GC Rafting Gear Checklist
A noncommercial Grand Canyon permit means you carry everything for 16 days or more from Lees Ferry, because the canyon has no stores and no resupply. The people who wrote about it describe car camping from a raft: big dry bags, real camp chairs, a second layer of waterproofing, and a plan for sand in every zipper. The Park Service adds a long list of required gear, from a fire pan to a washable toilet, and the writers add what they would not do again, such as fingerless rowing gloves.
What shapes your gear on Grand Canyon river trip
- How long you can stay
- The maximum for an oar trip from Lees Ferry to Diamond Creek is 16 days for May through August launches. It is 25 days for January and February, 21 for March, April and October, and 18 for September 1 to 15. Count the launch day and the take-out day.
- What one private August trip looked like
- A 16-person group ran about 225 river miles in 16 days on five rafts, three of 18 feet and two of 16 feet. Daily temperatures ran around 105 to 115 degrees. The author called the trip closer to car camping than backpacking.
From The Outbound
- How trips are assigned
- A main weighted lottery runs online for the first three weeks of each February for launches the next year. Follow-up lotteries reassign canceled and left-over trips, typically opening around noon on a Tuesday and closing at noon Mountain Standard Time on a Thursday.
From Grand Canyon National Park (National Park Service): Weighted Lottery - Noncommercial River Permits
- What the permit costs
- The Park Service lists $25 to apply once per launch year, a $200 or $400 deposit, a $20 entrance fee and a $90 river permit cost per participant. The balance is due 90 days ahead of the launch.
From Grand Canyon National Park (National Park Service): Weighted Lottery - Noncommercial River Permits and Grand Canyon National Park (National Park Service): Noncommercial River Trip Regulations (revised December 20, 2024)
- Orientation at Lees Ferry
- Every participant leaving from Lees Ferry attends orientation in person. It starts at 3:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time the day before launch and lasts about an hour. The ranger also checks required equipment that afternoon.
- A winter month on the river
- One rower spent a winter month on a private trip and described two brutal windstorms on a first winter Grand trip. A dry suit was close to mandatory for that season, even though the Park Service does not require one.
From Halfway Anywhere: Ultimate Grand Canyon Winter Rafting Packing List and Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
What the agency requires on Grand Canyon river trip
Wearable life jackets and a throwable
Every passenger needs a Coast Guard labeled whitewater PFD of Type I, III or V, plus one extra PFD for every 10 people on the trip. Everyone wears a properly fastened PFD at all times on the river. A throwable flotation device is required on each raft 16 feet or longer.
A gas stove, a fire pan and a fire blanket
Gas stoves with enough fuel for cooking are required on every trip. Wood and charcoal fires need a metal pan of at least 300 square inches with a 3-inch lip on manufactured legs, and a fire blanket underneath. Fire pans are required on all trips from November through the end of February. Gathering firewood is prohibited.
A washable, reusable toilet system
Each trip carries a washable reusable human waste system that the park approves. A wag-bag style system must be ready during the day and carried on side hikes, and you bag all feces on hikes and bring it back to camp. Toilet paper goes in the main toilet and is never burned.
Spare oars and a repair kit
Each oar-powered raft carries an extra set of oars. Every trip carries a patch and repair kit for each boat material, at least one air pump, a first aid kit on each boat and a river guide that shows camps and river miles.
Water purification
All drinking and cooking water must be purified. The Park Service says to use the main river unless it is very cloudy, to let sediment settle overnight, and to boil for 1 minute or filter at 0.2 microns and then disinfect.
What hikers carry on Grand Canyon river trip
Big dry bags plus a second layer of waterproofing
One rower carried everything in two 75-liter bags and a 22-liter day bag, and said every friend who bought cheaper bags wished they had not. That rower also lined the bags with thick contractor bags and used them to keep dirty gear separate from clean. A summer rafter used one 90-liter dry bag for 16 days.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear and The Outbound
A real camp chair
A rower said you spend a lot of the trip in your chair and that group members first mocked and then envied the good one. A summer author agreed that a tiny ultralight chair is underwhelming at the end of a long day, and the best chairs on that trip had leg rests and a shade umbrella.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear and The Outbound
Locking carabiners for rigging
The winter rower brought at least six to clip a day bag, phone case, bottle and map to the raft, and said sand ruins auto-locking gates, so use screw gates. One member of that group lost a phone to the river, so the rower kept theirs in a hard case clipped to the raft.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear and Halfway Anywhere: Ultimate Grand Canyon Winter Rafting Packing List
Closed-toe water shoes and a dry pair for camp
A summer rafter wore closed-toe river shoes on the water and on side hikes and wore sandals only in camp. A winter rower wore tall waterproof boots at camp, so feet stayed dry when going in and out of boats. An outfitter-style list also adds neoprene socks for cold feet.
From The Outbound, Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear and Whitewater Guidebook
Full-fingered gloves for rowing
The winter rower rowed in gloves about 90 percent of the time. Hand cream was another buy: split fingertips showed up fast and the author wanted lots of it.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
A sun shirt, a wide hat and a spare pair of sunglasses
A summer rafter wore a sun hoody almost constantly in the heat and brought a second pair of cheap sunglasses. An outfitter-style list also suggests a strap that holds glasses on through rapids and says to bring more sunscreen than you think you need.
From The Outbound and Whitewater Guidebook
A pad, a sheet and a pillow for sleeping on sand
A summer rafter slept outside on a thick foam pad with a small inflatable pillow and a light sheet every night. A winter rower said they would have chosen a thicker pad, because a partner's 3-inch pad looked much better than a 1.5-inch one.
From The Outbound and Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
Radios for the boats
A winter rower said no one mentioned walkie-talkies beforehand, yet one on each raft and the kayak worked out well. They are sealed against sand and water, and a power bank recharged them.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
Two headlamps and a sleep mask
An outfitter-style list brings two headlamps in case one breaks or ends up in the river. It also suggests a sleep mask because full moons can be bright in the canyon.
From Whitewater Guidebook
A tarp for sand control
A writer for river runners suggests a small tarp to stand on while changing and to set your gear on while you search your big bag. A winter rower used a sand-shedding mat as a doormat and found it traps sand once it gets wet.
From Whitewater Guidebook and Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
16 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Grand Canyon river trip
Fingerless rowing gloves
The winter rower tried two pairs of gloves and none worked before borrowing a full-fingered pair, then called the fingerless pair a terrible mistake.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
Binoculars sold as waterproof
The same rower's pair filled with water soon after launch despite being advertised as waterproof.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
Hiking gaiters and climbing gear
The rower expected many days of hiking and rappelling and got about half a day of hiking, so the gaiters and the rope kit stayed in the bag. An outfitter-style list still suggests bringing gear if you go specifically to climb or rappel.
From Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear and Whitewater Guidebook
A heavy wardrobe in summer
A summer rafter rotated just two pairs of shorts and three shirts through the 16 days. The extra packing room went to costumes, which the author said matter.
From The Outbound
Too many cameras out of the dry bag
The summer author kept the camera in a dry bag most of the time and said the canyon felt too big to capture. A winter rower, in contrast, kept a waterproof action camera out all day on the raft.
From The Outbound and Halfway Anywhere: Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear
Gear questions for Grand Canyon river trip
How long can a private Grand Canyon river trip last?
For an oar-powered trip from Lees Ferry to Diamond Creek the limit is 16 days for May through August launches and 25 days for January and February. Count both the launch day and the take-out day.
What life jacket do you need on a Grand Canyon river trip?
A Coast Guard labeled whitewater PFD of Type I, III or V for every passenger, plus one extra for every 10 people. Everyone wears one at all times on the river, and the Park Service refuses general boating and ski vests.
Can you have a campfire on a Grand Canyon river trip?
Yes, with limits. Wood and charcoal fires need a raised metal fire pan and a fire blanket, you may not gather firewood, and a gas stove for cooking is required on every trip. Fire pans are required for all launches from November through February.
What do you do about toilets on a Grand Canyon river trip?
Each trip carries a washable, reusable toilet system and a wag-bag style kit for the day and side hikes. Urine goes in the river or in the toilet.
Sources
- Noncommercial River Trip Regulations (revised December 20, 2024) · Grand Canyon National Park (National Park Service) · Agency
- Weighted Lottery - Noncommercial River Permits · Grand Canyon National Park (National Park Service) · Agency
- Grand Canyon Rafting: Favorite (& Hated) Gear · Halfway Anywhere, Tyler Fox · Blog
- Ultimate Grand Canyon Winter Rafting Packing List · Halfway Anywhere, Tyler Fox · Blog
- A few tips and favorite gear for a summer Grand Canyon trip · The Outbound, Kyle Frost · Blog
- Grand Canyon Packing List · Whitewater Guidebook, Emily Singletary · Blog