River Bikerafting with Chris Burkard bikeraft training with Doom for Iceland.

2-Day Learn Basic River Bikerafting Skills – No Frills

Paddle to Pedal: Learn Basic Bikerafting Skills Course

Learn to pair bicycles and packrafts to expand your capacity to explore your local waterways! From 9a.m.-5a.m. over two days, you’ll learn basic paddle and river reading techniques on the Animas River, along with basic bikerafting techniques on up to Class II rapids. This no-frills learn basic river bikerafting skills course is for the budget-minded aspiring bike-packrafter and will be done entirely in Durango, Colorado. This course is for beginners, though you must know how to ride a bicycle.

What is Included?

We provide an open Alpacka Classic, helmet, PFD and paddle.

What’s Not Included?

This no-frills course does not include lodging, food or a drysuit. You must have a drysuit for this course, as the water is snow melt and quite cold. And you’ll be practicing self-rescue (aka wet re-entry skills) on day 1. You can rent one locally at 4CornersRiversports.com or with a 15% discount through BackcountryPackrafts.com. You’ll get the discount code once you pay your deposit.

Price: $650

Instructor: TBD

What You Will Learn:

We base our learn basic river bikerafting and packrafting skills instructional courses on confidence and skill progression. We start slow and push you a little harder as we go, tailoring the experience to your own personal abilities.

For Beginner to Intermediate courses, you’ll learn a wide variety of skills, from the basics to more advanced river reading techniques. This is a list of some of the things you will learn:

✔️Basic packraft equipment use and care
✔️Self-rescue, partner-rescue and how to right your boat with a bike on it
✔️Dealing with currents
✔️Aggressive & defensive swimming positions
✔️How to navigate river hazards with a bike on your boat
✔️River dynamics
✔️Basic paddle strokes with a bike on your boat
✔️Using eddies
✔️River commands
✔️How to lash your bike to your boat and vice versa
✔️Transitioning from bikes to boats and vice versa

Full 2023 Bikerafting Course Schedule:

✓April 5-9—5-Day Become an Intermediate Bikerafter (Utah)
✓April 26-30—5-Day Learn River Bikerafting Skills
✓May 6-7—2-Day Learn Basic Bikerafting Skills – No Frills
✓May 11-14—4-Day Intermediate Bikeraft Course
✓June 1-4—4-Day Intermediate Bikeraft Course
✓June 21-25—5-Day River Bikerafting
✓July 1-2—2-Day Learn Basic River Bikerafting Skills – No Frills
✓July 7-9—3-Day Learn to Bikeraft on McPhee Reservoir
✓July 14-16—3-Day Learn to Bikeraft on McPhee Reservoir