The Venture Out Project is partnering with our friends, Mikah Meyer of Outside Safe Space and Holiday Rafting Expeditions to announce our inaugural LGBTQ River Rafting Trip series through Cataract Canyon.
And due to the level of early interest, there is now a second trip for a shorter 3-days through Westwater Canyon!!!
This 6-day river trip will take you through the heart of Canyonlands National Park while bringing together members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer community to have a safe, restorative, and fun experience connecting with nature and disconnecting from the hustle of everyday life.
Queer culture has been long-established in cities–where communities can consolidate and flourish–it doesn’t mean we haven’t existed in rural and wild places forever. The LGBTQ community has a long and often overlooked relationship with the natural world and we are hoping to help change that perception. This pilot river trip is a chance to intentionally reclaim a deep and meaningful connection to these wild places while having a relaxing and thrilling vacation with a supportive community.
Holiday River Expeditions has a longstanding history of fostering an inclusive and restorative ethos on all of our river trips, and was a pioneer in starting women’s specific rafting trips in the mid 1980’s. Now with the leadership of Lauren Wood, Holiday’s 3rd generation co-owner, we have centered queer and non-binary leadership from the top down in Holiday’s management and guide culture.
Outside Safe Space and The Venture Out Project are both founded by and created for the LGBTQ community as well. Mikah Meyer has been an outspoken advocate for the queer community in outdoor spaces since starting a long-won journey to visit every national park in a very visible way starting in 2016. The Venture Out Project is committed to facilitating a variety of wilderness experiences that are for the queer and trans community, by the queer and trans community.
We are all beyond excited to take the next step creating this intentional safe and liberating space on some of America’s most iconic rivers.
Legendary Cataract Canyon sits in the heart of Utah’s Canyonlands National Park. Our whitewater rafts offer dynamic and comfortable transportation to side canyon grotto’s, waterfalls and ancient Pueblo ruins that are otherwise inaccessible within the Park. On this backdoor expedition through Canyonlands we see the most vivid contrast between serene tranquility and all-out high adventure with world class whitewater.
This is a trip intended for adults 18 years & older. While sober folks are more than welcome it will not be an explicitly sober trip. Additionally, due to the historic lack of accessibility to a wilderness experience of this nature within BIPOC* communities we are also intentionally setting aside seats for individuals identifying as QT-BIPOC. If that is how you identify please let us know when booking!
*BIPOC stands for Black Indigenous & People of Color
Read More about this unique place: Insider’s Guide to Rafting the Colorado River through Cataract Canyon.