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Call it America’s river—a spectacular, winding, roaring, and (sometimes) placid waterway that formed the Grand Canyon and helps feed the nation. Its mighty currents also make for a world-class outdoor playground, and we’ve got an insider’s guide to the best places to swim, hike, bird, bike, and surf. Yes, surf.

Words & Photographs by Peter McBride

Just as my legs start to burn, I realize I’m riding the longest wave of my life: I’ve been on the board for more than 45 minutes. In fact, this one break will last longer than my lifetime of rides combined. And it isn’t over. I glide over the green-brown water that roils under my surfboard, a perfect curl on a perfect day, some 1,300 miles from the nearest ocean. This hidden spot near Grand Junction, Colorado, offers one of the more unexpected ways to experience the Colorado River—a lively lifeline for some 30 million people in seven states and Mexico.

I grew up on this river. It sustains my family’s cattle ranch. A few years ago, after hearing that it was in danger from drought, consumption, and climate change, I decided to follow it all the way from source to sea, by foot, boat, plane, bike, you name it. I learned firsthand why this majestic body of water that is so loved—and litigated—captivates not only the American West but also the world. The Colorado River is one of those things you have to experience before you die, before you can say you saw America, saw the world. 

But be warned: It’s 1,450 miles from beginning to end, and that’s if you just follow the river. Between late fall and early spring, you can ski or snowshoe on Colorado’s Continental Divide, gliding over snowfields that shape the river’s headwaters. Or you can drive to Rocky Mountain National Park and watch moose wading in the melted snowpack: the first steps of the river’s southward march. On the other end, near Mexico, you can see more species of birds in one afternoon than most people see in a lifetime. I once spent an entire day focusing my cameras on the infinite ruby red eyes of an American coot. 

In between is one wonder after another. Hiking down the Grand Canyon’s Bright Angel Trail is like flying south through a range of climate zones. It might be snowing at the rim when you start out; keep walking and you might see a rainbow below you; before you’ve gone five miles you’re in a flowery late spring. Then there’s that manmade wonder, the Hoover Dam, made of enough concrete to build a four-lane road from Boston to Seattle.

And that’s just a visual take of the Colorado. The truth is, you’ve probably already tasted it if you’ve run a faucet in the Southwest or eaten lettuce from the area’s vast, irrigated farms. And this leads me to the darker part of this sunny river. For six million years it flowed across its wide delta in Mexico, creating one of the largest desert estuaries in North America. But in the late 1990s, it stopped. The river no longer flows all the way to the Sea of Cortez.

We can help it resume its course, if we have the will. But first, you’ll want to visit it upriver. Cherish its beauty and value its precious water. And consider bringing a surfboard.

Photograghs of Peter McBride’s trek fill the pages of The Colorado River: Flowing Through Conflict, which he co-authored with Jonathan Waterman. 

RAFT 
Cataract Canyon Utah 

Best floated over a four- to six-day trip, Cataract Canyon, a 96-mile stretch in Canyonlands National Park, is home to some of the river’s largest navigable rapids. Where the Colorado meets the Green River, prepare for churning waters with names like Little Niagara and Satan’s Gut, and the infamous Big Drop, which can reach spring flows of more than 50,000 cubic feet per second. (Translation: Hold on tight!) Then relax: The canyon’s tranquil stretches outnumber its treacherous ones. BOOK IT oars.com 

SWIM
Saddle Canyon arizona

Hidden streams like this one, located deep inside the Grand Canyon, populate the river’s desert country. Here, crisp, clear water offsets soaring summer temps. BOOK IT gcex.com

FISH 
Roaring Fork River Colorado

Throughout the Colorado River Basin, fly fishermen famously stalk ever-elusive trout. Tributaries like the Roaring Fork River (shown here) and the Frying Pan in Colorado, the Green River in Utah, and many others, offer world-class angling opportunities and scenery to match.BOOK IT fryingpananglers.com; spinnerfall.com

BIKE
White Rim Trail Utah

Across Utah, trails that range in difficulty from easy to technical shadow the river’s march to the sea. One particularly unforgettable foray: the White Rim Trail, a 100-mile loop that crisscrosses ancient sandstone formations in Canyonlands National Park. BOOK IT rimtours.com

KAYAK
Glenwood Canyon Colorado

You can witness this remarkable 19-mile stretch by car (an elevated section of Interstate 70 was built inside the canyon, creating one of the most scenic drives in America), bike, or on foot (a trail hugs the water)—but some say the best views come from the vantage point of a kayak, navigating the waters beneath rock walls that spire 1,000 feet. BOOK IT raftingglenwoodsprings.com

HIKE
Arches National Park Utah

See the river through a sandstone frame as you take in some of the 2,000-plus natural formations found here. Two of the park’s most photographed sights, Balanced Rock and Delicate Arch, are easily reachable via well-traveled paths. The more adventurous will want to sign up for a ranger-led Fiery Furnace tour that crosses loose rock and narrow passes and weaves past grottoes and through slot canyons. As the setting sun floods over the area’s soaring sandstone “fins,” this otherworldly spot conjures up—you guessed it—a fiery furnace. BOOK IT nps.gov/arch

SEE
Hoover Dam arizona and nevadA

Constructed in 1935 to control flooding and provide water and hydroelectric power to the greater West, Hoover Dam was once the largest structure of its kind in the world. While water levels in Lake Mead—which was created by the damming of the Colorado River—aren’t what they once were, this engineering spectacle is still vital and awe-inspiring. BOOK IT usbr.gov/lc/hooverdam

BIRD WATCH 
Yuma, Arizona

At the river’s end (shown here, 50 miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border), water is sparse but awareness and efforts to restore its flow are growing. Remnants of the river’s delta still attract thousands of bird species, making spots like the lower basin area near Yuma, Arizona, and Mexico’s Ciénega de Santa Clara wetland a paradise for birders. BOOK IT yumarivertours.com

Learn more about the effort to preserve the colorado river at sonoraninstitute.org.