girls were particularly motivated to reach the Rumble Drop – the exit option involving a 80 ft free fall jump. Of course, if that’s a little too scary, you can always walk, zip, or slide down.
Once back on the ground, the girls spent time on the rock climbing wall and the slides. By this time, we were moving well past the lunch hour and starving. There is a cafe option on site if you plan to stick around but, for us, the day was done. Between whitewater rafting and the other activities, we spent about 3 to 4 hours at RiverSport OKC. Best of all, we brought home some great family memories.
Get a Membership for Unlimited Fun
One of the cooler aspects of River Sport OKC is that it is an olympic and Paralympic training site. If you live around the city and like to stay active, you can also sign up for a membership. With the membership you gain access to a long line-up of indoor and outdoor fitness and adventure activities.
There are day, season and annual passes available for purchase. The pass will give you access to the water sports, indoor fitness center, the sky trail, youth zone, and bike park. If you want to go all out, you can upgrade the RiverSport+ membership which adds access to the Sky Zip, Surf Sessions and premium fitness activities like hydro rowing and VR fitness.