Grande Ronde Wine and Food Itinerary

Trip Logistics and Itinerary

3 days, 2 nights Wine & Food on the Wallowa & Grande Ronde Rivers

Trip Starts: Minam, OR
Trip Ends: Minam, OR
Put-in: Minam Store, OR
Take-out: Mud Creek (6 miles upstream from Troy, OR)
Trip length: 40 miles
Class II rapids

Each Trip varies slightly with size of group, interests of guests, etc. This is a “typical” trip itinerary that will vary.

Day 1:
Meet us at the Minam Store at 8 am If staying in Walla Walla plan 1 ½ hours for the drive, Elgin 20 minutes, La Grande 45 minutes, Wallowa 20 minutes, and Enterprise 45 minutes. Meet your guides get your drybags, and prepare to launch. Go over basic safety talk, and load into rafts between 9 & 10 am. Lunch will be served riverside. Enjoy lively, fun rapids like House Rock Rapids, Schizo, and Blind Falls on the beautiful, forested Wallowa River! Perhaps stop at Rondowa (the confluence of the Wallowa and Grande Ronde) to hear a story about Buzz Holmstrom. Look for mountain goats, elk, bighorn sheep, black bears, otter, mink, and a slew of other wildlife and birds. Smell the fragrance of new flowers blooming each week. Enjoy a hike up Pine Bar and the Clear Creek drainage to a scenic vista. Arrive to camp already set between 1-2 pm. Evening camp time: swim, hike, play games, relax! Approximately 6pm: Wine and Hor D’oevres followed by dinner at approximately 7 presented by your outstanding guide crew.

Day 2:
Coffee is ready by 6 am. Leisurely breakfast between 7 and 8 am. Pack up camp and send the gear boat downstream. Launch on the river by 10 am. Today’s fun rapids will include Martin’s Misery and Gray's Rapid. Enjoy a side hike up Alder Creek with a great view of the river. Enjoy another fabulous day on the river spotting wildlife and breathing clean mountain air! Check out the cool geology and the only basalt dykes in the roadless stretch. Arrive at camp between 1 & 2 pm to enjoy another evening riverside. Each evening will be a similar routine to the first eating excellent food with a magical back drop.

Day 3:
Repeat morning routine of coffee, breakfast, and camp breakdown before launch. Today the canyon begins to open up from the heavily forested canyon into more gently slopely ridglines often covered with bunchgrass. Take a side hike at Sickfoot Creek to look at the remains of an old homestead and farm complete with another scenic vista of the river. We will arrive to our take-out at Mud Creek shortly after lunch. We will shuttle everyone back to Minam (2 1/2 hour drive) or if you had your vehicle shuttled to Mud Creek, you can begin your travels.

Shuttle Logistics:
Transportation from the take-out to Minam is included in your trip cost. If you would like your car shuttled to the take out at Mud Creek (6 miles upstream of Troy, OR) you will need to arrange that before the trip begins. Otherwise, we will shuttle you back to Minam where your vehicle awaits.