Maryland White Water Rafting

Maryland White Water Rafting Fun on the Savage & Upper Yough Rivers, and in Ohiopyle!

Fantastic Rafting is Close to Deep Creek Lake in Maryland

 

Deep Creek Lake is close to fantastic Youghiogheny River white water rafting trips in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania and in Friendsville, Maryland. Wilderness Voyageurs’ adventure center in Ohiopyle PA is only 33 miles from Deep Creek Lake and offers family-friendly Middle and Lower Youghiogheny Rafting.   Only a half hour from from Deep Creek Lake is the Upper Youghiogheny River, home to the biggest whitewater rafting in Maryland!  Are you staying at Wisp Resort, close to Deep Creek Lake? Guests there love to head to Ohiopyle for an awesome day trip of rafting fun and lots more at Wilderness Voyageurs complete adventure center headquarters beside the Yough River and Great Allegheny Passage rail trail.

 

Upper Yough River Maryland Rafting – Class 4-5 Whitewater Fun

The beautiful Appalachian mountains in the western end of Maryland create a steep river valley with plenty of rocks for fun, technical whitewater action. This verdant, mountainous area forms the headwaters of the Youghiogheny River, which we call the Upper Youghiogheny. Rafting on the Upper Yough is technical, advanced rafting (Class IV-V!), and runs spring through fall in Friendsville, Maryland — only 20 minutes from Ohiopyle, PA!

 

Savage River Maryland Rafting – a World Cup Whitewater Course

Also nearby to Deep Creek Lake is Maryland’s renowned the Savage River, which has been used for the U.S. Olympic Trials and was the site of the 1989 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships! The Savage releases only three times per year, in western Maryland. Both the Savage River and Upper Yough River rafting locations are within easy driving distance from the popular Deep Creek Lake vacation area.

More on Upper Yough Rafting – Limited Releases April-October

The Upper Youghiogheny in Friendsville, Maryland is a steep, fast shot of adrenaline! This whitewater river is a Class IV-V section of rafting fun. The Upper Yough is in Garrett County, Maryland, easily accessible from Interstate 68, and just a couple hours from Washington, D.C. If you are planning a Western Maryland vacation to Deep Creek Lake, include this white water adventure on your itinerary. The water that allows us to run this river comes directly from the bottom of Deep Creek Lake itself!

 

More Savage River Rafting – Only 3 Releases a Season!

Located in Western Maryland this a little known gem hosted the 1989 Whitewater Kayaking World Championships. The Savage River delivers 5 miles of continuous class III-IV whitewater. We maximize the thrills on this river trip by doing a double run of the whitewater, with lunch in between each lap! There are only 3 releases a year from the Savage River Dam – in summer and fall, so be sure to book well in advance if you want to experience this terrific river trip!

 

Ohiopyle PA Rafting on the Lower and Middle Yough – 1 hour from Deep Creek Lake

Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania is a tiny town, home to a huge variety of whitewater rafting adventures! Ohiopyle is also home to Ohiopyle State Park, a popular outdoor recreation area that covers more than 20,000 acres and is the gateway to the Laurel Highlands Mountains.  In Ohiopyle State Park, you can raft on the Middle or Lower Yough sections of the river, which are different degrees of white water intensity, ideal for different experience levels and ages.

Read more about rafting in Ohiopyle.

 

Top Youghiogheny River (Only Runs after Big Rains!)

This is a Class V trip that is only available after big rain storms. An inflatable kayak is the standard craft for this adventure. Previous whitewater rafting experience is required! The initial rapid is a 30 foot cascading waterfall. If you are a big time rafting enthusiast looking for special high water runs or an enthusiastic white water kayaker not quite ready to shred it in your hard boat, check out our Rafting Adventurers Club to get on our alert list for new runs each season. This is a great way to see and experience awesome white water without being a Class 5 kayaker yet!