5.0Twin River Outfitters(162 reviews) - Kayaking down the river might be more work than you expect Thursday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Boat Tours • Water Sports • Boat Rentals • Self-Guided Tours & Rentals • Kayaking & Canoeing
We rented kayaks here for paddling down the James River. We were pleased that this company makes it easy to choose an adventure and rent the equipment. They even lend you the dry cases and dry bags for cell phone, keys, etc. for no additional cost. You make reservations online ahead of time. When you arrive you check in at the building across the street (and can use the restroom or changing rooms). Then you get a lifejacket and have a quick video and oral lesson with a few pointers. Then they bus you up to the point on the river where you get your kayaks. This is where it was a little confusing. You may not remember which type of kayak you had registered for and they are all there together with no person to distribute. For me it was my first time ever kayaking so I didn't know what to do. And no one gave instruction. By watching others I figured out you grab paddles (but I didn't know which ones) and you grab a kayak (and I didn't know which one) and you shove off into the river. That would be well and good if one has ever kayaked before. And I should mention there were class 1 and class 2 rapids on this 9-mile trip down the river. As I was a newbie and had zero instruction, I got turned around backwards right at the top of first rapid. And maybe because of my nerves I got turned around sideways or backward at every rapid. So scary. There should have been kayaking instruction given before ever letting newbies go down the river with no guide. (tears and panic attacks were experienced) The river level was low from summer draught so the current wasn't very swift. We had to literally paddle for 4 hours to get down river to starting point. We are strong and in-shape and it was a lot of tiring work. (Just making it real so you know what to expect.)See more..
We LOVE it here. Staff is awesome and friendly. Tubes are in great condition and clean. I will say that they changed their entry requirements which I am not a fan of. Last year you could just pay and float and now if you pick a 3 hour float vs whole day you have to hurry down the river. By the time we registered, got tubes, life jackets, bussed to drop site and tied tubes it was like 1.5 hours after our start time. I always recommend this place to friends but I hope they reconsider the time requirement as that may make us consider another tubing place in the future. Each time we come we are a group of 9-15 people!See more..
5.0Maiden Voyage Outfitters(5 reviews) - Great time on the river. Friendly, nice service. Thursday: 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM Water Sports • Self-Guided Tours & Rentals • Kayaking & Canoeing
We had a family reunion and wanted to get our bunch on a little adventure for the day. We had a wonderful time. Age 4 to 65 and even the teens had a great time. (no small feat). This company was great. Showed up on time, was nice and friendly. Tubes were clean and newer. The whole experience was very easy, safe, and fun.See more..
Honestly, one of my favorite vacations ever. My son and I spent 3 days in St Paul, VA to take a fishing trip with Dan at Clinch Life Outfitters. For 3 days my almost 9 year old son never once asked to look at a screen, not a TV, tablet, ipad, or nintendo. We walked to a breakfast restaurant, went hiking, and had an awesome day learning to fly fish. Dan is an amazing fishing guide and host and was very patient with me, Tommy, and my father in law (who joined us just for fishing). I got to sleep in and then spend quality time with my son while walking in creeks, picking up a salamander, eating campfire smores, and skipping stones.See more..
This cable park is amazing! We took a lesson and started riding right away. It was so much fun! We can not wait to go back the next time we are at Smith Mountain Lake!See more..
