Durango's Animas River Days Returns With Whitewater Races, Floatie Rodeo, and River Parade

Since 1983, when local paddling legend Nancy Wiley staged Durango's first whitewater rodeo on the Animas, the festival she sparked has grown into one of southwest Colorado's signature river weekends. Animas River Days returns May 29 through June 1, 2026, bringing boatercross, kayak and canoe slalom, a Floatie Rodeo, downriver SUP races, raft slalom, freestyle kayaking, and the costumed river parade that longtime Durango residents consider the weekend's best spectator event, all centered at Santa Rita Park.

The weekend opens Thursday, May 29 with a kickoff party at 2nd Deli and Spirits, with live entertainment, food, and drinks serving as the official launch into four days of competition. Main event windows at Santa Rita Park run Saturday and Sunday, May 30 and 31, stretching from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday's roster stacks the SUP contest, freestyle kayaking, boatercross, and kayak slalom, alongside raft slalom and the downriver SUP race. The River Parade Viewing Party caps the day from the banks of the Animas at Santa Rita Whitewater Park, where costumed paddlers and decorated boats run the rapids for spectators. Sunday shifts into downriver racing across multiple craft types, fly casting, and the final freestyle kayaking rounds before a closing party and live music.

Competitors should plan around athlete meetings scheduled 15 minutes before each race start. Santa Rita Park will be closed to personal vehicles during the festival, so organizers are running a free shuttle from Gate 4 at the Durango Transit Center, departing approximately every 20 minutes between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. An online auction running throughout the weekend offers river gear, whitewater boats, and items from local Durango businesses, with proceeds supporting youth paddling scholarships.

Animas River Days operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and its aims extend well beyond the race podium. Sponsorships, entry fees, and auction proceeds back river stewardship programs alongside that scholarship pipeline. Organizers have also set a zero-waste goal for the event, which the festival describes as a first-of-its-kind commitment in Durango's outdoor event calendar. Ska Brewing's beer garden will be on-site through the main competition days.

Durango's Whitewater Park has previously hosted U.S. National team trials for freestyle, slalom, and wild water events, and Animas River Days has drawn paddlers from around the world across more than four decades since Wiley's inaugural rodeo. One practical note for anyone planning to bring the full crew: dogs, cats, and, per the official event guidance, "pet raccoons" are not permitted on the event grounds.