Download this QR code to access our “free” river app!
Download at home before your trip to save on paying for data.
This app is like having us personally guide you down the Grand River.
For “Trip Code”, please type in Glen. The 5km Sycamore Trip starts at photo #17, scroll down to view your trip.
All prices include boat, PFD jacket, paddle, safety kit, orientation talk, river map app, shuttle ride and parking.
For the drone video… the Sycamore Trip starts at the 1:40 minute mark.
For spring only open Weekends & Statutory with start times 10:00am, 11:00, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, 5:00pm
Please be sure to arrive 15-30 minutes before your start time.
Monday-Friday Hours: 10:00am, 11:00, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, 5:00pm
Saturday, Sunday & Statutory Hours: 10:00am, 10:30, 11:00, 11:30, 12:00pm, 12:30, 1:00, 1:30, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, 5:00pm
Please arrive 15-30 minutes before your start time.
For fall open only on Weekends of September 6-7, 13-14 and Sept 20-21 with start times 10:00am, 11:00, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, 5:00pm
After Oct 13, open 7 days a week with start times of 10:00am, 11:30 and 1:00pm
Please be sure to arrive 15-30 minutes before your start time.
For the Sycamore Trip please drive to to Birley Gates Campground, 142 West River Road S. Brant, On… drive into the parking lot and the reception desk is at the edge of the forest with the big white trailers.
The Sycamore Run is a shorter trip (5km) to give you a taste of what paddling the Grand River is like.
This route is a wilderness setting ending at Birley Gates Campgrounds. There are lots of bird sightings from Bald Eagles to Blue Herons. There are turtles, wildlife and fish… but nothing dangerous to people. Best of all, there are no mosquitos.
This is an excellent route for beginners with some paddling experience, because the water is a little faster. The river is about 1 meter deep in most spots, allowing non-swimmers to stand up!
It is a 5 km river trip. You paddle one way with the current helping you. Most people take 1 hour to 2.5 hours depending on the type of boat, how much you paddle… and whether you stop to swim!
If tubing, most people take 2 hours. Tubes are designed so that parents can tow their children.
If in a canoe, kayak, raft or SUP… people average 1 to 1.5 hours at a leisurely pace. When the river is flowing fast after heavy rain, you don’t have to paddle at all!
We normally suggest 4 years of age and up. For weight, if over 270lbs, please call or email our office to see what boat is best.
We are certified By Ontario Tourism Safe Traveler Stamp… visit our Health Protocols.
With us, no waiting for a return pickup after your trip!
Simply park at Birley Gates Campgrounds, get outfitted and we shuttle you upstream to the start point… then you paddle back to your vehicle… so you are good to go when done.
There are washrooms at the parking area and start point… on this route you get to paddle by a Bald Eagle’s nest, stop at al island for lunch and a swim, fresh water springs to taste… and at the end paddle through the old towering Three Sisters, the abutments of the first original railway line going through this area in the 1850’s. Your trip ends just past the abutments where your vehicle is parked. Get out and do a 400m walk… and you are back to your vehicle ready to visit the nearby River Town of Paris.
This trip launches into a swift of moving water and there are 5 more easy swifts along the way to paddle through, but most of the water is easy and flat, with little current.
Along the way there are spots to stop and swim. Finding swimming spots is easy… peer over the side of your boat… put your paddle down and see how deep it is! The river averages 1-2 meters in depth.
The Grand river has a stone-gravel bottom… so having shoes to protect your feet from the rocks, is a very good idea.
We do offer a longer trip of this route called Glen Morris to Paris route (11.5 kms) Link
Grand River Rafting reserves the rights to inspect all bags and coolers being brought on trips. If alcoholic beverages are found, you will be asked to kindly return the beverages to your vehicle. If someone refuses inspection or refuses to leave alcoholic beverages behind, they will not be allowed to go on the river… and there will be no refund.
It is important to remember, that the weather on the Grand River… can be totally different from where you are living.
We are good at weather… because we want you to enjoy your trip… not endure it!
So before driving to the Grand River Valley… please check our updated Grand River Weather Alert link on the day of your trip.
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